The Ross Revenge was a top earner out of Grimsby for many years and was at one time the longest sidewinder in the world, but after the Cod War in the 1970s she took on an even more glamorous role as the pop pirate radio station, Radio Caroline.

The ship is currently moored in a private berth at Tilbury Docks where, against all the odds, a group of enthusiasts are managing to keep her in fairly reasonable condition.

Now rock star Rick Wakeman of the bands 'Strawbs 'and 'Yes' fame, along with DJs like Keith Skues and Johnnie Walker are calling for the ship to be placed under a preservation order in the same way as any historic and notable building.

Wakeman said: "In my mind there is no doubt that the Ross Revenge should be made a grade listed boat. She harvested the seas for Grimsby for many years and then did great service as Radio Caroline. In fact her engines were so powerful she once towed an aircraft carrier. Grimsby should be proud of her."

Johnnie Walker, now with BBC Radio-2, admitted that he had nostalgic and emotional feelings for the ship, while Keith Skues added: "I think she should be turned into a museum."

Peter Moore, spokesman for the preservation group, said the aim was to make the trawler seaworthy again as her engines were still in fairly good condition. "We have a lot of feeling for her and the ship has a lot of charisma," he added.

In fact, the Ross Revenge was built in Bremerhaven, Germany in 1960 and first served with an Icelandic fishing company under the name 'Freyr', with the Reykjavik registration RE1.

In 1963 she was sold to Ross Trawlers at Grimsby and renamed the Ross Revenge and re-registered as GY 718 where she became a highly successful earner serving off Iceland, Newfoundland and the Barents Sea.

She still holds the world record for the biggest catch in tonnage terms, in 1976 she landed a catch of 3,000 kits of Icelandic cod at Grimsby, which sold for a then record price of £75,597.

But she was also expensive to run, especially when fuel prices started to rise after the Arab-Israeli war in the early 1970s. Then came the Cod War and the end of the UK distant water fleet. She operated as a salvage recovery vessel (when she towed an old aircraft carrier) but in the early 1980s she was sitting in the breakers yard when the owners of Radio Caroline, searching for a new ship after the old one was damaged, bought her, installed two studios and restored her as a pirate radio station, broadcasting to over 15 million people.

But in 1991 she was almost shipwrecked off the Goodwin Sands and had to be towed to Dover where she stayed until the preservation group got hold of her.

She spent the latter part of 2004 and early 2005 on the public passenger ferry quay at Tilbury Cruise Liner terminal, where she attracted a great deal of interest. Technically she is still subject to a detention order by the Department of Trade and Industry and movement is restricted to the Thames area.

The Ross Revenge is maintained by a volunteer engineering crew who aim to repair and preserve the ship to her former glory. All work is financed by members of the Radio Caroline Support group, merchandise sold through Radio Caroline Sales, guided tours and voluntary donations. None of the crew members receive any financial reward for their efforts - our reward comes from seeing happy smiling faces coming to visit the ship!

Rick Wakeman added: "It would be a tragedy if the Ross Revenge is allowed to disappear through lack of funds."

www.fishupdate.com is published by Special Publications. Special Publications also publish FISHupdate magazine, Fish Farmer, the Fish Industry Yearbook, the Scottish Seafood Processors Federation Diary, the Fish Farmer Handbook and a range of wallplanners.

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