Historic island's sheds replaced

A boat was cut in two for the replacement sheds

Two distinctive landmarks on an historic island off the Northumberland coast have been replaced.

Two sheds made from upturned herring boats on Holy Island were destroyed by fire in October although the oldest, from a 19th Century boat, was saved.

The National Trust worked with Jim Scott, manager of Coastal Marine, in Eyemouth, who found the replacement boat in a dockyard for two new sheds.

The replacements have now been lifted in to place on the island.

The sheds which were destroyed were themselves replacements made by the trust in the 1980s.

Celebrate future

Coastal Marine cut the boat, which was due to have been destroyed, in two and the sections were taken to Holy Island by truck and lowered into position by crane.

The use of redundant boats as sheds is an East coast tradition and the Lindisfarne Castle boats had been awarded a Heritage Lottery Fund and Northumberland County Council grant for restoration.

Property manager Catherine Atkinson said: "To have lost the boats in such a devastating way has been a real shame for everyone involved at the property and those who know it so well.

"However we can now look forward to celebrating the boats' future and incorporating them in new ways for visitors coming to Lindisfarne."