The Mary Rose, one of the most famous ships in the world, is soon to be “listed” by Boatshed Port Solent! Not only will she be the oldest ship to appear on our recently updated website, but she will be the most valuable – we are looking for a figure of £35 million, YES £35 MILLION!

How has this come about and why?
Ian Dawes, Boatshed Port Solent business owner, has signed on as new crew for Mary Rose 500, a project aiming to raise part of the funding to re-house the historic ship in a sensational, state of the art new museum.
The museum will cost £35 million and will open in 2012 – 500 years after the Mary Rose was launched.

The Mary Rose 500 Appeal New Crew will raise £1 million to help make the new museum a reality.

Appeals fund raiser Fiona Harvey says “Although significant funding has been raised, and work on the new museum has already begun, the project cannot be completed without the financial support from the public. Now is the time to help us secure the future of Henry VIII’s favourite ship for generations to come.”

How can Boatshed Port Solent help?
We are going to use our world-beating website and Boatshed Famous to help the appeal. The power of the web is awesome, and the generosity of the boating community is legendary – so we are going to harness this power to bring the appeal to the inboxes of our huge database of boat owners, boat buyers and industry professionals. With the kind permission of Neil Chapman, MD of Boatshed.com, Ian is going to produce a “listing” for the ship, with up to 70 photographs from stem to stem, a full specification and of course, our unique “Brokers Comments.” Visitors to the site will be able to browse the ship’s vital statistics as if she were actually on the market, and study up to 70 photographs. There will be plenty of messages asking visitors to log on to the Just giving website and make a donation!

How can you help?
Just keep an eye out on www.boatshedportsolent.com , and as soon as the ship is uploaded, log on and donate some money!
Watch this space! or to find out more about this fascinating project visit the Mary Rose website