Pete Budd has come up with the novel idea of selling shares in the ship, which is up for sale at a cost of £2.8m to keep it in the town.

His plan is to issue shares in the ship and he has placed a full page advertisement in the Whitby Gazette today inviting anyone interested to buy shares at a price of £1,000 each.

Mr Budd suggests councils, public bodies, companies, retired sea captains, clubs and citizens could all be potential buyers.

The advertisement is described by Mr Budd as a preliminary notice of intention to issue shares at a value of £1,000.

From there he hopes the interested parties can form their own shipping company and trust enabling them to purchase the Grand Turk.

By buying shares owners would effectively own part of the ship.

The ship is a popular tourist attraction and has been the setting for TV series such as Robinson Crusoe and Hornblower.

It made Whitby harbour its permanant home in 2003 but faces an uncertain future as it has been up for sale since the beginning of 2007.

There were rumours the ship was facing bankruptcy or would be bought by foreign buyers.

The sea vessel is currently in Rouen in France where it is taking part in a sea festival before heading to Scarborough.

Captained by Ian Macdougal, it will be back in Whitby at the end of July.

Mr Budd said: “If everyone bought a share in the Grand Turk at a price of £1,000 we would be able to keep it here in Whitby.”

For the scheme to work 2,800 people would need to sign up and buy shares to meet the current asking price.

The ship attracts thousands of visitors to Whitby and is a boost to tourism and the local economy.

Coun Jane Kenyon who was instrumental in getting the Grand Turk to Whitby said: “The Grand Turk and Whitby are now synonymous with one another and I would be wholly supportive of any project to keep the Turk in Whitby.

“However, the financial responsibilities in the medium to long term of such a venture are extensive.

“The idea of shareholding is a novel one but an enormous responsibility for the shareholders and would require a full business plan to move it forward.”

Anyone interested should email pete.budd@virgin.net