TS Queen Mary is a Clyde steamer launched in 1933 at the William Denny shipyard, Dumbarton, for Williamson-Buchanan Steamers.
After retirement from the Clyde in 1977 she was towed to London were she spent her time serving as a bar and restaurant.
She gradually fell into a state of disrepair and was towed to Tilbury docks facing an uncertain future.
In February 2015, TS Queen Mary was served with a prohibition notice by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, preventing her from leaving the Port of Tilbury until made seaworthy. Later that year, TS Queen Mary was arrested by the Port of Tilbury Limited due to the non-payment of berthing dues by the owner, and once again faced the threat of being scrapped.
Eventually the Port of Tilbury put the vessel up for auction, with Friends of TS Queen Mary's bid which was funded by Jim McColl being accepted, the purchase being finalised in October 2015
A campaign to undertake essential repairs was launched in December 2015, spearheaded by Robbie Coltrane and supported by the Sunday Mail. Donations flooded in from across the UK and by March 2016 all of the funding required (£120,000) was in place. The repairs contract was awarded to Dales Marine (Garvel Clyde), and work started in April 2016.
Following a survey by the MCA, TS Queen Mary received a Loadline Exemption Certificate and was able to be towed from Tilbury back home to Scotland. On 15 May, the vessel arrived back on the Clyde and was berthed in James Watt Dock throughout the summer of 2016.
On 1 September 2016, following a campaign to raise £350,000, TS Queen Mary was towed into Garvel Drydock for renovation works. On 1 October 2016, TS Queen Mary returned to James Watt Dock and on 9 November 2016, she left under tow for Glasgow on what would be her first visit to the city since 1977. She is now berthed at the entrance of Princes' Dock, at Glasgow Science Centre where she is undergoing a major refit to become a permanent heritage destination and education centre.
On 11 March 2022, the ship's royal patron, the Princess Royal, announced that the refit would now be extended to allow Queen Mary to return to passenger cruising in 2024. The plans would now require re-engining.
Thanks to wikipedia for the information, the full wikipedia article can be found HERE
