Thar she blows
Telegraph South East England supplement
Published on Saturday February 23, 2008
Portsmouth is awash with more than maritime history, as Chris Alden discovers.
“It’s swaying a bit – you might get seasick,” says the guide, as I prepare to stride out on the deck of one of the most famous attractions of maritime Portsmouth. But this isn’t another old warship in the Historic Dockyard, like HMS Victory or the Mary Rose. It’s hairier than that: it’s the viewing platform of the 170-metre Spinnaker Tower, opened in 2005 – which, on a blowy and rainy day like today, is designed to shift noticeably from side to side.
Minutes later, my first step out to the platform is a “wow” moment. From up here, I’ve a bird’s eye view of Portsmouth harbour – from the angry clouds ahead of me over the Isle of Wight, to the waves crashing on to Southsea esplanade and the masts of the historic ships in port.
Then, as warned, I feel a wobble. It’s not seasickness, but I’m feeling the urge to go down.
But not before I’ve walked on the tower’s most famous feature – the largest glass floor in Europe, below which is only 100 metres of clear sky. “Jump up and down on it if you want,” says the guide, but instead I walk across quickly, taking the merest glance down as I do – ooh, that’s a long way down – before reaching the other side.
The Spinnaker Tower might be the adrenaline rush, but its beauty is that it is a focal point for visitors to Portsmouth – who then spend hours or days wandering round the Historic Dockyard and maritime museums, before discovering real ale pubs and even a little literary history too.
A tour of Nelson’s flagship can’t be missed. Standing on the deck of HMS Victory when the weather is as foul as today, it feels as if you’re out at sea – although as your guide will explain, you wouldn’t want to exchange your cosy existence for life on board Victory in 1805, unless you enjoy sleeping in a hammock, eating weevil-infested seabiscuits and being peppered with grapeshot from a French gun. The daily allowance of eight pints of beer and half a pint of rum might, however, be compensation.
Visitors can also visit what is left of Henry VIII’s favourite warship, the Mary Rose – whose starboard side was preserved in the Solent, guns still on deck, some loaded and ready to fire. It was raised in 1982 and visitors can not only see it but the tools, medical equipment and personal effects of its sailors.
Also worth a visit is HMS Warrior, which moved under both steam and sail – a vast inverted castle, launched in 1860, where you can descend six decks to the engine rooms in the bowels of the vessel. If the weather is better than it is on my visit, you can even take a boat tour to see the modern warships in the harbour.
It’s perhaps because life at sea was so tough that the citizens of Portsmouth, an island city, developed their reputation for a certain insularity of character – but walk around here in the driving rain and you’ll soon see the true friendliness of the locals. Arriving 15 minutes early at the City Museum, I am ushered through to a room where I can wait for opening time and stay dry too. Here, until March, there is an exhibition on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – who was not only the creator of Sherlock Holmes, but also a doctor and a sportsman: he played in goal for the team that ultimately became Portsmouth FC.
The welcome is also warm at The Retreat, a luxurious and highly recommended B&B. Here, you’re only a stone’s throw from the pubs and restaurants of Southsea – like Great Southsea Street, where you’ll find the Hole in the Wall, for real ale; and the India Arms, reopened last year, whose “tiffin bar” offers Indian food with a difference.
In the morning, you can follow the Millennium Trail around Old Portsmouth, or visit the D-Day Museum or the Royal Marines Museum, or the Royal Naval Museum back in the Historic Dockyard. Only trouble is: just when you get your sea legs, it’s time to go home.
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