Post by Dave on Aug 10, 2009 21:31:24 GMT
Well I just went down to make a cup of coffee and as I went past the front room door to the kitchen, I heard on the TV something about the African Queen. People my age will remember all to well, that when they were young; the Christmas day film was always the African Queen.
I never remember films normally that I have watched, I can sit with Carol and watch it again and halfway through ask her if I had seen it before. She will often say yes, but I will still have to watch it to the end as I won’t remember how it ended.
That is not the case for the film called The African Queen, maybe it’s just because we watched it every Christmas, but I can almost remember nearly every scene.
So I made my coffee and went into the front room and yes the program was a bout a boat called the African Queen, the programs name was the Hotel Inspector. It seems this boat is moored on the Thames, just outside Reading.
The hotel inspector as you may know, goes to hotels and tries to help them turn the business into a success, often suggesting changes to décor etc. Well to get things moving a party was thrown on the boat, top newspaper people etc were invited. They all get on the boat and the man, who owns it, only starts telling them how the boat nearly turned over and sank and had a few feet of water in the hold.
The inspector took him to one side and gave him an earful, then when it was planned to take them on a short river cruse, it was found that the boat was low on diesel. So it had to be filled up and was an hour late setting off.
At the end of the day things improved and everyone loved it, so much so it was reported that two months later, bookings were going very well.
Below is a piece about the history of the boat.
Cruising Hotel & Restaurant
THE African Queen has intriguing secrets to tell of people and places, amassed during her 83-year long life, many of them shared with her 62-year-old skipper, Andy Cowley.
The Dutch barge is now moored in the tranquil setting of Mill Meadow, Henley, following a tough journey across the Irish Sea.
Many who walk by the river may wonder how this huge cruiser came here and, indeed, what it is doing here. They may have also watched the African Queen being transformed from its former state as the Shannon Princess, an old and battered barge, to a pristine black and white beauty with the charming backdrop of the Thames.
The journey began when Andy and his wife Bonny — who left Henley in 1997 —
So they decided to sell up their hotel and scenic tours business in the Isle of Wight and give up everything to buy a hotel cruise boat.
When they saw an advert for the Shannon Princess, which had been running as a hotel boat between Athlone and Killaloe in Ireland for the past eight years, they knew they had to see it.
Andy said: “Although we could see we would have to make a lot of changes we totally fell in love with her.”
But first they had a challenge on their hands. They had a 102ft, 150 tonne barge built in 1923 to get from Athlone in central Ireland to Henley in England. Originally built in Holland where it was a working boat, the barge was intended for the wide rivers and canals of Europe, not the sea or narrow, low-bridged waterways of Ireland.
After the turmoil of stopping and starting on the rivers and canals, including a two month wait at Killaloe for ideal tides and weather, and a rough 24-hour journey across the Irish sea, Andy finally brought the boat up the English Channel and down the Thames. Seven Irish volunteer skippers helped him contend with negotiating the bridges through Ireland and one other man faced the sea with Andy, taking it in turns to steer.
The journey had taken months rather than days but when they finally reached Henley the major refurbishment started.
The work on the cruiser took eight months to complete and cost the couple £70,000.
It has taken a whole host of professionals such as carpenters and electricians to get the boat to the condition it is now in and Bonny has done most of the design work. Her skills come from a career as an architectural draughtswoman for 26 years.
Renovations have also been carried out inside. There is a restaurant, bar area and kitchen and downstairs there are en-suite rooms for guests who can have a two-night break on the barge while cruising up and down the Thames. They will also experience traditional Cape of Good Hope cuisine by Bonny, who is a born and bred South African and loves catering. She and Andy live in the old captain’s quarters.
“The last owner, Irishman Rory Gibbons, told me a tale about the boat once being blessed by a priest when he was having problems with it, and it ran fine after that.”
It is only a tale, says Andy, but he still keeps the crucifix and holy water in the engine room.
