Manchester was the Nation’s fourth biggest port and not so many years ago, it was crammed full of ships. This was made possible by the construction of the Manchester Ship Canal, which was completed in 1894 to enable ships from all over the world to sail right into the very heart of industrial Britain. Unfortunately, I never had the opportunity to see the port of Manchester or to transit the great Manchester Ship Canal in its heyday, so to be able to see this wonderful collection of rare archive film showing exactly what it was like is a real maritime treat.

The Canal stretches 36 miles all the way from the open sea at Eastham on the Banks of the River Mersey right into the centre of Manchester and was one of the busiest waterways in the world. Sadly, if you stand on the banks of the canal today there is little to remind you of the days when hundreds of ships used it every week.

This amazing old film that has never been made public before, allows us to magically step back in time to those wonderful maritime days, and to be able to watch ship after ship sailing to and from Manchester. But as a special treat, the film also allows us to sail aboard some of the ships that were once operated by such great shipping companies as Harrison Line, Manchester Liners, Clan Line and Furness Withy.

We also look at the canal as it is today and the ships that still use it but in the main, this amazing production is all about the golden age of shipping and is a wealth of maritime nostalgia. So, if you like ships for whatever reason, then this video or DVD is an absolute must to add to your collection.