Join us for a virtual tour on QE2's Heritage Trail
Over the next few months, the forum newsletter will highlight QE2's heritage treasures in a virtual Heritage Trail.
Are you ready?
Then off we go to the Midship Lobby for the start of the tour!
Passengers boarding the ship could not help but be impressed with the decor of the Midship Lobby . During the 1994 refit the Midship Lobby was redesigned with improved uplighting and tropical cherry timber panelling.
It was at this time that heritage items such as the Peter Sutton’s murals, depicting four important eras of Cunard's history were added.
Andy Holloway posted in the Asprey Silver Model of QE2 topic an intriguing story about Captain Ron Warwick, having been tasked with documenting archived Cunard materials, he found black and white photos of the Asprey Silver Model. Further investigation led to him finding the model in the Kaverner Board Room. Cunard entered into negations with Kaverner to have the model returned to QE2 and after the 1999 refit the model, valued at £142,000 at the time, was given pride of place in the Midship Lobby.
The model remained on QE2 when the ship was handed over to Dubai but as part of a deal between Nakheel and Cunard it was shipped to the UK on Queen Victoria in 2010 to be placed in the Yacht Club onboard Queen Elizabeth.
Following the opening of QE2 as a Hotel ship this magnificent model has been returned to Dubai and can be seen in the meeting room which was previously the Quarter Deck Library.
Cunard commissioned sculptor Barney Seale to produce this bronze statue to be displayed in the First/Cabin Class Lounge on the second Mauretania (1939). The sculpture of a woman holding the Mauretania, represents the force of the Atlantic - notice the seabirds. It was installed onboard QE2 in 1994 as part of the Heritage Trail.
.......and can still be seen onboard QE2 in Dubai
Photo: Lynda Bradford
Let us continue our tour.....
But before we go on, we will stop to look at the Telegraph Trophy that was moved to this location in May 2004, to replace the Laconia Cup when it it relocated to Upper Deck G stairway. The Telegraph Trophy was presented to the Social and Athletic Club of Queen Elizabeth (1946). It was transferred to QE2 in 1971.
Photo: Michael Gallagher collection
From the Midship Lobby let us continue forward on Deck Two to The New York, Ocean Liner Museum Collection, outside what was the Computer Centre. The two display cases contained a historical selection of Cunard publications, menus, promotional materials schedules, souvenirs.
Photo: Michael Gallagher collection
The collection was returned to the Ocean Liner Museum in October 2008 before the handover of the ship to Dubai as recorded in the Changes, Changes, Changes topic by Michael Gallagher, where he recalls that the Round Britain Menus replaced the collection.
Photo: Michael Gallagher collection
Proceeding to the Deck 2 Lobby A staircase, we can view the carved wooden plaque that was presented to QE2's owners, by the First Sea Lord, Sir John Fieldhouse, in recognition for war service during the Falkland Islands conflict. Have a look at the plaque in situ on The QE2 and the Falklands War topic and read more about QE2's service to transport troops to/from the conflict.
The plaque can still be seen today at the Queen Elizabeth 2 Hotel's reception exhibition area in Dubai.
In our virtual tour we would also see on the Lobby A stairwell, the plaque unveiled by Baroness Thatcher to commemorate the Falklands 20th Anniversary in 2002. This plaque is also on display in Dubai - see bottom left of the Falklands plaque.
Photo: Lynda Bradford
We would love to hear your memories on the Heritage Trail topic and if you have photo please share them on the forum.
Next month we will continue our Heritage Trail looking at treasures on One Deck and Quarter Deck - a tour not to be missed!
Thank-you to everyone who post their memories on the forum that helps us to produce these newsletter articles. Thank-you also to Michael Gallagher who provided photos and additional snippets of information for our virtual heritage tour.
A list of events that happened to QE2 in the month of June - if you were onboard QE2 during any of these events or have information you can share, please post on the timeline or topic.
June 1983: Hull repainted black
1 June 1970: QE2 crossed the Atlantic westbound in a record time of 3 days, 20 hours and 42 minutes, an average speed of 30.4 knots'*
11 June 1982: QE2 ended her longest non-stop voyage, having sailed for 6,976 miles from South Georgia.
11 June 1992: QE2's Echo Engine ripped itself to pieces.
12 June 1993: Prince Edward lunches on board to celebrate 40 years since his mother ascended the throne.
14 June 1995: QE2 set sail from New York on her 1000th voyage
14 June 2002: Baroness Thatcher on board - 20th anniversary of Falklands conflict
14 June 2009: QE2 Stationary in Dubai for 200 days
15 June 1991: Prince Edward and the Duke of Edinburgh attend a Royal Ball aboard QE2 in Southampton
15 June 1994: takes part in Spithead review in honour of the 50th anniversary of D Day with Vera Lynn and Bob Hope
18 June 2007: Cunard stuns with the surprise announcement that QE2 has been sold for $100 million to Dubai interests. Dubai soon announces vague plans for QE2 as a luxury hotel and shopping attraction, plus heritage museum, at the same time stating their intention to restore QE2 to her original 1969 appearance.
