Houseboat Mtb234

A Memory of Swanwick.

My aunt and uncle, Mr and Mrs Arthur Dowsett, moved to Lower Swanwick in 1958 when my uncle retired after working for many years as a signalman for BR. They bought a houseboat, a converted motor torpedo boat, mtb234, which at that time was moored at Swanwick Shore, a little way along from Moody's Boatyard.
I spent some time staying with them during school holidays and from Jan 1968 until June 1970 I lived with them while studying at Southampton University. It was cold in winter and hot in summer, but was a fascinating place to live and a real experience! By the time I left in 1970, there were only 2 houseboats left, whereas in 1958 there had been a whole row of them moored along the foreshore.
The boat itself had quite a history to it, having been the flagship of the fleet that sailed out of Lowestoft during the Second World WAr in the charge of Commander Peter Dickens DSO, MBE, DSC who wrote the book 'Night Action - MTB Flotilla at War'. He actually visited my aunt and uncle in 1975 and presented them with a signed copy of the book - which I now proudly possess.
I have tried in vain to find out what happened to mtb234 when my aunt sold it around 1980, but to no avail. Perhaps somebody out there knows. She always claimed it was sold for preservation, but I can find no evidence of this.

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