Stand clear of the oars! Canal boat is lovingly refurbished and turned into a London Underground Tube… and now it could be yours for £20,000

• The eye-catching narrowboat, nicknamed Wiggles, now looks like a Tube train
• It was designed by owner Darren Brown and took six months to refurbish
• Mr Brown from Uxbridge is selling the 20ft boat on Facebook Marketplace

If London Underground trains float your boat then this could be your dream home.

A narrowboat which has been lovingly refurbished to look like a Tube train has just gone on the market.

And at just £20,000 it could leave potential buyers barging to the front of the queue.

The one-of-a-kind floating home is painted in stone grey, red and blue to depict the distinctive train carriages and their iconic red sliding doors.

The boat, which was designed by owner Darren Brown and took six months to refurbish, is fully fitted for living on

It also includes a range of Underground-themed accessories including tube map bedding, cushions, pillows and ‘Mind the Gap’ signs on its outside and inside

Mr Brown, from Uxbridge, London, has put the 20ft boat up for sale on Facebook Marketplace as he’s looking for a bigger one

The boat took six months to refurbish (pictured here before it was redesigned and renovated)

The eye-catching vessel – named ‘Wiggles’ – was built in 2006 and has everything you could need for a ready made home and has a ‘mind the gap’ sign on the outside

The eye-catching vessel – named ‘Wiggles’ – was built in 2006 and has everything you could need for a ready made home.

It also includes a range of Underground-themed accessories including tube map bedding, cushions, pillows and ‘Mind the Gap’ signs on its outside and inside.

The boat, which was designed by owner Darren Brown and took six months to refurbish, is fully fitted for living on – and he says it’s ‘definitely more chilled out than riding on the tube’.

Mr Brown, from Uxbridge, London, has put the 20ft boat up for sale on Facebook Marketplace as he’s looking for a bigger one.

Mr Brown, 39, said: ‘My wife thought that painting it like an underground train would only appeal to railway enthusiasts, but she’s popular with all sorts.

‘She has a real energy to her, lots of towpath users stop and ask to take pictures with her.

‘It’s a different energy, definitely a bit more chilled out than riding on the tube.

‘She’s called Wiggles because she has excess weight above the water line which makes her move around.

‘I’ve managed to decrease the wiggle with my upgrades, but haven’t stopped it completely.

‘The shape of the boat was the inspiration for the whole underground theme.

‘We also call her Mind the Gap now because of the obvious similarities between stepping onto a tube train and stepping onto a canal boat from the bank.

‘I’ve had interest from people who want to live on her and people with business ideas as well.’

Mr Brown said: ‘‘I stripped the boat out completely and upgraded it. I thought the underground theme suited her really well, and graffiti artists love the idea of painting on trains.’ Pictured during the transformation

The boat is now fully fitted out to live on. Pictured: the kitchen area of the boat after being transformed

The one-of-a-kind floating home is painted in stone grey, red and blue to depict the distinctive train carriages and their iconic red sliding doors 

Mr Brown, a gardener and carer, bought the boat in January and used it for a floating art project

He travelled along the canals of London inviting local artists onboard to work on it

Mr Brown, a gardener and carer, bought the boat in January and used it for a floating art project.

He travelled along the canals of London inviting local artists onboard to work on it.

Mr Brown – who is married to financial administrator Louisa, also 39, and has a son, Dion, 21 – said he loved touring the boat and showing off the various designs it has featured.

Over 120 artists worked on it and it was even taken over by DJs during the Notting Hill Carnival.

He said: ‘It was just a bit of fun to start with, Wiggles was the only size of boat that we could afford.

‘I stripped the boat out completely and upgraded it.

‘I thought the underground theme suited her really well, and graffiti artists love the idea of painting on trains.

‘We had different artists working on her every week.

‘She looked different all the time until we settled on her current paint job.

‘She spent time with a giant eyeball painted on her, and often had big letters and tags.

‘Lots of towpath users would stop and chat because she’s so unique.

‘I’m used to turning heads with my boats, I didn’t think Wiggles would get so much attention.

‘Everyone was welcome to pick up a can of paint and get involved.

‘I just came up with the idea. It’s the artists who have made it.’

Source: Read Full Article