intheboatshed.net

The Mersey Shanty Festival is under threat from local councillors and an arts establishment that doesn’t think sea songs are a worthwhile contribution to culture. I’ve no doubt it’s all part of the widespread but patronising and stupid line of thinking we have in England that says that culture is only worth having if it’s either posh or foreign. It’s a view that has led to many aspects of working people’s lives in this country being lost to history, including two things of particular importance Continue Reading »

Alert

Will Stirling of Cutters & Luggers has kindly sent us a fantastic set of pictures of his current project Alert, which he recently launched without the aid of a crane.

‘I made sheer legs, well stayed fore and aft with a wheel bolted on each. The boat unmasted and without ballast weighs about ten tons.

‘I jacked her down off her keel blocks on to short lengths of scaffolding pole, and then Continue Reading »

If you’ve been admiring the punt described in Chapter 3 of Boat Building for Amateurs, my guess is that you might also be interested in seeing some of these elegant river boats in action.

I took this collection some years ago with a low-spec camera, but I think they paint a pleasantly bustling scene, and show quite a lot of useful detail, if you’re planning on building one. If you are, please don’t forget that we’d love to hear your story.