Lady Dodd, widow of legendary Liverpool comedian Sir Ken Dodd officially opens Wirral base of Mersey Adventure Sailing Trust and launches new sailing experience for young people. Tony McDonough reports

Mersey Adventure Sailing Trust (MAST) has opened its new office in Birkenhead with the help of Lady Dodd, widow of legendary Liverpool comedian Sir Ken Dodd.

MAST, founded by Jim Graves, is a registered charity that offers young people from a wide range of backgrounds experience working and training aboard tall ships. Its new office is in the Pacific Road Enterprise, close to the waterfront.

Lady Dodd is president of the organisation and she was on hand to officially open the centre. She also launched the Sir Ken and Lady Dodd Tall Ship Sailing Experience 2023. This will see young trainee crews participate in voyages aboard traditional sailing Tall Ships to compete for the Sir Ken Dodd Cup. 

“Happiness is the greatest gift that we possess, as Ken sang,” said Lady Dodd. “We can achieve this by working together and sharing joy as a team.

“MAST is the perfect embodiment of this principle and the reason why I am thrilled to be involved with it to support the young people of Merseyside.

“Ken was very interested in helping young people in Merseyside to get on in life and he’d be very proud of having his name associated with an organisation like MAST which is doing so much for them.”

The Sir Ken and Lady Dodd Tall Ship Sailing Experience will be an annual event starting and ending in the UK. While aboard a tall ship, the young people will all be under the fully qualified guidance of professional crews.

READ MORE: Help for seafarers who want to come ashore

READ MORE: UK maritime leaders to meet at Liverpool conference

Jim Graves added: “Sailing on a tall ship is about teamwork, learning to co-operate and take instructions for the benefit of everyone. It is the ultimate experience for character development. 

“Lady Dodd’s support for MAST will help us achieve these goals and make Liverpool the tall ship centre for northern Britain.

The Sir Ken and Lady Dodd Tall Ship Sailing Experience will be an incredible asset for the young people of not just Merseyside but also nationwide.”