- PS Ryde
PS "Ryde" was a
paddle steamer commissioned and run by Southern Railway as a passenger ferry between mainlandEngland and theIsle of Wight from1937 to1969 . She saw wartime service and later became a nightclub. As of 2008 she sits abandoned at moorings on theRiver Medina .PS "Ryde" 1937 - 1939
PS "Ryde" was commissioned by Southern Railway in
1936 as a sister ship for PS "Sandown". Costing £46,000 she was built byWilliam Denny and Brothers inDumbarton onClydeside . After her launch on 23rd April1937 she replaced the PS "Duchess of Norfolk" on thePortsmouth toRyde Pier passenger ferry service.HMS "Ryde" 1939 - 1945
In 1939 PS "Ryde" and PS "Sandown" were requisitioned by the
Royal Navy . She was renamed as HMS "Ryde" and initially both were used as Minesweepers in theDover Straits . After two years "Ryde" was converted to an anti-aircraft ship and served on the Thames Estuary and atHarwich . In May 1944 she traveled toPortsmouth from where she embarked to theNormandy coast to take part in the naval component ofOperation Neptune onD-Day .PS "Ryde" 1945 - 1970
Reverting to her to her pre-war name on her return to Southern Railway in August
1945 PS "Ryde" worked on her former route and undertook a variety of chartered trips. However the nationalisedBritish Railways begun to commission more modern motor vessels and in1969 it was decided to retire her."Ryde Queen" 1970 - present
Avoiding the scrap yard PS "Ryde" was bought by two Isle of Wight entrepreneurs and in September
1970 she began a new career as a nightclub. Renamed as the "Ryde Queen" she replaced the smaller PS "Medway Queen " in moorings at Binfield Marina on the River Medina near Newport cite web| title=Medway Queen Paddle Steamer |url=http://www.medwayqueen.co.uk/| accessdate=2008-02-24] . In1977 she caught fire but was repaired. However by the late 1980s her popularity waned and the nightclub was closed. She remained derelict and abandoned on her mooring gradually deteriorating. In August2006 her funnel collapsed cite web| title= Historic vessels at Risk|url=http://www.maritimebritain.co.uk/risklist.html| accessdate=2008-02-24] and she is now possibly beyond repair. cite web| title=Paddle Steamer Ryde|url=http://www.psryde.co.uk/history/| accessdate=2008-02-24]References
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