The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company Limited[1] (abbreviated to IoMSPCo or, locally, The Steam Packet (Manx: Phaggad Bree Ellan Vannin)[2]) is the oldest continuously operating passenger shipping company in the world, having been founded in 1830.

A meeting was held in Douglas in 1829, from which was formed a committee charged investigating the cost of acquiring a steam packet.

Briefly the company then traded as the Isle of Man United Steam Packet, before assuming its present name in July 1832.

[3] Ports served included Liverpool, Silloth, Whitehaven, Holyhead, Ardrossan, Blackpool, Belfast and Dublin.

[citation needed] During the First World War, eleven out of a total fleet of fifteen Steam Packet ships were requisitioned by the Admiralty.

Eight company ships took part in this mission, rescuing a total of 24,699 British troops – one in fourteen of those evacuated from Dunkirk.

However this was also the company's blackest day, as three of the line's ships were lost:The anchor from Mona's Queen (III) was raised as part of the 70th anniversary commemoration of Operation Dynamo at Dunkirk.

It is sited at Kallow Point in Port St Mary as a memorial to the company's crew who took part in the war.

[5] Four side-loading roll-on/roll-off car ferries were introduced, beginning with Manx Maid in 1962, and followed by Ben-my-Chree (1966), Mona's Queen (1972) and Lady of Mann (1976).

[6] The main UK port switched from Liverpool to Heysham, thus ending (albeit temporarily as it turned out) an association lasting back to the company's origins.

In 1996, the Steam Packet Company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Sea Containers headed by James Sherwood, who had pioneered the fast-craft operation.

[8] On 3 February 2007, Sea Express 1 (formerly SeaCat Isle of Man) collided with the cargo ship Alaska Rainbow in heavy fog in the River Mersey.

None of the 294 passengers and crew was hurt, and the ferry was moored at Liverpool Pier Head while water was being pumped from the engine room, a number of cars remained on board.

In June 2007, a new CEO, Mark Woodward, was appointed to succeed Hamish Ross; he promised to improve the company's services, to return to the classic livery, and to promote the island's culture.

As the first part of the rebranding, the Sea Express 1 and SuperSeaCat Two were renamed Snaefell and Viking respectively; the latter was later sold and operated for the Atlantico Line as Hellenic Wind.

Eight passengers were trapped in the gangway compartment of the shore structure and were later rescued by the local fire service.

In addition to the regular routes, the company operates a few special day excursions to other destinations or round the Isle of Man in summer.

The Lady of Mann was also used in the 2004 film Mickybo and Me and also appears, in Dublin, in Alan Parker's movie The Commitments.

In August 2020, the company ordered a new ferry from South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Mipo Dockyard to replace Ben-my-Chree upon delivery in 2023.