The skipper of Piel Island Ferry is looking forward to working with the Ship Inn’s new landlord over the coming months – with the pub’s opening date just around the corner.
Paul Wilcock said Aaron Sanderson came across as a nice and determined guy who had some really good plans for the pub going forward.
“A lot of people know him,” said Mr Wilcock. “He has been around the island all his life.”
Mr Sanderson, a former electrical team leader at BAE Systems, is to swing open the Ship Inn’s doors to customers on Monday – leading, Mr Wilcock hopes, to an increase in the number of people using the ferry, which departs from Roa Island.
“It’s been very quiet, not having any pub open on Piel,” said Mr Wilcock. “The weather’s not been so great in May for us. Obviously we are quite restricted with conditions. If it’s windy, we struggle. I’m hoping for a good summer, taking lots of customers over.”
Mr Sanderson’s taking on of the lease followed an extensive selection process in which more than 190 individuals registered an interest in the Piel Island watering hole.
The search for a new King or Queen of Piel – the title bestowed on the landlord of the Ship Inn – attracted global interest, with news outlets in Canada and the USA among those to have taken on the story.
The pub came under the spotlight at a meeting of Barrow Borough Council’s executive committee on Wednesday.
Cllr Bill McEwan said the council, which is the custodian of Piel Island, would be giving Mr Sanderson 100 per cent backing.
Steph Cordon, the borough council’s director of people and place, said: “He will start off just serving drinks and then he will go on to food. This is a childhood dream that he is realising.”
Mr Sanderson said on a previous occasion: “The response to the news that I would be landlord at The Ship Inn has been wonderful and overwhelming. There’s so much to take in as we embark upon our first season on Piel, but I’m incredibly excited about the journey we’re on in this very special place.”
