ENTHUSIASTS restoring the paddle steamer Medway Queen will sail her to Dunkirk to celebrate the vessel's 80th birthday.

At the end of May 1940, the Medway Queen spent seven days off Dunkirk dodging German divebombers and rescuing British troops from the beaches and the harbour mole.

She brought back 7,000 soldiers, more than any other vessel smaller than a Navy destroyer.

Medway Queen was one of seven converted paddle steamers taking part in Operation Dynamo, the operation to save the British Expeditionary Force. Several paddle steamers were sunk.

The veteran ship, now moored on the River Medway at Damhead Creek, near Strood, was built in 1924 on the Firth of Clyde.

For many years, the Medway Queen operated as a cruiser in the Medway and Thames estuaries but was converted to a minesweeper at the outbreak of the Second World War.

Her last pleasure cruise was in September, 1963 from Strood to Southend and Herne Bay. The vessel then fell into disrepair and was destined for the scrapyard before being taken over by the Medway Queen Preservation Society 20 years ago.

The society is planning what it calls a "Dunkirk pilgrimage" on April 23 and 24, visiting the Dunkirk beaches, the Operation Dynamo museum and various memorials.

The society is pinning its restoration hopes on an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund. It estimates the cost of restoring the vessel to its 1939 condition and meeting all modern safety and seaworthiness standards at about £4 million.

Writing in the latest issue of the society's magazine, Full Ahead, editor Barry Hart says he has always believed the application would be successful.

"This worthy cause of ours will at last be recognised and the Medway Queen will again be something to be proud of. To all those people who have had doubts: It's all about going through the proper channels. It's no good trying to cut corners in order to get a quick response because the only response you are likely to get is a disappointing one."

• Contact Brian Goodhew on 01795 843317 for more details on the Dunkirk voyage.