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Things you probably didn’t know about Thekla
The weathered cargo ship may seem to sit within Bristol’s cultural landscape comfortably on the harbourside of Bristol docks, but Thekla’s legacy is one only as choppy as the waters beneath.
Now a club hosting some of Bristol’s best musicians and DJs, the cargo ship was originally used primarily to move timber around the Baltic.
Her career as a trading ship would be short lived however when the boat was left to a decay on the North coast.
is needed now More than ever
In a stroke of luck for the vessel, she would be purchased by the unlikely benefactors Vivian and Pamela ‘Ki’ Stanshall in 1982.
Vivian had made a name for himself in the 60s psychedelic folk scene for his work in the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band whilst Ki was an accomplished writer for radio and various scripts.
The boat became a subject of infatuation for Ki who was keen to use it as a flourishing hub for the arts.

Banksy painted and repainted his Grim Reaper piece onto the side of the boat before it was removed a few years back to protect it from the elements – photo: Martin Booth
Ki brought a staggering perseverance to the conversion, melded with an inventive hippie attitude absorbed from her Californian background.
It would take financial aid from businesses, the government and a collage of eccentric creatives to kickstart the project.
Peter Jackson, the boat’s engineer, had been approved for a government backed loan that would supposedly cover the ship’s extensive renovations, but it would soon surface that more funds were required and other sources of money came from a variety of characters such as aspiring actor Ann Slydell.
Charmed by Peter’s enthusiasm and the mission of opening a theatre on the waves upon meeting him at a party, she proceeded to mortgage her house towards the cause the next day.
Next to join the crew was Richard Press: a hairdresser who was similarly so enthused that he sold his shop in a bid to become the ship’s restaurant manager (a role for which he had no experience).

A plaque has been erected on the side of the boat to commemorate the work of Ki Longfellow and Vivian Stanshall – photo: Benji Chapman
By now the boat had evolved from a cargo ship, to a mobile art gallery and its final iteration was thereafter decided to be a floating music venue, theatre and restaurant all in one.
Collaborative efforts between the assembled crew were unfortunately slowed by rivalries and arguments, one such spat lead to Peter’s forced mutiny when he drunkenly fought Ki over a stolen piece of cheese from the galley.
New recruits were found here and there, clinging like bugs to the hull’s fuselage and sporadically performing voluntary maintenance to take up the slack.
One such worker was Arthur Hunter, a 67 year old retiree who was found chipping away at the boat’s flaking paint early one morning.
He was subsequently enlisted as caretaker (though he would soon become the new chef’s cook once Press abandoned ship), before the rag-tag group enveloped two wandering American drama students, who similarly pledged to carry out maintenance in the hopes of being able to preform on the vessel once it arrived in Bristol.
When the time came to make the 732-nautical-mile journey from Chertsey to Bristol, the crew were only as relieved as they were fed up of both each other and the ship itself.
Arriving in Bristol in 1983 didn’t help subside tensions when Ann began to threaten liquidation of the ship, facing homelessness due to her mortgage being taken out.
The venue and restaurant would only be launched with the help of the two young local thespians Claire Freston and Jon Tindle, who impressed Ann with auditions.
Though advertising from the exhausted team was sparse amid financial crisis which had begun to reach boiling point, yet another local contributor Marstson’s Brewery came to the aid of Ki by both loaning and donating more cash towards the project.
The recent closure of the Arts Centre in Kings Square led locals to begin to peer curiously into the ship’s portholes – now appropriately renamed the Old Profanity Showboat.
Though opening night of the ship was one tainted by a legal battle between Ann and Ki, the two masterminds of the Showboat, a roaring crowd could be seen delighting in the ship’s novelty from a crackpot team who were willing to think both lucratively and absurdly, matched with an unquenchable tenacity.

Local gig-going legend ‘Big Jeff’ is often seen frequenting the venue – photo: Colin Moody
Although Ann and Ki were to sever ties when Ann left the project entirely, the boat found a lasting home in Bristol’s harbourside when it was taken over in the 1990s as a nightclub.
The boat hosted big names like Franz Ferdinand, The New York Dolls, Pete Doherty, Tokyo Police Club, The Growlers, Santigold, Wire, and artists like Phoebe Bridgers, Massive Attack, Portishead and IDLES playing their earliest shows there.
Thekla’s story is one envisioned by creatives who tackled an incalculable mission which bordered on the self-destructive all-in pursuit of a creative passionate project.
It’s also a tale of an undying love between Ki who selflessly dedicated years of her life to create a space her husband could feel safe in whilst able to creatively express himself in public when he was at his lowest.
The Stanshall’s vision and efforts have been preserved by the DHP Family who purchased the venue in 2006, dedicating a plaque in public view to Ki alongside continual renovations such as a replacement of the entire steel hull in 2019.
The boat will celebrate its 40th anniversary this year. Speaking to Bristol24/7 about the anniversary, a spokesperson for Thekla said: “40 years operating in the city is a massive milestone for us, and we couldn’t be more excited to keep offering Bristol’s community an exciting venue that’s invested in grassroots music and best-in-class events for many more years to come.”
Keep an eye out on Thekla’s socials for events celebrating their 40th anniversary.
Main photo: Benji Chapman
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