‘Titanic’ set to sail again - in Burnley boating lake

Maurice Hessey, of Dorset Street, spent four years piecing together thousands of tiny parts to make a replica of the iconic ocean liner which sank on April 15th, 1912.

The devoted modelmaker studied the original plans of the 900ft vessel to get every single detail correct from the four working funnels down to the ship’s complex rigging.

Maurice has even installed passengers on board the 4ft model including Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet’s characters from James Cameron’s 1997 Hollywood blockbuster film “Titanic”.

He hopes to launch the model ship in Burnley’s Thompson Park boating lake in the centenary year of the infamous disaster which claimed the lives of 1,517. Maurice said: “I started making it about four years ago. I have read a lot about the Titanic and its history and I thought it would be nice to do something to mark the 100th anniversary.

“Many people have made models of the Titanic but not many people have made ones that actually work.”

He built the model up piece by piece and added an engine and working funnels that produce real steam.

He said: “It was a static display model but I have built it to sail. It is incredibly intricate. It is like an enormous jigsaw.

“The instructions were pretty basic so I got the actual plans from the Titanic. It is all about time and patience making something like this.”

It has been water-proofed and carefully packed with lead ballast to balance the model on its maiden voyage which Maurice hopes to coincide with the 100th anniversary.

He is looking to arrange a date to launch the model on Thompson Park boating lake around April 15th.