HMS Victory shop to be moved as new viewing platforms and scaffolding being set up for Royal Navy flagship

The Big Repair, a £42m decade-long project to preserve and maintain Admiral Lord Nelson’s flagship, will see viewing platforms set up. Tourists will be able to see parts of the ship which have been hidden away from the public for generations.

A planning application accepted by Portsmouth City Council detailed the changes happening to the site. This includes the shop being moved and further information regarding the scaffolding. The statement said: “Overall proposed use is to complete the conservation works to the ship, to enable its continued survival, as a heritage asset and as part of the setting of No. 2 Dock which is a Scheduled Monument and Grade I Listed building.

“Also will enhance the character and appearance of the HM Dockyard and St George's Square Conservation Area. Relocation of Victory's shop from within the ship to within east side of scaffold, precise location not decided as yet.

“Scaffold will include a free to use public walkway across the north end of No. 2 Dock, giving access to Mary Rose Museum and views of conservation of HMS Victory and surrounding heritage assets. For ticket holders, it will include views at every deck level outside the ship, to see conservation in action.”

The scaffolding will include standards, plates, and floor pans which are covered by flame retardant panelling. Images will be printed onto fabric and wrapped onto the panels. This is to make it more attractive to the public by reducing the amount of white expanses.

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Visitors will get to catch a glimpse of HMS Victory’s inner workings, with specialists preparing her bow and stern for the next stage of conservation works. The platforms on he ship’s stern will allow for immersive demonstrations of shipbuilding skills to be given.

Several of the ship’s futtocks - large timber frames that form the rib of the ship - have been replaced and installed. Many of the older materials were rotting, with woodboring Deathwatch beetles attacking its frame. The final futtocks are now being installed to replace the remaining rotten wood on the starboard side of the ship. Replanking of the hull will begin at the end of this year.

Andrew Baines, executive director of museum operations for the National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN), previously said this was a “bold new stage” of the project. He added: “We’re going to reveal parts of Victory that were last seen by the 18th century shipwrights who built her. It feels like we’re shaking hands with that team from across the centuries.”