The UK has a long track record, through the napoleonic era to WWII, of building sea facing forts at enormous expense and then flogging them off cheap to private developers.
Most are now private homes or holiday destinations.
There are still a few left to be developed though and with what is the best address in the South East, Grain Tower Fort is for sale.
There are also ambitious plans for its redevelopment.
Look at the location…
Potential base for the TD Club? Doesn’t have quite the cachet of Saint James, but the Rozzers would never turn up to complain about the loud and drunken singing of patriotic and martial songs at four in the morning, and we could set up the only target shooting club in the country picking off floating oil-drums with the light artillery piece of one’s choice… :-)
GNB
ps Captcha just insisted that 5+five wasn’t 10! :-(
Here is a navigation chart: http://www.visitmyharbour.com/harbours/thames-estuary/thames-estuary/chart/8AAEC0730E872/thames-estuary-inner-part-2012 If you zoom right into the Little Nore anchorage with the coast of the Isle of Grain just showing on the left (Grain Tower marked) then the Dangerous Wreck at the end of the Sheerness Middle Sand is the SS Richard Montgomery. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Richard_Montgomery Only 1400t of high explosive on board, about 2 miles away from this des res.
@Chris
Note to self on new clubhouse rules Rule number one ‘no firing in general direction of SS Richard Montgomery with Gloomys light artillery’
@Monkey – fixed targets on the Grain Spit then? Floating Targets on the Nore Anchorage only for the annual Founder’s Day Russian Roulette Tournament… :-)
GNB
When I worked at Grain in the early sixties they still sprayed the marsh for malarial mosquitos – apparently brought over by troops from India based at the now demolished onshore fort!
If you go take your pills.!
Montgomery left despite offer by yanks to complete clearance after similar Bessel blew up during clearance.
I got bollocked for sailing too close in sailing boat in the early fifties.
@DGOS
I don’t doubt that some came over from India, but Kent has had malaria for far longer than that. Romney Marsh was notorious for it in the Middle Ages, it used to be a native European disease.
@Thread – not to worry, we will stock a wide range of the many new artisan gins that seem to be entering the market, thereby allowing significant use of Tonic…until after luncheon. Club rules will require old ale and cyders after three…claret and champagne with dinner…and no mixers but water or soda afterwards…
GNB
…there may be a Rioja exception for @Red Trousers however; I imagine his in-laws probably make it…
GNB
@GNB
Should we get a stock of some decent Scotches in before the vote? Talisker and Sheep Dip for me :-)
@Monkey – need advice from an economist; if the use the £UK in Panama style, does that make imported products more or less expensive? One way or another, we need a good stock by 2018…the border fence and tariff barriers will be in place by then… :-(
GNB
I think the currency we they use is the ‘BTW’ or a bottle of Buckfast Tonic Wine , the barter system will also include a sub unit ‘DFMB’ or Deep Fried Mars Bars . 1 Bottle of Talisker 10 year old will be 5 BTW and 5 DFMB for instance :-)
“ps Captcha just insisted that 5+five wasn’t 10! :-(”
There are 10 types of people: those who know binary, and those who don’t.
Speaking of the SS Richard Montgomery:
what is the risk from terrorists coming into the (oa an other) country unarmed, and then salvaging explosives from a ship like that?
@MW Pretty low I’d say. It’s easier and cheaper to do some home chemistry than conduct maritime salvage. Sneaky maritime salvage at that. One of the biggest problems with terrorism is the ease of making explosives sadly, we’re talking google up an online cookbook levels of DIY ease here remember.
Even if somehow that’s a problem there’s still easier places to nick from, MOD trains full of unguarded bar mines for example(that was painfully stupid).
1400t of High Explosive? Hmmm . . . . I was wondering why it was so cheap! 8-) I’d love to see if the sales brochure makes any mention of it . . . .
There are at least 3 books with a plot where there are terrorists trying to blow up SS Richard Montgomery.
Timebomb by James Barrington
A Loyal Spy by Simon Conway
And
Blockbuster by Stephen Barlay