ACTOR Timothy West is to launch a newly-built Thames trip boat at Lechlade today.
The actor, who has starred in many films and television series for more than four decades, including the Inspector Lynley Mysteries and the dramatisation of the Alan Clark diaries this year, is a canal enthusiast.
The launch of the Inglesham for the Cotswold Canals Trust is scheduled to take place outside the New Inn in Lechlade at 11am.
The actor, most famous for his portrayal for Henry VIII, will be joined by Eileen McKeever the Environment Agency's waterways manager for the Thames region and Bruce Hall, chairman of the Cotswold Canals Trust.
After the commissioning ceremony the boat will be blessed by the Right Rev Peter Vaughan, formerly Bishop of Ramsbury.
The new Inglesham boat replaces one that has carried 8,500 passengers between Riverside Park, the Roundhouse and Buscot Lock since 2002.
The boat is a Frolic 31 licensed for 12 passengers.
Inglesham Roundhouse is at the eastern end of the Thames and Severn Canal which, with the Stroudwater Navigation, forms the Cotswolds Canals.
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