Glad of any info. Think it's a megaphone, possibly to do with either Seacombe or Woodside ferries. No idea of the date. Any ideas?

not a crazy telescope?

No it's a megaphone, by the Locks, for hollering to ships / tugs that were manouevring into the Alfred Dock / East/West float lock gates I think! Didn't have walkie-talkie radios back then...?!!

When working in the area I used to sit in the car and have my lunch just there - long before the fences went up. The Lock Master would shout instructions through the megaphone to the tugs assisting vessels in and out of the locks. It was still in use in the early 1970's.

Looking at what would be the mouthpiece end, it doesn't strike me as being big enough to shout through, most old megaphones I've seen normally have a larger mouthpiece, is it possible it was some sort of bugle call instrument.

From memory Bert, the mouthpiece was about 3" x 2 1/2" and oval in shape. Looking at the photo again, it "looks" circular ? Maybe it was detachable ?? The Lock Master - in uniform too, definitely used to shout through it.

Good to see one of the I.O.M. steamers at the stage across the river!

Detachable mouthpiece makes sense Pinz. bloody antwacky or what, even in the 70s they had talkietalkie shiptoshorey

Wow can't believe they still used that into the 70's.

Probably kept in case the electronic version, to its left, broke down!

Well spotted bri. I took that to be a GLS type floodlamp, but it does make sense - one of those new-fangled electric loudspeaker things.

"COME IN No.2 YOUR TIME IS UP" (Or similar)

Hmm! Could be open to abuse if the mike is on the end of that wire. Must have a secret switch somewhere!
'Left hand down a bit, Number 1!'
'Left hand down it is, sir.'

Oh no..... It's Nunky in his tug !!

The ship at the landing stage looks like Her Majesty s Yacht Britannia, wrong color funnel for I.O.M boat.

I think I know the location

Could it possibly be one of the Guinness boats?

Nah! It's definitely an IOM ship, either the manxman or monas isle. There's no mistaking them! It's even on the IOMSPCo's berth.

Oops, sorry pardon Mr. Phillips!

paraniod: if you enlarge the pic (hold down "Ctrl" and press "+" a few times) you can see the black topping on the funnel. Britannia's funnel is all beige/cream. Different superstructure too.

For good looks, the IOM steamers left Britannia dead in the water !
(IMHO of course!)

Have been aboard Britannia (as a paying, lower-orders pleb) a couple of times in Leith. She's absolutely pristine from stem to stern. She must consume about 75 tins of Brasso an hour !!

The smell and atmosphere of the IOM steamers was something to behold. Am I right in thinking there's one lying rusting away somewhere ??

Full ahead together !!

Here: Topic

Thanks. I'd forgotten all about that thread. I contributed to it as well ! Memory - wot memory ?????

YW Pinz. So sad to see such a beautiful little ship end up in that state - brings a tear to the eye, for sure...

Looks like TSS Tynwald, so that places the original photo pre-1974
(TSS Tynwald's last year of service, she was scrapped in 1975)...

Thanks for all the info on the photo. Glad it brought back so many memories.

Thanks for posting it, that was always one of our favorite spots to sit in the car and watch the river - or sometimes, watch a ship pass through the lock - it's really quite nostalgic, looking at it now, from here (Stateside!) I can tell you!