Since being withdrawn in 1963 Kingswear Castle’s sister Compton Castle has led a nomadic career finding work initially as static tea rooms at Kingsbridge in the 1960s during which she was used as a film set for the TV series The Onedin Line starring Peter Gilmore and Anne Stallybrass. After a spell laid up at Looe she ended up firstly as a cafe and flower shop and finally as a fish and chip shop in Truro.
Inevitably with no structural work over the years to her hull the general fabric of the ship has deteriorated to a very poor condition. As a result work is due to begin scrapping her on Wednesday 25th June 2025 as part of a £23.6 million wider development of the Truro waterfront.
Read more at cornishstuff.com.
Kingswear Castle returned to service in 2023 after the first part of a major rebuild which is designed to set her up for the next 25 years running on the River Dart. The Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle Trust is now fund raising for the second phase of the rebuild. You can read more about the rebuilds and how you can help if you can here.
John Megoran
