Guest Blog: Rachael Fish, Assistant Entertainment Director, Queen Victoria

In the 1960’s British Industry was still on the slow road to recovery and so many people including my Grandfather decided to look elsewhere for work, in my grandfather’s case this was Canada. Shortly after arriving his bravery was rewarded when he landed a manufacturing position with Rolls Royce and during his many years of loyal service, he relied upon Cunard Line and ships such as ‘Saxonia’, ‘Carinthia’, ‘Sylvania’ to transport him back to Liverpool where my father, his brothers and sister and my Grandmother were waiting patiently on the pier, for his return.

On these occasions, the siblings would yearn to be taken onboard the ships and shown around, but there was never the time nor the opportunity. But it was those emotional re-unions where a seed was sown which over the years would grow into a passion to one day see the inside of a luxury liner.

The dream was first realised in 1970 when my Uncle Anthony, worked on board QE2 as a waiter and continued service with Cunard Line for years.

During that time, he was even able to meet with Her Majesty the Queen and was on board during the 1970 bomb scare in the Mid Atlantic.

Anthony’s twin brother Vincent also went to work at sea for P&O Cruises as a cabin attendant.

Years later after so many years of researching the ships his father used to travel on, my father could wait no more, he booked a voyage for us on board the QE2 and on 3 May 1991, we set sail from Southampton for New York. This was to be my very first time on the ocean and unbeknown to me the start of my own love affair with the Oceans.

Over the years, I sailed many times aboard Cunard liners such as ‘Cunard Princess’, ‘QE2’, ‘Vistafjord’ and ‘Caronia’, but it was on that first voyage that I knew I had to work at sea. The Cruise Director at the time was a charming chap called Lyndsay who was married to Kerry-Ann, the youth counsellor who catered for my age group. Every night I would sit and watch the show wondering at the way the dancers gracefully moved and the lights sparkled as they lit up this new world of Glitz and glamour. I still remember turning to my Dad one night and declaring that one day, I would do the same job as Lyndsay…  Dad laughed, patted my head and said ‘course you will sweetheart’!

So it was that seven years ago, I applied to Cunard to become part of their Entertainment Staff, and my dream nearly imploded before it had even begun as I was informed that there were no positions available! Not to be beaten I went to work for another cruise line until finally, last September, I came home to Cunard as the Assistant Entertainment Director aboard Queen Victoria.

In September of this year, my father travelled with me for the Queen Mary 2 Round Britain Voyage. You can imagine how proud I was as we sailed into Liverpool together. Sharing the moment by phone with my Uncles Anthony and Vincent, where 58 years earlier my Grandfather’s love affair with Cunard had began.

Hello All 

Last week I attended a lovely little ceremony in Southampton. Following the retirement of the QE2 in 2008 – along with our friends in Dubai we donated one of the famous ship’s anchors to the city of Southampton. The city kindly decided to rename one of the roads leading into the town centre ‘QE2 Mile’. And along the mile they have created a nice location to place the anchor. It stands proud, surrounded by a very smart polished stone surround and a very appropriate plaque.

So one evening last week we assembled next to the new anchor to mark our donation to the city. The Mayor of Southampton and the Leader of the Council said a few words – as did I. I referred to the important relationship that both QE2 and Cunard Line have with the city of Southampton. I also said it was very good of them to create the QE2 mile – in fact the QE2 sailed over 5.8 million miles from Southampton and she will rightly be warmly remembered by all in the city. Here are some pictures from the event;

The next morning Queen Elizabeth was in town and ready for her maiden voyage around the British Isles departing that evening. Of course it is our new Elizabeth that is carrying the name ‘Southampton’ around the world. Whilst I was walking round the ship that morning I could not help notice just how many wonderful plaques we have from the many places Queen Elizabeth has visited in her first year. Here is a selection of some of them located outside the entrance to the Commodore Club:

Quite a few blogs to follow over the next couple of weeks as Queen Elizabeth goes right around Britain- including a very special event in Liverpool. We will also be sharing some views as to how the ship is faring in her first year – with my own personal thoughts. This is all by way of building up to her 1^st birthday on 11 October where we rightly plan to remember that special day last year and reflect on her first year in service.

