Paul Semple – ‘A WAVERLEY NIGHT’


Alongside Tighnabruaich pier, Waverley’s destination every Saturday afternoon

At Glasgow’s Maldron Hotel on Wednesday 11 December a considerable gathering of CRSC members and friends braved the December cold and darkness to hear Waverley’s Paul Semple give his eagerly-awaited presentation, simply titled ‘A Waverley Night’. Here is Stuart Craig’s appraisal of the meeting.

Paid up members of CRSC can view the video of Paul’s presentation in a separate post here.

Paul first stepped onto the Waverley’s decks as a five-year old. The ship must have left an impression, for in a short time he was a member of the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society and by 2001 was working in his spare time as a steward aboard her. In December 2018 he became General Manager of Waverley Excursions Ltd (WEL), and with his fresh ideas the dawn of a new era for the paddler beckoned. How he must have paused for thought when the double whammy of a cracked boiler and then Covid immediately surfaced. But Paul’s enthusiasm never waned. It was clear from his presentation that these adversarial events had the opposite effect – he took these setbacks in his stride – and Waverley has never looked back since. “Never give up” is his mantra. One of his first aims was to get the old ship through a season without financial support. The events of the following two years killed that dream, but the £2.3m raised in the ‘boiler appeal’ showed that not only did Joe Public love Waverley but in Paul WEL had the right person to carry her forward to a new phase in her long life.

Leaving the James Watt Dock under tow for Lamont’s yard at Port Glasgow, where Waverley was slipped to ascertain if she was suitable for further service

Paul took us back to the early days of Waverley Steam Navigation (WSN) via the minutes of several board meetings, which gave an insight into the step-by-step decisions and negotiations that transformed the ship from a deteriorating, unloved CalMac ship to the proud vessel that she is today. “They (WSN) had a ship, but no company.” But to quote that early management team of Terry Sylvester, Douglas McGowan and Peter Reid: “we had a dream.”

About to depart on her first cruise in preservation, Waverley blows off steam at Anderston Quay

Paul’s candid appraisal of how the paddler first entered operations was fascinating to listen to. It was originally thought that CalMac would operate Waverley, but when Council financial assistance was also offered to Queen Mary II it became apparent that WSN were on their own; although considerable help was offered from many sources. As we all know, her first sailing under her new ownership was in May 1975, and much was learned from that first season of operation.

Beautifully illustrated by black and white images, and many superb colour photos from John Goss’ collection, we watched as the well-kent history of the paddler over the early years unfolded before us. That first season left a deficit of £42,411 – but there were 115,000 passenger journeys. Waverley surely had a future.

Waverley at Ayr in 1975, where publicity material was issued before the Dock Master had been told!

That Paul was a teacher was apparent before he even stood up to speak – there was a ‘hand-out’ on every chair! No homework, thankfully, but one person almost got sent to the back of the room for chatting. His teacher-training must have contributed to his unruffled, collected style, as was inadvertently revealed at the start of his presentation when he admitted that he only decided what he was going to speak about two days earlier!

Shortly after his appointment as General Manager, Paul had to begin fundraising to have Waverley reboilered

All the high points during the last 50 years of service were rightly acknowledged, and the personnel named and given full credit, but the inevitable low-points were not glossed over either. I’m sure everyone in the sizeable audience knew the sometimes tempestuous history of the old ship well, but the level of detail that Paul extended to his audience was captivating. There are always issues to be addressed: in 2022 the rise in fuel meant that it cost £13 per minute to run the ship, ever-changing documentation, pier owners concerned the ship would damage their piers!

Soon Paul’s presentation took us right up-to-date, and the reasons for Waverley’s success were highlighted. Inventive timetabling (“not every Tuesday is the same”), UK-wide marketing, ‘Friends of Waverley’ mailshots and the appointments of a permanent master and a chief engineer have all contributed to keeping Waverley alive. “Having a small team who can quickly make decisions is a bonus. But the biggest hurdle will remain the winter refit costs.” But with Paul and his team at the helm the future looks bright. The recent awards of National Flagship of the Year and the Glasgow Favourite Business Award will do much to keep Waverley’s profile very much in the public eye.

Paul’s long-term ambition realised – Waverley and Kingswear Castle steaming together on the River Dart

Paul finished off his presentation with images and stories from the 2024 season on the South Coast of England, with his favourite moment being the reunion between paddlers Waverley and Kingswear Castle on the River Dart. 2024 was another good season for the paddler; there were 159,000 passenger journeys. “One Sunday on the Thames her takings were £87,000. Imagine if we could make that every Sunday!”

Paul Semple, flanked by Vice President Gavin Stewart (left) and President Graeme Hogg (right) after his talk to CRSC

Paul exudes confidence, self-assurance and optimism – qualities that make him perfectly equipped for managing Waverley, and the Club is very grateful for him giving his time to enlighten us further on the ins-and-outs of maintaining the Waverley dream.

Can you imagine the even greater success if perhaps WEL had taken him onto their board when he first stepped onto the decks of the ship aged just five?

Want to see the video but not a member of CRSC? You can join for just £15 by clicking here — and you’ll receive all the benefits, including our annual Review of west coast ship movements, a 56-page colour magazine, discounts on special cruises, and access to photo-rich ‘members only’ posts. Questions? Send an email to: info@crsc.org.uk

Published on 23 December 2024