Probably one of the most important moments in recent waterfront history was the arrival of the former Mersey Ferry the Royal Daffodil (previously the Overchurch), now without its title ‘Royal’ since being decommissioned, on Monday 18th November in a very careful and controlled entry into the Dock system having journeyed on the River from Garston Dock.
It was a perfect arrival for one of the most iconic boats ever to grace the Mersey. It will have been travelled on hundreds of times by thousands of people and we are very fortunate not to have lost this boat as we did her sister ship the Royal Iris now rotting away on the banks of the Thames.
And we have Liverpool actor and philanthropist Phil Olivier to thank for saving the Royal Daffodil from a similar fate. It is estimated that Olivier has spent £3.5m so far on refitting the Daffodil to contain a cafe, restaurant and event space which wil be rolled out gradually from 9th December when it first opens to the public.
The above video made by Dan and George from Natural Selection is a beautiful record of this amazing boat leaving Garston Dock and making it’s final journey on the Mersey to its new home at Canning Dock where it can be enjoyed once more by thousands of local people and tourists, many of whom will have fond memories of sailing on this magnificent vessel.
Now we can all play our part in supporting this venture and showing our appreciation of this investment by making use of the cafe and restaurant once they open in early December. Engage is very keen to see how we can use this exceptional opportunity to bring waterfront residents together on such a fascinating vessel moored in the dock system. We hope you are as excited as we are by this new arrival!
You can find out more about the project to restore the Daffodil on their website HERE and also on their newsletter HERE
And news items about it have appeared on the following sites:
- Place North West: Flower Power 15.11.24
- Liverpool Echo: Daffodil floating restaurant 18.11.24