I am writing this on Sunday afternoon. This morning I completed my ‘wet weather training’ for our forthcoming Prince’s Trust Palace to Palace Bike Ride. By ‘wet weather training’ I mean that I cycled 15 miles in the pouring rain – yes the English Summer just carries on. I mention this in case any of you feel any sympathy for my Sunday morning efforts on behalf of the Prince’s Trust – and may be moved to moving the curser to the top right hand corner of the blog and clicking on the ‘Just Giving’ site to safely sponsor me and the Prince’s Trust. A big thank you to those of you who have already supported us already.

That is all for now – back soon with some news on the Queen Elizabeth Round Britain voyage….

Best Regards

Peter

Guest Blog

Annette Wardell

Guest Entertainer

Being a Guest Entertainer is the best job in the world! What other profession gives you the chance to do what you love doing (sing!), travel the world and meet some truly amazing people?!

I’m a professional opera singer, and literally fell by happy accident into the world of ship-board entertainment. I was performing ‘Carmen’ in Valencia, Spain, and was approached by an Agent at breakfast after the opening show. At the time, I didn’t even know that there was entertainment on board ships! Little did I realise then what a wonderful world I was about to discover.

Cunard was the first line I ever worked for, and I was sent all the way to South America to join the Caronia for a week. As a Guest Entertainer, you are emailed flight, hotel and transfer details well in advance of the contract date. However, I learned very early on that a certain amount of independence is needed to get yourself from A to B and back again, and in dealing with all the Customs, Immigration and Port Officials this job entails. quite a daunting prospect for someone who’d never even flown on her own before!

One of the very best parts of this job are the friends you make. I’m constantly receiving emails, texts and calls from people all over the world, working on many different ships. We may not see each other for weeks, even months, and yet when we meet again on another ship, it’s as though we’ve never been apart. Catching up over a coffee, or something a little stronger, after shows is fantastic. There is a huge camaraderie amongst Guest Entertainers, and staff on board, including Entertainment, Theatre and Shops, all become great friends. Without wanting to sound clichéd, we are like a big family, especially on Cunard! On that first voyage I made a very special friend, who taught me so much about working and performing on ships, and has remained an inspiration to this day – the lovely Kenny Martyn (who is, incidentally, in the next cabin as I write, preparing a spectacular Big Band show for the Queens Room this evening!). Not only did we tour most of South America’s football stadiums, but I still use the very same Hotmail account he so kindly set up for me on a very sultry afternoon in a café in Montevideo!
Although I regularly perform opera and concerts on land, ship performances remain my favourite. Entertainers put together their own programmes – mine is all my favourite songs! And in no other venue do we have the opportunity to meet and get to know our audience. It’s very special being able to chat to guests after shows, and see just how much the entertainment here on board is valued and appreciated.

Every show of my ship career has been a thrill, but my highlights? My first performance in the Royal Court Theatre here on Queen Mary 2; a magnificent theatre, better than any to be found in the West End or Broadway! And being invited to perform on the very last night of QE2’s very last voyage. It was a true honour, and singing ‘Time to Say Goodbye’ has never been so difficult, filled as it was with so many memories. She was a beautiful ship.

What an amazing job I’ve got! Lucky, lucky girl!

-          Annette.

Hello All

Many of you will have seen the wonderful art on board each of our ships. We are fortunate to have a mix of fine artists covering a wide range of tastes – and of course we have some unique historic art of many of the most exciting times in our history. Where do we get it all from I hear you say, how on earth does an artist get a painting onto a famous ocean liner. Well we thought it would be interesting for one of our valued artists to tell his story – and it is quite a story of endurance, creativity, passion – well quite a lot of passion actually. The story below comes from Giancarlo Impiglia – his distinctive art hangs on all three of our ships. We are all very grateful for his passion and for the very distinctive art that he has created for us. So over to you Giancarlo…

I was first approached by Cunard in 1994 to produce some artwork for QE2, when the then President John Olsen had spotted my work in a restaurant on Broadway.  Over the years I have also been commissioned to create artwork for Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and the new Queen Elizabeth.

