This is my Dad's boat! Once a naval man always a naval man and, although he owned an Ironmongers (W.G Brooks)in Fazakerley most of his life, chose to retire on a narrowboat; an end-of-garden mooring of Bunty Eaves' home for many years. Pity you cant hear the resident geese and ducks in this idyllic setting, so peaceful!

Hello ! I used to live on Dessy (Desiderata) , she was my first home! Dessy used to belong to my Dad , Eric Charlton ( Now deceased)
I bought her from my Dad in 1985 aged 22 to live on. I kept her initially on the River Nene , but after many an adventure I moved her up to the Grand Union Canal on the Blisworth Arm in Northamptonshire.
Her full name is Desiderata after the Poem , "go placidly amid the noise and haste" My Mum named her. They had Dessy for many years and we had lots of family holidays upon her. She is well travelled! She used to be Blue.
I Lived on her for 7 1/2 years and it was on Dessy that I met my Husband, who moored up next to me on a boat called Bobbin. I also met the man who built her who, coincidentally, was only moored a few boats away from me. His name was George Burdett. He was an engineer and owned a business in Northampton. He built Dessy's sister boat too called "George And The Dragon" after his Wife!. He is now deceased.
We often think about Dessy. The people who bought her from us drastically changed her lay-out (mind you - she was probably due for an upgrade!)
It's wonderful to see her on here and being enjoyed and loved. We are just considering moving back to the canals and, seeing Dessy again, encourages us even more :-)
Rosemary & Wayne Sharman

I remember seeing a TV documentary on a passage of the Leed Liverpool canal. It was in black and white, so probably early 1970s......they made it sound as if it was a canoe journey up the Amazon ! Which in many respects it probably was, there were hardly any boats on the canal, certainly few, if any, that were lived in; and none of the considerable amount of new housing that now flanks the canal. I tried to find clips of the programme on Youtube without success.