8 January 2011Updated below with pictures:As most of you will know the Spirit of Britain, P&O's spectacular new ferry, arrives in Dover sunday January 9. It will commence trials immediately and in a very short time will be fully operational on channel crossing duty. Obviously this is fascinating and cheery news. We can always use the positive in Dover and this is very positive. Should be a great sunday in Dover.
Alas as you can see we have no picture of the vessel as of yet. So we need help! Any of you guys out there... if you can manage to get a picture when the ship arrives tomorrow please send it in to me. We will add any pictures we get to this page. Send in to Paul Boland on dover7@msn.com. Also see the thread in our FORUM called P&O Spirit of Britain...more info there.
The other notable event this weekend is FA CUP Football. Dover Athletic as we all know are having a terrific run. This weekend they are away to Huddersfield Town. Tough opposition, but can they win? We hope to have more on that in due course but for now enjoy the number of Football threads running in our Forum. Latest News: Sadly it wasnt the dream story many of us were hoping for, Dover were 2-0 down in 8 minutes and it stayed that way til the end of the match. Huddersfield were a classier and tougher opposition and Dover met something of a brick wall, but by all accounts played very well and did the town proud...and so the dream run is over. More info from the guys in our FORUM section.
Latest News/Pictures:
Spirit of Britain Arriving Sunday Morning 11am:
The ship has just arrived in Dover Harbour in blazing sunshine and it was greeted by hundreds of people. Many cars came along to the seafront to witness it all and the clifftop vantage points were awash with eager enthusiasts. The tugboats sprayed their merry welcome into the sunlit air and it was all quite a glorious spectacle. A very exciting day in Dover and for Dover. Not too many people would have been disappointed.
Pictures/words Paul Boland.
See also the picture packed thread in our FORUM section.
Pictures taken there are by a whole brace of our ace members.
...the latest statement from the guys at the Port of Dover re the new ship..please read on...
Port of Dover welcomes Spirit of Britain
The Port of Dover welcomes the arrival of P&O Ferries ‘Spirit of Britain’, the largest ferry ever designed for the Dover Strait.
In advance of the arrival of the ship, the Port of Dover commissioned £8m of investment in its infrastructure in the last 2 years in order to support major customer P&O Ferries and their long-term plans for the future. This follows the £36 million of investment in two new larger berths in 2006, without which the new ships could not have been accommodated.
Major works include the extension of a berthing pier and the partial removal of the WW1 blockships in order to ensure ‘Spirit of Britain’ will be berthed safely in the port and also to ensure safer navigation within the harbour for this new addition to the Dover-Calais service.
Bob Goldfield, Chief Executive, Port of Dover said, “We are pleased to welcome Spirit of Britain to her new home at the Port of Dover. The port has responded positively to its customer’s needs by adapting its infrastructure over a number of years in order to accommodate the new arrival and it has done so whilst still maintaining the level of service expected of a world-class port and the gateway to £80bn of trade each year.”
Dover Harbour Board has spent over £125 million in the last 10 years on direct port investment. Further investment is planned in the Eastern Docks to maintain essential capacity in the short term with a £400 million proposal for a second ferry terminal awaiting Government approval.
Aerial picture of harbour by our very own Paul 'Scotchie' Wells.
