Offaly the base for restoration project on 161-year-old boat

The Offaly village of Shannon Harbour was the base, in the last few years, as one of the River Shannon's best-known vessels underwent a Herculean restoration job to get it back on the waves.

The historic SS Fox, once in the ownership of renowned Athlone bandleader and showband legend, the late Syd Shine, first came to midland shores in 1956.

The vessel has undergone a complete refurbishment by Celbridge-based couple Dara and Helen O'Cionnaith, and it recently took part in the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland (IWAI) Shannon Boat Rally.

As Dara and Helen, and their children, spent so much time docking at and enjoying what Shannon Harbour offers in recent years, they decided there was no better base from which to conduct much of the restoration.

“We managed to get it as far as Shannon Harbour, as we visited there often and knew it as a great place for traditional boats to be repaired and maintained over the years,” said Dara.

Dara worked “full-time” for the past 18 months on the restoration, and 2024 and 2025 proved huge years for progressing it.

The boat which, incredibly, is 50 years older than the Titanic, has now been restored and is back travelling on the waters of the Shannon once again.