Staffordshire chooses steam narrowboat for Jubilee Pageant

The world's only surviving steam powered narrowboat will be representing Staffordshire in the Diamond Jubilee Pageant flotilla.

The 71ft (22m) President will be making a 336 mile (540km) journey from a West Midlands museum to London.

The journey to the River Thames will take about three weeks as the barge has a top speed of 3mph (5kph).

The boat, which was part built in Staffordshire, is owned by the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley.

The Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire, Sir James Hawley, said: "There are more miles of canal in this county than in any other and so it will be very fitting that Staffordshire will be represented by a boat that symbolises this."

The barge will be crewed by volunteers from the Friends of President, which maintains and operates the boat on the museum's behalf.

Young people from Staffordshire will also be given the opportunity to join the crew for a few days.

David J Eveleigh, from the Black Country Living Museum, said: "[The] museum is delighted that President, one of our most important and best-loved boats, has secured a place representing the county of Staffordshire in the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant."

The Diamond Jubilee Pageant along the Thames, involving more that 1,000 boats, will take place on 3 June.