Plans to reopen Fort Paull attraction

A former East Yorkshire visitor attraction is expected to reopen this summer.

Fort Paull, on the banks of the Humber Estuary, closed in January 2020.

Owner Brian Rushworth's application to turn the historic site into a caravan park was dismissed by East Riding of Yorkshire Council in March.

He has now given Nick Taylor and Nick Moore permission to reopen the fort as an attraction, complete with museum.

Former Royal Marine Mr Taylor, 37, was hired as a temporary caretaker at the site in October. He has teamed up with Mr Moore, who ran a campaign to keep Fort Paull open.

A social media post announcing the news that Fort Paull would reopen was shared almost 3,000 times on Facebook, which Mr Taylor said had helped him "realise we were doing the right thing".

Mr Taylor said he was "extremely excited to see what was to come", as the pair prepare to open a new museum and stage events.

They would be "starting from scratch" after exhibits were auctioned, Mr Taylor revealed.

He said he would like the site to contain a mix of military and local history.

Fort Paull will begin opening on Saturdays this summer, with events such as ghost nights and a car show planned.

Fortifications at the site were constructed in 1542, with additions made during the English Civil War.

It stored ammunition during World War Two, before the Ministry of Defence sold the site in 1960. The Friends of Fort Paull group then took it on, opening to visitors.

It opened as a museum in 2000, looking at the past 500 years of conflict, complete with exhibits and aircraft displays, before closing in 2020.

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