johnthebridge

Looks like a rhyne culvert, of which there are several under the G and S. Like the one that collapsed and initiated the large breach at my bridge some years ago. No. It was demolished some years ago, unfortunately. There's a newer house there now that was the weir-keeper's base (he also did water control at other locations), but I believe it's passed into private ownership now. The noise when water was being run off in flood would waken the dead.

I'm afraid it wasn't difficult, as I just happened to be a bridge-keeper on the G and S for almost 20 years, and knew the weir and its environs quite well! If you go out of Gloucester northwards on the A38 towards Tewkesbury and turn off right at Down Hatherley Lane, have a look at the house on the left which now appears to be part of the Hatherley Manor Hotel and I imagine formed some sort of gate-keeper's house in the past. https://www.google.com/maps/@51.9020753,-2.2085848,3a,75y,40.16h,88.75t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1smLJOBGRWmO-6UOhPvD51iQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?entry=ttu

Whitminster Weir.

If you want a 70' "historic" boat, why not sell your existing boat and just buy a full length motor? Save you a lot of buggeration at locks...

Insanity bordering on sheer genius! (or t'other way round...) 😁

I remember meeting Edwin F with Ferrous at Audlem, many moons ago. He'd fitted a remotely controlled gearchange and (I think) throttle mechanism (can't now remember the details) and could drive the boat in and out of locks whilst standing on the bank. I also cannot remember now if he could steer it remotely as well, or if he just stepped on and off the boat on entering and leaving the lock. Had a very prolonged chat with him, and found him an absolutely fascinating bloke whose engineering skills were stratospheric.

Is the pub at the sea-lock end, The Turf (?), still in business?

Good stuff David, please keep going. I cannot imagine anyone being offended by what you've written as you've written nothing that might termed such! I visited the Exeter on a few occasions, starting in the early 70s, and found the sea-lock end a very evocative place, looking out on the estuary, especially in the Winter. I seem to remember the small coaster, Cynthia June, visiting the canal, but I might be wrong? She used to come up the Gloucester and Sharpness on occasion, right up to the '80s.

The first (and not the last) time I accidentally fell into the water was when my parents hired a punt on the Ouse at Bedford. I would have been under 10 years old, and I did the classic novice thing of pushing off from the bank and forgetting to jump in soon enough. I seem to remember the name "Silvery Ouse" related to that particular time, but can't be certain. Now I come to look more closely, I think I can count 15 on it, so, a Rugby team outing?😁

No help to the location, but with their general dress code of jackets, ties, college scarf and cricket jumper, to me the blokes resemble a bunch of undergraduates. As usual with period photos, the haircuts and clothes make them appear older, but their faces are fairly young-looking. One of them also appears to be wearing a Gannex raincoat, which would date it to 1951 at the earliest, that being the date when that material was invented. Whatever, they appear to be having a good time.

The OP wrote: "But yes, if anyone knows anything about this builder I would be very interested." For those who apparently missed it, I answered that in my post. Watercraft was owned by Roger Apperley. Roger Hatchard would say the same, and I'm not aware of Bryan Jones being connected with Watercraft.

Watercraft was run by Roger Apperley. I liked him, he was a nice bloke and rebuilt an old tug for me that I'd bought off Fred Larkham. Fred, in his usual style brought her up-river from his yard at Newnham on a flood, over the weir and round the corner into Gloucester Lock. On an outboard. She'd been used by Fred for work on the Severn Lights Board and Roger did a good job on the steelwork. We did her by eye, out of water and when we put her back in, she looked too top-heavy. I'd half modelled her on a Pedro Donky. I called her Severn, but the ladies I sold her to re-named her Severn Belle. This would have been about 1986 at a guess. I should have added that Roger's main interest were the Sprays designed by Bruce Roberts. I believe Roger went on to become Engineer on the Avon., although I think he's probably retired by now.

I bought Sutton (the Big Northwich) in the early 80s, when she was called the Laidley Worm and was tied the top side of the bridge at Norbury. I got David Harris to do all the work on her, the long list of which I won't bore you with here. I then sold her to someone who became a friend through that sale and he is still the owner, some 37+ year later. He bought her from me as an unconverted boat (except for the slightly extended back cabin), and he then had Roger Farringdon put the full length cabin on her and Chris Lloyd fitted that out. My friend has recently told me he now wishes to sell her.

That's a cracking boat. I do like the interior. Makes Hydrus/Raven look a bit silly at the last price I saw, was it £107,000?

I sold Lynx to David Daines around 1982 (I think). I did a deal with a friend who'd had her converted to the format shown here, albeit she had a different livery then. He took a GM tug I owned, called Valiant, in exchange. I was always lead to believe that the steelwork had been done by Ted at Norbury. She had a blocked counter, making her look too tall at the stern, but the upside to that was that she drew nothing and went anywhere, also she was probably the fastest of all the old ones I've had. I think David did something about the appearance of that height by painting the lower counter round black and ballasting her down somewhat. I seem to remember she was one of the straightest Grand Unions I'd had, too. Or, one of the least clattered around and with few dings in her.

https://www.adrianflux.co.uk/influx/blog/ford-transit-supervan-1/

I agree, neither were prime examples, but Gregory's took the prize. Do you remember Simolda, at Nantwich? They had some some pretty weird ideas on steelwork.

Never had to deal with them but whenever I went past them, I couldn't but help notice just how run down and poor their boats looked. Back to pubs and, although not a pub as such, I remember one or two good nights at the Wolverhampton Boat Club. Charlie Foster (from whom I bought the Vulcan in the '70s) and his son Horace were regulars (H actually lived in a caravan on site) and the Banks's was always on top form there.

I like the "had to go for a beer..." ! Forced, of course. Davvys and a cob. What better lunch? You've reminded me that in the early '70s I sold a Lotus to the proprietor of Valley Cruisers.

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Thanks but, I can only think you didn't read to the end of my post.

The only really memorable night I remember in the Anchor occurred sometime in the late '70s. I went in one cold Winter night and the only patrons were two chaps and a woman seated by the fire, drinking beer with whisky chasers. Striking up a conversation with them, they said they were off the solitary hire-boat, tied down by the front gate. They were complaining about how they'd found the boat, a fairly long Dartline, awkward to handle and I tried to give them some tips on what they might do to make life easier. As the evening progressed and, as these things do, we became ever more familiar, I asked them what they all did for a living. One turned out to be the captain of the carrier Hermes, one the navigating officer and one the ship's doctor. The "Dartmouth filter" accents should have told me that, much sooner.

The Anchor served 6x when I used to go there, from the '70s onwards. When Graham, the then landlord was alive, being a beer drinker, it was usually alright, but I have to say that when his wife, not being either a beer drinker nor the cheeriest of people, took over the running of the place, I think I never really had a beer there that you could call halfway decent. I always thought the place over-hyped and could have been a really great pub, had the widow sold it to someone more enthusiastic and sympathetic towards the customer.

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Yes, apologies, I forgot to make that clear. The landlord also retained a good selection of boat yard stuff in his sheds, tools and things. Wonder what happened to it all? And, on reading your newspaper clipping, I see I was right about the Bass. Any idea when that clipping was printed? Looks to be about the same time as I was there.