ISLE OF WIGHT NIGHTCLUBS: THE 2 PADDLE STEAMER QUEENS THAT GRACED THE EAST BANK OF THE MEDINA

Did you ever walk back along Mill Lane from the Ryde or Medway Queens in a state of inebriation? If so, you must be at least 50 years old! The 2 paddle steamers were moored at Island Harbour and served as nightclubs for over 2 decades, closing for the last time in 1989. But both steamers have a distinguished history beyond being nightclubs, having served their country honourably in World War II. The Medway Queen – despite having been sunk – has since been restored to her former glory. Sadly, the Ryde Queen has been left to rot in the harbour despite a determined campaign to save her.

The Medway Queen

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the launch of the Medway Queen in Troon, Scotland, on 23rd April 1924. She is 1 of 2 remaining mobile paddle steamers (together with the Waverley)  in the United Kingdom. After her war service, the Medway Queen was rebuilt by Thornycrofts of Southampton. She made her final commercial sailing in September 1963 and was due to be broken up in Belgium. However, the Belgian ship-breaker declined to break up such a gallant and historic ship. In 1966, the Medway Queen was bought by Alan and Colin Ridett and moored on the Medina for use as a marina clubhouse and nightclub. The boat was open for business from 14th May of that year. Annual membership of the Medway Queen cost 3 guineas (£3.15) for singletons and 4 guineas (£4.20) for a married couple. Temporary membership could be bought for 4 shillings (25p) for a week. The club had 4 saloons with a restaurant, casino and dancing, including live music. The Medway Queen’s function as a nightclub continued for 8 years until the end of 1974.

The Medway Queen fell into disrepair until she was bought by Kent businessmen in 1978. She then sprang a leak and sank in the River Medina. In 1984, she was salvaged before being moved to Cowes and then transported by barge to Chatham in Kent. In 1985, the Medway Queen Preservation Society was formed to save the historic ship. In 2006, the National Lottery Heritage Fund agreed to a £1.8million funding package to restore her. She was rebuilt by David Abels Shipbuilders in Bristol and taken to Gillingham in Kent: her final home.

The Ryde Queen

Like the Medway Queen, the Ryde Queen had an illustrious history. As well as being a famous night club, the cross-Solent paddle steamer played a key role in the D-Day landings and was the backdrop to the 1980s film Wildcats of St Trinians. PS Ryde was built for Southern Railway for the Portsmouth to Ryde route at a cost of £46,800 (over £3million in today’s values). She was built in Dumbarton in Scotland, could carry over 1,000 passengers, and was launched on St George’s Day 1937. Between 1939 and 1945, PS Ryde became HMS Ryde. She was first deployed as a minesweeper, then an anti-aircraft vessel. In 1944, she took part in Operation Neptune on D-Day, during which her engine room was hit by a shell, which didn’t explode. After D-Day, she was anchored off Bembridge to help defend Portsmouth from the doodlebug threat. At the end of the war, PS Ryde returned to cross-Solent passenger duties. In 1968, she was chartered by Gibley’s Gin to serve as a Floating Gin Palace in London. PS Ryde was retired in 1969, then bought by cousins Alan and Colin Ridett for £12,000 in 1970. She was refitted at a cost of £60,000, provided with 18 luxury cabins, a restaurant, bar and dance floor, and renamed the Ryde Queen Boatel. The new ‘boatel’ was opened by Miss Great Britain, Carolyn Moore (former girlfriend to George Best), on 14th June 1972. Until 1974, the Ryde Queen served alongside the Medway Queen as a restaurant and hotel, while the Medway Queen was used as a nightclub and disco. After 1974, the Ryde Queen operated as the sole nightspot.

In 1977, Ryde Queen caught fire with damage estimated at £100,000. She was again refurbished and continued as a nightclub until its closure in 1989 – 35 years ago. Ryde Queen has remained rotting at Medina Harbour ever since. In 2006, her funnel collapsed. In 2009, a non-profit company PS Ryde Trust attempted to restore the paddle steamer at an estimated cost of £7million. However, she continued to deteriorate, with the ship’s bridge collapsing in 2012.

PS Ryde Trust succeeded in purchasing the vessel in 2018. It was intended that restoration work would begin the following year. However, an inspection revealed that any attempt to remove the dilapidated ship would be environmentally hazardous. The paddle steamer remains in a sad and sorry state on the east bank of the Medina. Did you party on either the Ryde or Medway Queens (or both)? Do you have any treasured memories or photographs. Please let us know in the comments. In the following edition of Isle of Wight Nightclubs, we shall look at the famous Colonel Bogey’s in Sandown…