20 June 1975: QE2 offers medical assistance to a sick seaman from the Russian fishing trawler “Luga”. We are Cunard mention.
23 June 2002 :
26 June 2002: QE2 departs Southampton carrying a Maybach car to its world premiere in New York
26 June 1970: QE2's First Rescue at sea when Spanish Fisherman Jesus Ferreira, onboard the German Motor Vessel Zosmarr, required medical assistance
26 June 2007: A series of Farewell voyages is announced by Cunard
26 June 1983: QE2 abandoned her post Falklands and returns to the more traditional Cunard colours
30 June 1971: Trafalgar House purchases Cunard for 27.3 million pounds.
30 June 1971: After calling at Cobh, Ireland, and disembarking several passengers, it is discovered that six pieces of unclaimed luggage contain a large consignment of illegal arms destined to the IRA.
QE2 a ship for all ages Some of our younger members tell us about their interest in the forum
Trevor Casey: Being a member of the forum is great. I've learned so many things that usually aren't written about in a typical book about QE2.
Thomas Hypher: I enjoy the QE2 Story Forum because it's helping to keep the very special legend of the seagoing, Cunard ship alive through member's memories, photos, and videos. Also I enjoy the QE2 Story Forum as it's the best online source of QE2 information and I still learn from it and refer to it today, nearly two decades since being introduced to the ship by my Dad. Each voyage on QE2 was a dream come true, the two bridge visits igniting my dream to become a deck officer, something I am still trying to work towards. I will always be grateful to my parents for their hard work that allowed us to afford our voyages, the happy memories we made onboard being more valuable than ever these days and the main reason I plan to visit the ship in Dubai as a kind of sentimental "pilgrimage" when able to."
Brandon Sterkel: I enjoy The QE2 Story Forum as it is a unique place online to learn and hear stories from the most famous ocean liner in the world. The QE2 is a very unique and beloved vessel and this site is a wonderful place to learn something new about her from the many former passengers, crew members and enthusiasts on the site. My interest in the QE2 would not be where it is today if not for this forum!
Olivia: I decided to join the QE2 Story Forum because despite never having sailed on her, I believe that the QE2 is one of the greatest ships ever. I enjoy reading the forum because it has so many pictures and a wealth of information, and as a younger member I hope to keep the memory of the QE2 and her predecessors alive for many years to come.
September Photo Competition
Special Prize
As September will be the start of our collection of winning photos for the 2021 Calendar there will be a special prize awarded to the winner - more details to follow.
We normally ask the photo competition winner to choose the theme for the next month's competition but for the September competition we will be asking forum members to vote for the theme.
We will be announcing details in the July newsletter with a link to the topic to vote.
Photo Competition
Thanks to everyone who supports the Photo Competitions and especially those who let us see fabulous QE2 photos that we would not otherwise have seen. Every month you have the opportunity to upload three photos of your choice that fit the monthly theme and you can vote for your favourite photos for the previous months competition.
ENTER your three best photos for the monthly Photo Competition: It has been interesting to see everyone's interpretation of this month's theme "QE2 cabin decks"that has already generated wonderful pictures uploaded to the gallery album, but we would love to see your three pictures entered before the closing date for entries - 30 June. Have a look at the topic for details of this month's prize.
VOTE: in the poll for the May competition -"A day at sea"before the poll closes on 1 July. If you have not yet voted, please log in and take a few minutes to enjoy the photos and choose your 3 favourites
Congratulations go to Isabelle, the winner of the April competition. I was delighted to get runner up place. Thank-you
The QE2 Story team send out this monthly newsletter to forum members, plus people who have subscribed directly through Mailchimp. We hope you enjoy reading it and we would love to hear from you atadmin@theqe2story.com if you have any suggestions for future articles or improvements you would like to suggest.
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Thank-you for your continued support for the QE2 Story Forum. We know how special the ship is to everyone onboard the forum and we appreciate the contributions that are made to keep her memory alive.
