North Wales is perhaps not the first place you’d think of when it comes to climbing aboard an amazingly accurate replica of the fishing boat from iconic movie Jaws, but thanks to one man’s determination, Conwy Marina is now home to the world’s only full-size Orca – Mark Evans had to check it out first-hand.
The Orca II, as the vessel is known, started life as a Grand Banks fishing boat. It was built in Singapore in 1959 and sailed to California, then later in life it was moved overland to the east coast of the US, and from there it was sailed across the Atlantic to Brighton, which is where lifelong Jaws fan Jon Fieldhouse found it and brought it up to Conwy on the back of a truck.
Jon said: “I think I was nine years old when I went to see Jaws at the cinema. My parents wouldn’t let me see it but the parents of my best friend snuck me in and, of course, I was traumatised! But from seeing Jaws II onwards, I wanted to get in the water and see sharks and do my bit to protect them – they are fabulous creatures.”
Jon used to import lifesize replica dinosaurs from SE Asia and operate pop-up dinosaur experiences, and one day he got the construction team to make him a shark. This, combined with his lifelong fascination with Jaws, set him on his path to creating a faithful replica of the famous on-screen boat, or what he describes as ‘the world’s smallest theme park’.
The boatbuilder has devoted the last few years to hunting down and making items for the boat that would look as close as possible to ‘the real thing’. This includes the bright yellow floatation barrels, the fishing chair fashioned from a Boston barber’s chair, the shark cage, speargun, rifle, and other smaller, but equally important for die-hard fans, bits and pieces such as Pipit’s dog collar, Brody’s police badge, Quint’s cap, Hooper’s dive mask, Campbell’s soup cans, a bottle of Old Spice, and a Penn Senator reel for the big-game rod.
Jon even imported Narragansett beer cans, which were hand-crushed in the movie by Capt Quint (Robert Shaw). But the item he is most proud of is the 1960s gas stove – he was looking for an authentic stove to put in the boat, and he believes that he has managed to get his hands on the actual prop from the movie itself. This is where Roy Schneider’s character Chief Brody says the famed line ‘we’re gonna need a bigger boat’.
The attention to detail throughout the boat is astonishing – it really feels like you are stepping onto the movie set back in 1975. There are so many little things to spot, and here and there he has added the odd still print from the film so you can see how close the Orca II is to the original.
He’s also got some little extras on board which tie into the whole Jaws theme. There is a signed copy of Jaws by author Peter Benchley, and he also has a book about the sinking of the USS Indianapolis that has been signed by several survivors of that tragic incident – there is also a photograph of those ill-fated marines attached to the bridge.
Jon decided to keep some of the character elements of the donor boat, and said he has done a sympathetic restoration to turn her into a homage of the Orca. He explained: “I’ve got a nice mixture of the two, the original boat and the boat from Jaws – it would be hard to tell the slight differences between the two”.
He was resolute in his belief that people would travel to see the Orca II, but even he has been overwhelmed by the response so far. He has been inundated with requests for more information from as far afield as Japan, and has already had visitors from the USA who made the journey across to the UK specifically to visit the boat.
He has had people propose on the boat, and has even been asked if the Orca II can be used for a marriage ceremony.
He has been contacted by the team of a certain Tom Cruise, who is apparently keen to see the Orca II next time he is in the country, and he has been assured that director Steven Spielberg, star Richard Dreyfuss and Ian Shaw, son of Robert Shaw (and who recently played his father in stage show The Shark Is Broken) also want to visit the boat.
The Orca II is moored at Conwy Marina in North Wales, and you can book a tour for four people for £95. This gives the group a whole hour on the boat, where they can take videos and photographs, recite all those famous lines, and much more. Jon has an insane knowledge of Jaws, and he makes the whole visit a memorable experience and a must for fans of the legendary movie.
A portion of ticket prices goes to several shark conservation charities, so you are doing your ‘bit’ for sharks too.
