PRINCE Michael of Kent will be at Chatham's Historic Dockyard next Thursday (July 3) to help celebrate the final stages of its development programme.

The event will include the masting of HMS Gannet, a Victorian sloop built at Sheerness in 1878, and described as one of the nation's most important historic warships.

It was aboard the Gannet that the development programme was launched, six years ago, by the former culture minister Chris Smith. Since then £18 million has been invested in the development programme.

Prince Michael is expected to conduct the masting ceremony aboard the vessel at around 1pm.

Also present will be the Mayor, Cllr Nick Bowler, Bob Marshall Andrews, MP; Paul Clark MP; Liz Forgan, Chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund; Carole Souter, Director of the HLF; Jonathan Choad and Peter Kendall of English Heritage; Bill Ferris, chief executive of Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust; and Richard Holdsworth, Museum and Heritage director of the Trust.