The Medway Queen.
An organisation dedicated to caring for an historic boat is preparing to play a part in August’s annual Chale Show.
The Medway Queen Preservation Society’s Reading Support Group are restoring the paddle steamer. The Medway Queen's a popular seaside excursion steamer and a valiant Dunkirk evacuation veteran (she brought home some 7000 British and French servicemen). In the 1960s and ‘70s the ship built a local reputation as a nightclub on the Island's river Medina. The Chale Show takes place on 2 and 3 of August. You can visit the organisation's stall to swap stories and to help them raise money towards the cost of the restoration project. The society has been awarded a £1.8m grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund but must raise some £600,000 in partnership funding.