Platts Eyot

Hidden in plain sight on the River Thames, lies Platt’s Eyot. This unassuming island holds a past far more exciting than its current industrial appearance suggests. Platt’s Eyot was once a thriving hub of boatbuilding, buzzing with activity during the First and Second World Wars. The island’s story began much earlier, though. Its name comes from a Mr. Platt of Molesey who cultivated osiers, willow used for basket making, here. In 1868, a boatbuilder named Thomas Tagg saw the island’s potential and built a boatyard and a house, marking the start of Platt’s Eyot’s transformation. The island’s claim to fame came during World War One. The British Admiralty, in need of swift torpedo boats, commissioned John Isaac Thornycroft’s boatyard. Thornycroft, already renowned in the field, expanded his operations to Platt’s Eyot. To maintain secrecy, four large boat sheds were erected, their unique Belfast truss roofs a testament to wartime ingenuity. This type of construction, typically used for aircraft hangars, is a rare sight in boathouses. These sheds, silent witnesses to history, stood proudly until 2021, when a fire sadly swept through the island, destroying these magnificent structures. Despite this loss, the spirit of Platt’s Eyot lives on, a testament to its resilient past.