A FAN of the Barrow-built aircraft carrier HMS Invincible says it should be steaming to Barrow to join the town’s commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Falklands War.

Lorraine Robinson runs an internet website called “Bring HMS Invincible Home”.

It was put into reserve in August 2005 as the Ministry of Defence tried to save cash.

The Royal Navy says it could take anything up to 18 months to get the ship crewed and back up and running again, because it has been put into a state of extended readiness in Portsmouth where the Navy has its facilities.

Some vital items have been taken off the ship. In 2010 or sooner it will be sold off or scrapped.

Veterans including former submariners are holding a Falklands memorial ceremony on June 10 in Barrow, which supplied some of the key ships and submarines for the war.

Miss Robinson said: “I read in the Evening Mail about the 25 years since the Falklands celebrations coming up, with Ann Taylforth the town centre manager saying how pleased they will be to see the Royal Navy ships HMS Exeter and HMS Lancaster come and visit Barrow.

After recent articles in the Evening Mail, we would like to bring you up-to-date with the Campaign. After receiving many letters from the "Ministry of Defence", I would like to make clear that on many occasions I have asked to go to Portsmouth to see HMS Invincible so that I could witness first hand that what the "Ministry of Defence" were telling me was actually true. Each time, I was just given excuses and in the last two letters I received, they ignored my plea altogether. I personally think, that if they have nothing to hide and that all they were saying was true, then there should be no reason as to why I could not travel to Portsmouth to be taken on board Invincible and see her in a low state of readiness. They have already lied to me before, saying that no visitors were allowed on board the vessel and then went on to have people take a look around last October. It appears that the "Ministry of Defence" like to tell us what suits them best and certainly is not in Barrow's best interest considering we built the ship. It goes to show, that HMS Invincible having a great history remains a focal point in this on-going situation and there has already been a mention of the Ship becoming a museum in London when they MOD no longer require her.

As we know, Barrow-in-Furness has just held it's annual Festival of the Sea, and even though that taking a look inside the DDH (Devonshire Dock Hall) was a success, we still feel that it would be nice to actually have a ship take part in the Festival that we built and one that has a great history with it. We didn't only build submarines, we built both and therefore it would be great to have both submarines and ships that we built back in Barrow-in-Furness. HMS Invincible has been an asset to the Royal Navy and even though the Ministry of Defence say that it is not possible for Invincible to return at this present time, we will proceed to make enquiries and not give up this Campaign to bring our Ship home again. Since we started this Campaign, it appears that people now realize what Barrow needs. There have been many articles in the Evening Mail on how Barrow should keep it's heritage, that of a shipbuilding town and it only takes something like this Campaign to get the ball rolling. We have since gained a submarine (Onyx) to be part of the submarine heritage and hopefully we can build on this and make Barrow a very big part of the sea again. If HMS Invincible could return to Barrow, so that we can share not only her twenty five years service given to the Royal Navy but also twenty five years since the Falklands to which Invincible served with honours, it would give the people of Barrow-in-Furness to turn out in force and give their ship a real homecoming so that we could have our own celebrations and have HMS Invincible here where she now belongs.

On 13th March Radio Cumbria did a live interview with Lorraine about the campaign to bring HMS Invincible back home to Barrow-in-Furness. Also on the same day the campaign was shown on BBC local TV and on their website.

Click here to view the BBC News Story

On the 7th March the Evening Mail ran a full page story on the campaign, click the links below to view the story.

Top Half ¦ Bottom Half

Earlier News from the Evening Mail archive

Bring Invincible back to Barrow plea

Click here to view the North Western Evening Mail website.

We plan to bring you up-to-date with all the latest developments during this Campaign. Last year, on the 26^th October, I was sent a letter from the MOD replying to my emails that I sent to them on the 12 13 and 21st October. I had asked them if I could pay a visit to see Invincible for myself, to witness if what they were telling me was the truth. They quoted to me, that the ships on-board power had been turned off and there was no lighting and therefore the Ship was not safe for visitors. If you take a look at the “Invincible photo gallery #1” on this website, you will see a link that clearly shows ex crew members, paying a visit to HMS Invincible as of the 20/10/05 just six days prior to the MOD sending me a letter. It is obvious, that the Ship was fit for visitors. During this time, they also quoted that they had searched through their records for a request for Invincible to visit Barrow, but found none. This is true, as I was told that HMS Invincible was being decommissioned in 2010, and therefore we had another 4 years to request a visit from Invincible. This was to give us plenty of time to have “Our Ship” sail home again just like HMS Ark Royal and HMS Illustrious did to Tyne Side.

HMS Invincible has sailed to over 40 different Countries during her years serving the Royal Navy; there are fond memories amongst all who sailed on her, but for us, the memories go way back to 1973 when she was laid down and work begun on this fine ship. There are many happy memories for the people of Barrow-in-Furness and the people that worked on her. As a Shipbuilding Town, we must remember the years gone by, and the fine ships that have been launched and there have been many. There is room to have our Ship come visit us, and it would be so nice to walk over the “High Level Bridge” and once again see Invincible back in the same place where she was 29 years ago this coming May after her launch. I am sure, that for many of us, it will bring back great memories of days gone by. For those who worked on the Invincible, we hope that we can bring her home for a visit and once again see your great craftsmanship and I am sure that the people of Barrow would turn out to see her sail in at Roa Island and at the Dock Gates, just like they did when she went on Sea Trials in 1979 and then when she left for good in March 1980. This would be a memorable day for the town.

Last year, HMS Walney paid a visit to the town, it was a great day and many children and adults enjoyed a tour of the ship. I hope that Barrow can play host to more Ships in the near future, and one of those Ships will be HMS Invincible. I will keep you all posted on this Campaign, and I must say, that we really shouldn’t have to fight to bring a Ship home for a visit that we built. It is only fair, that we play a part in celebrating 25 years of Invincible and what better way to do it than on home turf. HMS Invincible is affiliated with the City of Durham and last year, during her visit to North Shields, Durham held a parade through the Town, a fun day and a service at Durham Cathedral for the ships crew and there was an open day on Invincible. We are happy that they played host to our ship and everyone had a good time. Barrow-in-Furness got to celebrate nothing.

I would like to dedicate the “25 years of Invincible” to the people that worked on her, and their great craftsmanship. Without you, there would be no Invincible. Well Done!!