Gosport Ferry
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| Locale | Hampshire, England |
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| Route | Gosport to Portsmouth |
| Operator | Gosport Ferry Ltd |
| Travel time | Approx 7.5 – 15 minutes |
The Gosport Ferry is a ferry service operating between Gosport and Portsmouth in Hampshire, southern England. It is currently operated by Gosport Ferry Ltd, a subsidiary of the Portsmouth Harbour Ferry Company plc, itself a wholly owned subsidiary of Falkland Islands Holdings, following a takeover in 2004.
The company that currently operates the Gosport ferry was created in 1883 as the Port of Portsmouth Steam Launch & Towing Company, making it one of the longest serving ferry services in the UK. In 1963, it took over the Gosport & Portsea Watermen's Steam Launch Company, founded in 1875 by the Watermen, who had operated ferries on the route for centuries. These Watermen had enjoyed protected rights between 1603 and 1840, limiting operation of ferries on the route to Gosport residents.
In 1840, a steam operated chain ferry was introduced, to a design similar to that already in use at Woolston. The chain ferry ceased operation in 1959.
Upon the takeover in 1963, the company changed its name to the Portsmouth Harbour Ferry Company (plc since 2001). In addition to Gosport Ferries Ltd and other related interests, PHFC also owns Clarence Marine Engineering Ltd, which provides maintenance services for the ferries as well as general marine engineering services. Gosport Ferries Ltd was incorporated in 1988, registered company 2254382; Clarence Marine Engineering was incorporated in 1987, registered company 2139067. Both are non- trading companies whose registered office is located in South Street, Gosport, head offices for the Portsmouth Harbour Ferry Company Ltd plc, registered company 18751.
In 2004 the Falkand Islands Holdings completed a hostile takeover with a value of £7.5 Million. The takeover was met with controversy as it was believes that "if the company gets into the hands of one shareholder, fares will rise and investment in the ferries will fall". On 10 December the Falkland Island Company released a statement announcing it had over 51% of the total shares and set out the terms for the purchase of the rest;
The Gosport Ferry also operates cruises around the Solent. In the early 70s cruises were operated by Solent Enterprise (then Gay Enterprise), Vita, Vesta and Ferry Queen (three of the smaller original diesel ferries). The three were sold, (with the arrival of Southsea Queen in 1974), however in 1978 Southsea Queen was sold. The cruises after that continued to be operated by just the company's cruise ferry Solent Enterprise, however it has been known on the odd occasions, (in the late 80s and early 90s) for one of the Queens to operate on a Harbour or Solent cruise, (when either Portsmouth Queen or Gosport Queen were not operating on their usual work horse ferry duties). In the height of the summer, it was not unusual to see Solent Enterprise (on a day trip to Cowes, Isle of Wight) and Portsmouth Queen (on a cruise around the Solent and Harbour) both passing Clarence Pier, off Southsea. Two days of special evening cruises occurred during The Festival of the Sea, when the Solent Enterprise and Gosport Queen did a special harbour cruise to view the tall ships and fireworks by night. Now cruises are generally operated by the Spirit of Portsmouth, which has moquette seating upstairs (also with seating with tables in the centre section) as well as a bar.
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