Lift Off for first Steampunk Festival at Northwich's Anderton Boat Lift

All aboard for the first ever Steampunk weekend festival to be staged at the Anderton Boat Lift in Northwich, on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 September.

Visitors and fans of the Victorian industrial fantasy fiction and design can enjoy free entry to a fabulous weekend of Steampunk exhibits, stalls, games, music and live entertainment.

Hosted by the Canal & River Trust charity, the event will feature fine food and a licensed bar. The Edwin Clark trip boat will be offering short cruises up and down the lift, giving visitors a unique view of the world’s first major commercial boat lift, one of the Seven Wonders of the Waterways.

Ani Sutton, destination and attraction manager with the Trust, explained: “The Steampunk craze, inspired by the books of HG Wells, Mary Shelley and Jules Verne, has recently become massively popular. Similar events at our sister attraction, the National Waterways Museum in Ellesmere Port, have gone down a storm.

“Anderton Boat Lift is a stunning Victorian iron structure, constructed in 1875, so it seems an ideal setting to celebrate all things Steampunk. We would love to see visitors get into the spirit of the era by dressing up and enjoying a step back in time at this unique site.”

During the weekend, Trust staff will also be on hand to explain the need for a programme of vital repairs and upgrades at the lift as part of the ‘Engineering the Future’ project. Specialist engineering firm JN Bentley has recently been appointed to assist with preparatory investigations and an 18-month work programme is likely to start in autumn 2025.

Admission to the weekend Steampunk event and the Anderton Boat Lift visitor centre is free but some activities, such as boat trips, incur a charge and need to be booked in advance. The centre will be open from 10am – 4.30pm on both days.

During the 2024 summer season, Anderton Boat Lift and visitor centre is open six days a week (closed Thursdays), 9.30am – 4.30pm, offering four boat trips a day. Entrance to the visitor exhibition, shop and café are free.

For more information about visiting, check out the Canal & River Trust website: https://canalrivertrust.org.uk/places-to-visit/anderton-boat-lift-visitor-centre or call 01606 786777.