The Prince Ivanhoe was built in 1951 for service between Portsmouth and Ryde on the Isle of Wight, and was initially named Shanklin.

She was purchased at the end of 1980 by a group associated with the paddle steamer Waverley, and was used as a pleasure cruiser. Tragedy struck on the 3rd August 1981 when she hit an uncharted object off Port Eynon beach, ripping a 60 foot gash in her hull. The captain, David Neill took charge from the Bristol channel pilot at the helm, and ran her ashore to give the passengers more chance of survival as the ship was sinking fast.

With the vessels diesel engines immersed in water, it took great skill on the part of engineer Ken Angell to restart the engines, and she was driven headlong toward the beach, stopping for the last time where the remains are today.

These actions saved the lives of all on board, though one passenger sadly died of a heart attack brought on through the trauma later.

On 5th August the Insurance underwriters declared Prince Ivanhoe a Constructive Total Loss, and 30 years of popular service were over. The picture below shows Prince Ivanhoe 6 weeks after the sinking, showing clearly how close to the shore she was.