On Friday 24th June, Anna Firth MP visited the team of divers at Old Leigh Port who are behind the efforts to bring the 1665 London shipwreck back to the surface. The shipwreck is situated on the seabed very close to the end of the Southend Pier.
Anna spoke to Mark Beattie-Edwards, one of the main developers of the extraordinary idea of excavating the warship out of the sea. It would be placed in a container full of water and explored in Southend. The plans will make the London 1665 more accessible for tourists to come and see, but also create the opportunity for qualified divers to get on their wet suits.
Anna spoke to Mark Beattie-Edwards about the plans for the London, and he said,
“We are here to dive the London, it sank in 1665, built for Cromwell but was then part of the fleet that brought Charles II back to retake the throne with the restoration of the monarchy. It blew up in 1665, and we don’t know why, and it is just of the pier in Southend. It was rediscovered in the early 2000s as part of development work for the London gateway. But ever since then, even as a protected wreck, it is eroding away so every single month there is less of it”
Anna said in the interview at the port,
“This is an internationally renowned shipwreck that we absolutely must bring to the surface. Now that we are a city and going for City of Culture 2029 this has got to be one of the centre pieces of this bid!”