He added: “We want to show people a part of the world they will have never seen before. Unless you’re very wealthy you will never get to see the Thames in this setting. And this is such a peaceful and beautiful part of the world. We think this type of thing will help encourage tourism to the area.
I never remember films normally that I have watched, I can sit with Carol and watch it again and halfway through ask her if I had seen it before. She will often say yes, but I will still have to watch it to the end as I won’t remember how it ended.
That is not the case for the film called The African Queen, maybe it’s just because we watched it every Christmas, but I can almost remember nearly every scene.
So I made my coffee and went into the front room and yes the program was a bout a boat called the African Queen, the programs name was the Hotel Inspector. It seems this boat is moored on the Thames, just outside Reading.
The hotel inspector as you may know, goes to hotels and tries to help them turn the business into a success, often suggesting changes to décor etc. Well to get things moving a party was thrown on the boat, top newspaper people etc were invited. They all get on the boat and the man, who owns it, only starts telling them how the boat nearly turned over and sank and had a few feet of water in the hold.
The inspector took him to one side and gave him an earful, then when it was planned to take them on a short river cruse, it was found that the boat was low on diesel. So it had to be filled up and was an hour late setting off.
At the end of the day things improved and everyone loved it, so much so it was reported that two months later, bookings were going very well.
Below is a piece about the history of the boat.
Cruising Hotel & Restaurant
THE African Queen has intriguing secrets to tell of people and places, amassed during her 83-year long life, many of them shared with her 62-year-old skipper, Andy Cowley.
The Dutch barge is now moored in the tranquil setting of Mill Meadow, Henley, following a tough journey across the Irish Sea.
Many who walk by the river may wonder how this huge cruiser came here and, indeed, what it is doing here. They may have also watched the African Queen being transformed from its former state as the Shannon Princess, an old and battered barge, to a pristine black and white beauty with the charming backdrop of the Thames.
The journey began when Andy and his wife Bonny — who left Henley in 1997 —
So they decided to sell up their hotel and scenic tours business in the Isle of Wight and give up everything to buy a hotel cruise boat.
When they saw an advert for the Shannon Princess, which had been running as a hotel boat between Athlone and Killaloe in Ireland for the past eight years, they knew they had to see it.
Andy said: “Although we could see we would have to make a lot of changes we totally fell in love with her.”
But first they had a challenge on their hands. They had a 102ft, 150 tonne barge built in 1923 to get from Athlone in central Ireland to Henley in England. Originally built in Holland where it was a working boat, the barge was intended for the wide rivers and canals of Europe, not the sea or narrow, low-bridged waterways of Ireland.
After the turmoil of stopping and starting on the rivers and canals, including a two month wait at Killaloe for ideal tides and weather, and a rough 24-hour journey across the Irish sea, Andy finally brought the boat up the English Channel and down the Thames. Seven Irish volunteer skippers helped him contend with negotiating the bridges through Ireland and one other man faced the sea with Andy, taking it in turns to steer.
The journey had taken months rather than days but when they finally reached Henley the major refurbishment started.
The work on the cruiser took eight months to complete and cost the couple £70,000.
It has taken a whole host of professionals such as carpenters and electricians to get the boat to the condition it is now in and Bonny has done most of the design work. Her skills come from a career as an architectural draughtswoman for 26 years.
Renovations have also been carried out inside. There is a restaurant, bar area and kitchen and downstairs there are en-suite rooms for guests who can have a two-night break on the barge while cruising up and down the Thames. They will also experience traditional Cape of Good Hope cuisine by Bonny, who is a born and bred South African and loves catering. She and Andy live in the old captain’s quarters.
“The last owner, Irishman Rory Gibbons, told me a tale about the boat once being blessed by a priest when he was having problems with it, and it ran fine after that.”
It is only a tale, says Andy, but he still keeps the crucifix and holy water in the engine room.
He added: “We want to show people a part of the world they will have never seen before. Unless you’re very wealthy you will never get to see the Thames in this setting. And this is such a peaceful and beautiful part of the world. We think this type of thing will help encourage tourism to the area.