It was important for me to be a part of the new ship. After all, in an online article on Cunard Line, I was referred to as “Giancarlo Impiglia, Artist to the Queens”

During the fall of 2009 I was invited to present sketches and studies to Cunard’s interior design team, who were selecting the artwork of many artists invited to create paintings for Queen Elizabeth. They needed to approve the initial sketches in order to coordinate colour and subject matter in harmony with the ship’s interior.

I was commissioned to create three paintings for the staircase B on deck 9 and 10.

I started to work on the project with my usual enthusiasm, for each canvas I sketched many different drawings from which to select the final image. I wanted to reach a sense of continuity with the paintings I previously created for the QE2 and Queen Mary 2.

My studio was crowded with sketches on paper hanging with scotch tape on the walls and on the windows: details of heads, of hands, of dresses and hats for the women, tuxedos for the men and   musical instruments.

By the end of the Spring, full-scale drawings for the new paintings were finally hanging on the white walls of my large studio.

Simultaneously I was working on a painting commissioned by FIFA to represent the Italian football team at the World Cup in South Africa which started in June 2010.

It was a very exciting summer.

In order to keep the three works in harmony with each other I placed the three canvases on the studio wall next to each other and worked on the paintings at the same time like if it was a single painting.

For the largest canvas (72”x 48”) I designed a formal night in the ship’s Restaurant, my own interpretation of the Britannia Restaurant where elegant guests are dining in an elegant environment. To re create the modern art deco interior I was inspired by the interior of the first Queen Mary: elegant and glamorous.

In one of the two smaller paintings I designed guests in formal attire descending the elegant staircase of the ship on the way to attend a show in the theatre. Women in colourful gowns with long gloves covering their arms and wearing precious jewellery are descending the stairs holding their companions arm.

I spent the entire summer of 2010 on the three paintings, committed to creating images not just for the decor of the ship interior but also for my own satisfaction and my pride.

During the month of August 2010 I completed the three paintings, they were shipped to Italy where they were installed on the ship, on deck 10 on Staircase B, as previously planned by the designers.

Now I had only to wait for my visit on the ship and see the paintings in their new and permanent home in the newest floating palace: Queen Elizabeth.

My wife and I were invited once again to the naming ceremony  that was going to take place, like the naming ceremony of Queen Victoria, on the docks of Southampton.

Her majesty the Queen officially named the new ocean liner; it was a fantastic and memorable event.

Arriving on board Queen Elizabeth was like coming home; a beautiful home in a floating palace. A familiar and elegant ambiance where friendships are born and camaraderie is part of life.

Now it was time to look for my three paintings….I had been waiting months for this moment.

I took the elevator to deck 10 and …there they were, nicely framed, 2 on the landing and the largest on the staircase between deck 9 and 10.

I saw a couple of guests stopping in front of the larger canvas and I heard them saying “These paintings are by the artist who painted the murals on the QE2 and on Queen Mary 2, I recognise the style…. his name is…” Looking at the tag under the painting…. “Giancarlo Impiglia”

I felt a sense of pride for what I have accomplished, my style is my signature. Being recognised among many art works on display it was for me the greatest reward I could get from my paintings.

I left the couple admiring my paintings. I walked away smiling.

The following morning after breakfast, we disembarked from the magnificent vessel.

But my story did not end there. A week later, October 24, 2010, I flew back to London to embark once again on Queen Elizabeth.

I had an invitation to return on board to present a lecture on art during Queen Elizabeth’s 2nd voyage, we were sailing to Barcelona, Montecarlo, Livorno and Civitavecchia.
It was only a one week voyage, during which I did a talk on Michelangelo and the making of the Sistine Chapel.

My lecture was attended by a full theatre and I was introduced to the audience as the artist whose works of art are featured on all the 4 Queens. The topic was important to all guests but even more important for the people going on excursion to Florence from Livorno and to Rome from Civitavecchia.

