The African Queen and the Hotel Inspector

August 11, 2009 by Mike · 1 Comment
Filed under: Canals 
Hotel Boat African Queen

Hotel Boat African Queen

One evening in May when we were moored on the Thames at Pangbourne Meadow I noticed the hotel boat African Queen passing by and took this photograph.  I was intrigued that a film crew was on-board and delighted to find that we had possibly formed a backdrop for the filming of Channel 5′s The Hotel Inspector.

Last night (10th August, 9pm, Channel 5) the episode was screened and will be shown again on Friday 14th August at 8pm on Fiver (whatever that is!).  The commentator reminded us time and time again that South African Bonny and Andy Cowley were running a failing business, part Bed and Breakfast and part cruising hotel boat.  Living in the Reading area, where the African Queen permanently moors at Mapledurham, I had never seen any mention of this locally, which is possibly something to do with the lack of customers.

However the hotel inspector put it down to lack of detail, recommending an additional crew member, new decor and having failed to find fault with the cabins, she decided that a flask of hot water would transform the perceived value and have customers flocking in.  I would have recommended a spot of advertising too,  but a coat of paint and some red banners around the deck plus a new blazer for Andy, the boss, was apparently sufficient to transform the business.

Captain Andy was a textbook example of a boater, not a businessman, whose priorities in conversation revolved around stern glands, sinking, grounding and flat batteries not to mention a dinner stopping diatribe about his beard fueled by gulps of wine on his visits to the kitchen.  With a dozen journalists and captains of industry on board he welcomed the party with a tale about water in the bilges, and followed it with excusing himself to supervise a diesel delivery, minutes before the inaugural cruise was due to start.  His wife was quickly shuffled from the kitchen into the spotlight to take over the reception, and managed to get Weil’s disease into her first sentence.  Wonderful – you couldn’t have made it up!

If you get the chance its well worth watching on the repeat or online.  The only disappointment being that any background scenery was restricted to Mapledurham, Reading and Henley and a general muddle over where the boat really was.  Sadly Pangbourne and its moored boats remain on the cutting room floor, so to speak.  Mum will be disappointed. 

The African Queen website

Channel 5 - The Hotel Inspector

Daily Mail article

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A glance at Gloucester

June 29, 2009 by Mike · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Canals 
Gloucester Docks

Gloucester Docks

Continuing the theme of never passing a canal location without finding a excuse to take a closer look, I managed to get a couple of hours in Gloucester Docks last weekend.

I’ve been here before but never noticed the lock – one of the infamous “get it right or else…” locations, where you face the very unusual sight of going up an enormous lock into Gloucester Docks while being carried downstream on the current of the Severn.  Its best done when the lock is set in advance by the lock keeper so you dont have to moor against the wall on your left, as missing the wall is all too easy, ending up being carried past the lock entrance, which would not be much fun.

So today I was lucky enough to see two boats coming in off the river without incident, despite quite a strong flow. 

The docks have extensive moorings for visiting boats, both at the top of the lock and then through the Llantony lift bridge onto the Gloucester and Sharpness canal, and some of these are brand new including those outside the new Sainsburys.  There was plenty of room on this occasion.  The docks have been transformed this month which has seen the opening of the Gloucester Quays designer outlet in May now with dozens of new shops, and in comparison the old shopping centre is now rather run down and mostly closed.

The whole place is rather attractive though, centring around the National Waterways Museum which faces the Nielsen’s traditional boatyard across the water.  That side of the basin is lined with antique shops in the old canal warehouses.

Quite a pleasant place for a couple  of nights I think, but on this occasion it didnt take more than a couple of hours to take in the sights and have a quick look round the museum.  I passed on the option of adding a boat trip to my entry ticket, which was actually free as I have an annual pass to the three BW museums at Ellesemere Port, Gloucester and Stoke Bruerne.

Hotel Boat Oliver Cromwell

Hotel Boat Oliver Cromwell

A final look around, including the enormous paddle driver hotel boat “Oliver Cromwell“  – now permanently installed in the docks as a floating restaurant and event venue, but cruising the Severn until last year, brings home the fact that this is indeed a far cry from the narrow canals!  I wish I had been here for the Tall Ships Festival in May and there seems plenty of other events going on to make this a location worth returning to, hopefully next time with the boat.

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Hotel with a difference in Sheffield Basin

March 24, 2009 by Mike · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Canals 
Houseboat Hotels, Sheffield Victoria Quays

Houseboat Hotels, Sheffield Victoria Quays

I rarely let the opportunity pass to visit a new canal location and so during a brief visit to Sheffield this weekend, I was able to take yet another walk down memory lane and check out Sheffield Canal basin which seems to be known better these days as Victoria Quays.

The basin isn’t the easiest place to reach by boat and you certainly wouldn’t want to moor outside on the towpath on the way into the city, so I find it rather amazing that a recent Canal World Forums discussion mentions that Calder Valley Marine are now in charge of all moorings in Sheffield, including visitor moorings, although on site there is no sign that this is about to happen.  I hope it doesn’t.

Amongst the permanent moorers in the Basin are Ruby and Lily May – better known as Houseboat Hotels (.com).  I notice from their website that they have a number of awards for innovation and I only wish there were more of these around the country.  Hotel boats normally cruise in summer and lay up in winter so this is a nice alternative.  The only other I know of was in Birmingham where the Away2Stay hotel boat offers B&B in Gas Street Basin.

Both of these operations offer very reasonable prices when compared to renting a cloned box room in the new mass market hotels which have sprung up near all city centre canals.  I know where I would be booking into, assuming of course, that I was not visiting by boat.

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