Crew lets Noel Gallagher rock and roll with it on the Lymington ferry

ROCK legend Noel Gallagher took the helm after stepping aboard Wightlink’s Lymington to Yarmouth ferry ahead of appearing at the Isle of Wight Festival.

The former Oasis guitarist joined the captain and crew on board in the control room before going on stage with his band Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.

Noel posted a picture of himself on Twitter at the helm of the Wightlink ferry as it navigated out of Lymington River on Friday with the caption: “Isle of Wight Incoming”.

Wightlink spokesperson Karen Wood told the A&T: “Quite often we don’t even know that we have celebrities on board because they stay hidden away – but everyone said Noel was very friendly and chatty. Our staff certainly enjoyed meeting him.”

Helmsman Matt Woodford, who was on the bridge with the star and captain Steven Baker, told the A&T: “Noel came on board and we invited him on to the bridge with us.

“He was a really great chap, just great fun and really down to earth. We asked him if he wanted a go and he had a quick go at the helm.

“He had a chat with everyone on the bridge and was happy to pose for photos with fans.”

“He was really polite and just such a nice bloke.”

It is not the first time that Matt has chatted with one of the Gallagher brothers - as he spent several hours with Liam at the Foresters Arms in Brockenhurst around six years ago.

Matt said: “I had a photo on my phone of me drinking with Liam so I got it out and said to Noel, ‘Do you recognise this bloke?’

“He did react with quite a strong word a first and said a couple of swear words. But after that he said it was probably around the time when Liam was working in a recording studio close to Brockenhurst.

“You hear a lot about Liam and Noel’s feud in the media but I think they love each other secretly. I think a lot of it is just tit for tat. Maybe they just can’t make music together!”

During the weekend up to 80,000 music fans travelled to the Isle of Wight to attend the legendary music festival.

Other stars to perform during the weekend included George Ezra, Biffy Clyro, Madness, The Courteeners, Fatboy Slim, James, Lily Allen, Garbage and Keane.

Hampshire’s very own chart-topping twins Ward Thomas also appeared on Sunday.

Sisters Catherine and Lizzy Ward Thomas released their debut album Where We Stand in 2014, which they followed up with their second album Cartwheels in 2016 which reached number one in the UK album charts.