Guided walks exploring the story of a 17th‑century warship return to Southend Pier on Sunday 19 July 2026. The London Shipwreck Walk and Talk, now in its third edition, runs from 11:00 to 12:30 and is led by volunteer divers Steve and Carol Ellis, who have spent more than a decade recovering artefacts from the wreck.
Tickets cost a £10 donation per person, plus a booking fee, and do not include pier entry or the optional return train. The London was a warship that sank in 1665 after a mysterious explosion while part of a fleet sent to the Netherlands. Its remains lie in two parts in the Thames estuary off the pier, where strong tides and shipping traffic erode the site so rapidly that objects can vanish within weeks.
Artefacts saved from the wreck are on show at Southend Central Museum in the exhibition ‘The London Shipwreck: Her Final Voyage’, which runs until 26 April 2026. The display includes a rare timber gun carriage and items conserved with funding from Historic England. The London Shipwreck Project, supported by Dive Master Insurance and DP World UK, works alongside Southend Museum Services and Cotswold Archaeology to record finds before the estuary swallows them.
The two previous walk‑and‑talk events sold out quickly, so early booking on Eventbrite is advised. The Ellises will share stories of diving on the edge of the shipping lane and the urgent race to recover history from one of Southend’s most significant underwater sites.
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