Gloucester Waterways Museum
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3.9  Passenger Boats

Queen Boadicea II
      Queen Boadicea II was built in 1936 by J I Thornycroft of Southampton and started her working life on the Thames carrying passengers between Westminster and Greenwich. In 1940, she was called upon to join Operation Dynamo - the evacuation of troops from Dunkirk. Commanded by Lieut J S Seal RNR, she made several trips into Dunkirk harbour which was being shelled and attacked from the air.
     After the war, she continued working on the Thames, going up river as far as Kew and Richmond. Then in 1976, she was sold for work on the River Dart and later was based on the Tamar doing trips around Plymouth dockyard and acting as a relief for the Cremyll ferry.
     She came to Gloucester in 1991 after an epic voyage around Lands End, and she now runs regular 45 minute trips down the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal and back.

King Arthur
     King Arthur was built by G.T.Marine of Brentford in 1987/88 with welded steel plates for use on the River Thames tideway. She is powered by a six cylinder Gardner diesel engine and has a passenger capacity of 200. The layout consists of an upper open deck with fixed individual seats, while the lower enclosed deck has occasional tables and benches with a bar.
     In 1997, she was taken by low loader from Hampton Court to Avonmouth and then continued under her own power to join Queen Boadicea II at Gloucester. She usually makes special cruises on the Gloucester & Sharpness Canal and on the River Severn.

For Index to Museum Notes, see www.gloucesterdocks.me.uk/museumnotes