Extra Isle of Man ferry sailings planned to clear freight backlog

Planned maintenance to the Ben-my-Chree has been postponed for the extra trips

Extra ferry crossings between the Isle of Man and Lancashire have been scheduled to meet "increased freight and passenger demand" over the weekend, the ferry operator has said.

Sailings were disrupted for 24 hours earlier this week due to strong winds over the Irish Sea.

The Ben-my-Chree will now sail from Douglas to Heysham at 19:45 BST on Saturday with an overnight return.

Planned maintenance work on the vessel has been put on hold as a result.

Isle of Man Steam Packet managing director Brian Thomson confirmed the extra trips were laid on following the mid-week disruption, and to help "at what is traditionally a busy time of year at the end of the autumn half-term".

A night of routine maintenance work on the island's main ferry will now be rescheduled for another time, he added.