The search for a new king for a remote island off the coast of Cumbria looks to be over after attracting global interest'
Earlier this year, Barrow Borough Council began searching for a new landlord for The Ship Inn on Piel Island, half a mile off the Furness coast in Cumbria, and, according to tradition, whoever gets the job will also become the island’s king or queen. The previous 'king', Steve Chattaway, called last orders on his reign earlier this year after holding the title for 15 years.
Barrow man Aaron Sanderson, a 33-year-old electrical team leader at BAE Systems Submarines, has been selected as the preferred bidder after nearly 200 applicants registered an interest in securing the 10-year lease.
The new landlord is hoped to be installed in time for the new summer season and will start the job on April Fool’s Day, with a coronation ceremony of uncertain origin, which involves them sitting in an ancient chair, wearing a helmet and holding a sword while alcohol is poured over them.
The island is only 50 acres in size and home to an array of wildlife such as seals, kestrels, barn owls, and seabirds as well as the ruins of Historic England-run Piel Castle, built in the 14th Century.
The coronation ceremony is said to be due to the landing in 1487 of pretender to the throne of England, Lambert Simnel, and is most likely to have begun as a slightly mocking homage to this event.
Simnel’s rebellion was crushed and he ended up working as a spit-turner in the royal kitchens.
However, the tradition continued, and became an important part of local folklore and island history with recorded landlords of the Ship Inn dating back to 1746.
