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River City Bar - Brunel's SS Great Britain

UK Pub Trade Sales News Added: November 16, 2009 01:56:40 PM

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UK Pub Trade Directory - : Pubs & Bars For Sale: Bristol

Property News - River City Bar - Brunel's SS Great Britain

THE INCREDIBLE ‘PUB CRAWL’ JOURNEY FOR SHIP’S HISTORY

VOLUNTEERS and staff are embarked on a pub crawl of Bristol’s Floating Harbour as part of their mission to gather memories of the ss Great Britain’s epic salvage and return in 1970.‘The Incredible Journey’ is capturing the stories of those directly involved in the salvage in the Falkland Islands from divers and crew who successfully raised the ss Great Britain to BBC documentary maker Ray Sutcliffe and the Trust’s Lord Strathcona who undertook much of the planning.Many of those involved in the salvage are now in their 60s, 70s and 80s.But equally relevant to the project are the memories of those who have tales to share of the ship’s last few miles up the River Avon, under the Clifton Suspension Bridge, and into the Floating Harbour.

The ship eventually completed her 8,000-mile voyage on July 19 – the same date she was launched in 1843.The ss Great Britain Trust team plans to take a memory collection box and postcards around the city docks to pubs including ‘River City’ (formerly ‘The Albion’), The Cottage, the Nova Scotia, The Ostrich, The Shakespeare, and The Mardyke.They hope to jog memories with 39-year-old images of the ss Great Britain’s impressive hulk, covered in barnacles. Memories already collected on postcards, through emails and the Trust’s own website record the emotions felt on the day.

John Prior, whose father ran ‘The Albion’ (now a café bar, renamed ‘River City’) on the Cumberland Road in 1970, has already shared his memories with the team.According to records, approximately 100,000 people lined the River Avon to watch the ship return. An extraordinary eight million people watched events unfold on the television with presenter and household name Magnus Magnusson.Today Brunel’s ss Great Britain is a multi award-winning visitor attraction – this week (November 5) receiving silver in The British Travel Awards for ‘Best Theme Park/ Visitor Attraction’. More than 150,000 people visit every year, including 17,000 schoolchildren, in addition to the 16,000 venue hire guests.

Staff and volunteers will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of the ship’s return in 1970 with a series of events. ‘The Incredible Journey’ exhibition, featuring stories, pictures and film, will open next July in the Baker Gallery of the attraction’s Dockyard Museum.Rob Merchant of ‘River City’, the new contemporary café bar, on Cumberland Road, was a former dockworker and crane driver in Bristol and Avonmouth. Rob, who also works as an instructor for the Bristol Sailing School and as a volunteer crane driver in the Floating Harbour, said: “It was a big thing at the time. The ship was coming back! I was about 18 and was working at Macarthy’s in the Bristol docks when they brought her back. I remember the tugs, dragging her in; everyone was talking about it. “You could see this rusty old hulk, and you have to remember I was used to new boats and ships being launched from Charles Hill’s dock. It is wonderful what has been done with the ss Great Britain.

She is a real icon for the city.”Alyson Merchant said: “I was about 10 at the time and remember quite clearly seeing the ship come back, on the television.” Dr Kate Rambridge, the ss Great Britain Trust’s Oral History Project Officer and Volunteer Coordinator commented: “We are hoping to gather memories from local people who have lived, worked and socialised around the city’s old docks.“There are memory collection boxes scattered around the city, but we are hoping that by going on a pub crawl we will not only find some interesting people and recollections, but also encourage Bristolians to talk about the project.”Kate, who is pregnant, will be sticking to orange juice during the pub crawl, leaving the drinking to the locals at Bristol’s Harbourside pubs.

The oral history project, costing £90,000, is supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund and members of the ss Great Britain Trust.·

Please use the memory collection boxes or email your memories to salvage@ssgreatbritain.org, or log on to www.ssgreatbritain.org·

Clips of the BBC film ‘The Great Iron Ship’ (part of the Chronicle history series) can be viewed by logging on to: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/articles/2005/12/06/pwaod_ship_002_feature.shtml

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