Author: johnmegoran

Where was PS Consul – sporting a primrose funnel and bottle green hull – 63 years ago on 5th August 1963? What was she trying to do and was she having any luck in the doing of it? : 5th August 1963: Consul – Kingswear Castle

On Saturday 4th August 1962 Medway Queen was rostered for two round trips between Strood and Southend. To find out more and why a crew member was sacked: 4th August 1962: Medway Queen – Kingswear Castle

On the return from her day trip from Southampton and Bournemouth to Cherbourg on Tuesday 3rd August 1937 Balmoral didn’t make it back to Southampton in the evening. To find out more: 3rd August 1937: Balmoral – Kingswear Castle

On 2 August 1924 we could have enjoyed a day trip down the N Welsh Coast from Liverpool to Llandudno, Beaumaris, Bangor and Menai Bridge. To find out more: 2nd August 1924: La Marguerite – Kingswear Castle

Living in London Saturday 1 August 1936? Fancy a trip on one of the new electric trains to Brighton, then on to Shanklin IOW by paddle steamer and home again for supper? Here’s how it was done: 1st August 1936: London to Shanklin via Brighton – Kingswear Castle

In 1939 the newly arrived Vecta displaced Princess Elizabeth on the Southampton/Cowes ferry which was sent to Bournemouth for the summer displacing PS Corfe Castle. Then Bournemouth Queen had boiler trouble so by Monday 31st July it was all change again: 31st July 1939: Bournemouth – Kingswear Castle

On Monday 30 July 1962 my 10 year old self took my Auntie Mary on a morning cruise from Weymouth to Lulworth Cove on Consul. This is what happened: 30th July 1962: Consul – Kingswear Castle

In the peak days of the 1962 season Consul ran seven days a week, the only respite for her crew being on days trips were cancelled due to the weather. On Sunday 29 July she offered two afternoon cruises and an evening Jazz Cruise. To find out more: 29th July 1962: Consul – Kingswear Castle

On Thursday 28 July 1960 you could have enjoyed a day trip from Torquay to Plymouth aboard PS Princess Elizabeth and got back almost an hour late. For more about this very long day: 28th July 1960: Princess Elizabeth – Kingswear Castle

If we had been in Bournemouth on Thursday 27th July 1899 we could have bought a ticket to join PS Brodick Castle for a day trip to Totland Bay, Cowes or Portsmouth. For more details: 27th July 1899: Brodick Castle – Kingswear Castle

As paddle steamers pitch and roll in a seaway water is forced up into the paddle boxes one after the other choking and impeding the rotation of the paddle wheels. How did P & A Campbell try to solve this paddle steamer problem: August 2026: Paddle Box Freeing Ports – Kingswear Castle

Fancy a trip around the IOW on Thursday 26th July 1934 from Southampton aboard PS Lorna Doone with calls along the way at Ryde, Southsea, Sandown, Shanklin and Ventnor? This is how the day panned out with pics: 26th July 1934: Lorna Doone – Kingswear Castle

King George V conducted an inspection of over 200 warships, airships and seaplanes in the Solent during the weekend 25- 27 July 1924. This brought a bonanza for local paddle steamer operators: 25th-27th July 1924: The King’s Spithead Inspection – Kingswar Castle

68 years ago on Thursday 24th July 1958 we could have boarded P & A Campbell’s Cardiff Queen in Swansea for a day trip to Ilfracombe, Clovelly or on to land on Lundy Island. To find out more: 24th July 1958: Cardiff Queen – Kingswear Castle

Had you found yourself at a loose end in Grimsby on the afternoon of Tuesday 23rd July 1935 you could have bought a ticket for the 2 hour afternoon cruise towards Spurn Head aboard the paddle steamer Killingholme: 23rd July 1935: Killingholme – Kingswear Castle

Some paddle steamers ran exciting long day trips to far flung and distant destinations many miles away. Some didn’t. One of the the latter was Ryde. So how did she fill her days pottering about during the peak weeks of her summer season in 1968: 21st July 1968: Ryde – Kingswear Castle

On a wet and windy Monday 21st July 1947 Red Funnel’s paddle steamer Bournemouth Queen returned to service at Bournemouth following a major rebuild after the war. To find out more: 21st July 1947: Bournemouth Queen – Kingswear Castle

The Humber Bridge opened on 24th June 1981 making the Hull – New Holland ferry service redundant. Amazingly, nearly fifty years later much of the Minerva Pier, the Hull paddle steamer terminal, remains albeit in rather derelict condition: Minerva Pier Hull – Kingswear Castle

Rather surprisingly, given that it happened at the opposite end of the country, the Dorset Echo of 10 January 1934 reported that the Clyde paddle steamer Lucy Ashton had run into a shoal of herring off Kilcreggan, with hundreds of fish spun into the air by her paddle wheels. It was such a bizarre little…
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Half a century ago, Capt Arthur Escudier (right) carried hundreds of thousands of passengers between Weymouth, the Channel Islands and France. His quiet competence — and the man himself — are remembered in the June Pictures of the Month on the KC website: June 2026: Capt Arthur Escudier – Kingswear Castle