On 2 November Queen Elizabeth arrived in the port of Civitavecchia, about 3000 years of history were waiting for us.

Sadly I disembarked the ship. My sister was waiting for me with her car. She drove me home in the centre of the “Eternal City” were I grew up.The joy to be back in my beautiful city and see my Italian family and old friends put me in a good mood but…deep in my heart I was still in the middle of the ocean, on deck of the Queen Elizabeth looking out to the infinite horizon.

Thank you Giancarlo – if everybody had your passion for creativity and success then the world would be a better place. I liken Giancarlo to some of our most creative Chefs – creative , passionate,  talented and never takes ‘No’ for an answer.

That’s all for now.  Wherever you are reading this – I trust you are keeping well. An exciting week ahead for us in the UK – especially as this coming Sunday our own Andy Murray (a fellow Scot) is going to win Wimbledon for the first time ……..

Best Regards

Peter Shanks

Last Friday on the Bridge of Queen Mary 2, we witnessed the retirement of Captain Paul Wright from Cunard Line.  Paul has had a magnificent career at sea and 31 years with Cunard Line.  During that time he worked on a number of our ships and I have personally known him for the last 9 years.  Paul was Master of QE2, Master of Queen Victoria and Master of our flagship Queen Mary 2.  Throughout his career Paul has developed a fine reputation with the crew of every ship on which he has worked.  He has always had a very special way with his people and has shown tremendous leadership style and compassion for all of our valued crew members. 

I got to know Paul well during the build and launch of Queen Victoria.  Bringing a ship through the shipyard and into service is a very daunting task.  It requires a great deal of leadership and importantly a great deal of teamwork, both on board the ship and with all the shipyard workers.  We often talk of “We Are Cunard” – in fact that is the name of this blog.  We Are Cunard was born under Paul’s leadership during the building phase of Queen Victoria.  It was a spontaneous phrase that came from some of the ships’ company and culminated in that famous first “We Are Cunard” video fronted by Captain Paul Wright.  You can find it on our YouTube channel and not only was it a very emotional video, but it led to the “We are Cunard” mantra that we all have great pride in sharing today.

Paul was always intending to retire when he reached a certain age.  And I was sorry that he reached that certain age and we are all sorry to see him leave Cunard Line.  However, I was able to thank him on the Bridge last Friday on behalf of all of us at Cunard and of course those of our valued guests who will know Captain Paul Wright very well.  As you can see in the picture below I was able to present him with a specially signed limited edition print by Gordon Bauwens showing three of the fine ships that he led.  In the words at the top of the picture where he describes “a proud career – Captain Paul Wright”.

So Paul – all the best for a long, healthy and happy retirement and we hope to see you on board our Cunarders in the future. 

Now on to some questions – we have had quite a few recently, so I thought I would give some answers to those of you who have kindly raised them:

Judith Sayers:
Will the Queen Mary2 be using Brooklyn terminal, or does it vary? Looking forward to sailing in and out of New York in September 2012

Judith – Queen Mary 2 now uses the Brooklyn Terminal on a regular basis. I was there just last week and had a good look around the facilities. There is no doubt that sailing right up the river to Manhattan is somewhat more ‘romantic’ and reminiscent of the old days. On the other hand , boarding Queen Mary 2 in Brooklyn on a sunny day, going up on deck and seeing Manhattan and The Statue of Liberty as part of your panoramic view is awesome. It is also true to say that feedback on the terminal experience comes in favour of Brooklyn. There were some challenges early on where some yellow cab drivers would ask ‘Where is that?’ – but a few years on that is not a problem – and it’s a faster route to and from the airport. When Queen Elizabeth makes her call into New York for a couple of days in September – that will be as a visit rather than an embarkation call and so she will be close to the action of Manhattan. I hope that answers your question. Kind Regards. Peter

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Bill Bradbury:
Peter most interesting. New York is on our “radar” after 2 brief calls last year on our QM2 Quebec trip. Now tell us what were the results of the “feedback” and what you should be doing better plus the “interesting ideas” that came up.

