The iconic steam ship known as the ‘Glasgow Boat’ is undergoing a £10m revamp to carry passengers once again on the River Clyde.
The TS Queen Mary, a 90-year-old Clyde steamer, is one step closer to being fully restored and able to carry passengers once again. This is thanks to a generous anonymous donation of £1 million, which will be used to upgrade the vessel’s steel decks. The fundraising campaign for the restoration project has now raised nearly £5 million of its £10 million target.
TS Queen Mary is the last remaining turbine steamship built in Scotland, and in its prime, it was known as “Britain’s finest pleasure steamer”. The vessel carried up to 13,000 passengers each week on “doon the watter” trips from Glasgow to popular destinations such as Dunoon, Rothesay, Millport and Arran. Its connection to Glasgow earned it the affectionate nickname “The Glasgow Boat”.
The steamer was retired in 1977 and spent several years as a floating restaurant on the Thames before being towed back to the Clyde in 2016. Initially, it was thought it might become a static attraction, but two years ago, Princess Anne, who is Royal Patron of TS Queen Mary, announced plans to restore the ship to working order.
The TS Queen Mary was named after Queen Mary, the wife of King George V and great-grandmother of Princess Anne. The late Robbie Coltrane, known for his roles in Harry Potter and Cracker, was a supporter of the restoration project. Hollywood star Sam Neill is TS Queen Mary’s “Commonwealth Patron”.
Iain Sim, Chairman of Friends of TS Queen Mary, expressed gratitude for the anonymous donation, saying, “We are overwhelmed by the generosity of this individual. It delivers a massive boost to our fundraising endeavor which has caught the public mood across Britain and around the world. The individual who made such a substantial cash gift wishes to remain anonymous, and we, of course, respect that request. But to say we are over the moon is putting it mildly.”
The TS Queen Mary is currently berthed in Glasgow near the Science Centre and has become a symbol of Scotland’s maritime heritage. The vessel’s restoration is expected to attract tourists from around the world, and the project is an exciting opportunity to preserve a piece of Scottish history for generations to come.