Bill – Some of the ideas I heard as follows. Could we increase the number of Transatlantics and offer more opportunities for our North American guests to travel to and from Europe. Could we increase the capacity of our kennels on Queen Mary 2 – they sell out quickly. One hot topic at the moment is the high cost of air fares to Europe from North America – and could we see if we could help with more ‘air-inclusive’ offers. Could we increase the number of Canada/New England Voyages in the Fall (to which I said we would if somebody could get the  beautiful Fall leaves to stay on the trees a bit longer).
Feedback on the whole was very positive – notably as to how well Queen Victoria is doing. There is still a ‘buzz’ in New York as to Queen Elizabeth – and most of the agents present at the meeting had watched the Royal Wedding. It was a very useful event – our guests give their feedback to their agents and it is good to find ways of our agents passing that feedback on to ourselves. They enjoyed the tea and scones we gave them as well. Best Regards. Peter.

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Roger Waterfall:
Does anyone know of any Cunard connections to Baltic history? we will visit on Queen Elizabeth in August.

Roger – I can find out and let you know – I am sure there will be some Baltic History for Cunard. Back with an answer shortly. Best Regards. Peter

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Tony Mac:
Can i get some copys of the photos and the story in NewYork of the Carpathia arriving with the 705 survivors that fateful day,i only use the info to show the public the events of 1912, i have a R.M.S. Titanic exhibition which will be at Carnforth Station 18July 30 Aug free entry to all.

Tony – The photos I showed on the blog I took with my Blackberry – we could email those to you and will find out if you are able to source the pictures elsewhere.. I hear that our good friend and maritime historian John Maxtone-Graham (whom I had the pleasure of meeting on the Queen Mary 2 Bridge last week) is about to publish a book on Titanic and that will be worth a read.  Best Regards. Peter

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So I started the blog with Paul – what about Ringo?  Well also last Friday I was fortunate to attend a wonderful concert at Hampton Court Palace in Surrey.  We go every year to see a range of different artists and it is a fantastic historic menu and a great setting for concerts.  We went to see Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band.  This is nothing to do with Cunard or our blog, but I just thought I would tell you how much I enjoyed it.  It is rather special to see a real live Beatle and he did not disappoint. He had a wonderful band of talented musicians.  He had a chap called Rick Derringer – he sang his hit “Hang on Snoopy”.  He also had a rather crazy rock and roll star called Edgar Winter from the famous Edgar Winter Band.  He was amazing and played the saxophone, drums, keyboards and a rather energetic synthesizer.  But the star of the All Starr band was Ringo himself.  He is still full of energy and sang as well as playing the drums in his inimitable style.  Yes, he performed “We All Live in a Yellow Submarine”, along with some of his other hits.  It was interesting that he did not mention “The Beatles” once – instead he would say “You might recognise this song, I used to play it in my other band”.  I have always thought it sad that The Beatles did not get a chance to reunite like many other famous bands have, but nevertheless it was really rather special to see Ringo Starr in such fine form after all these years – this is how it looked:

So that is how I managed to start the blog with Paul and finish with Ringo…..

Best regards,
Peter Shanks.

As Queen Victoria heads to Southampton, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary 2 are both making their way to Civitavecchia, the port for Rome, where they will meet tomorrow as part of their 2011 World Voyage.

We have a great guest blog from Eric Flounders, PR Manager for Cunard Line. Eric joined Queen Elizabeth in Dubai and transitted the Suez Canal in to the Mediterranean, here is his first installment:

Guest Blog

Eric Flounders

Cunard Line

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Having regularly sailed on Cunard ships for the past 25 years, the sight of QE2’s beautiful red funnel has been a familiar one to me – and a welcome one – looming above the docks of many a foreign port. But it was still a shock to drive through the gates of Port Rashid in Dubai to see the same welcoming sight, beautifully lit up and immaculately cared for – but duplicated, as immediately behind was the similar red funnel of her new namesake, Queen Elizabeth.

As we drove along the pier against which both ships were berthed in parallel, it was only when the taxi turned right instead of left the sense of deja vu faded and it sank in that I was about to travel on the new Queen Elizabeth for the first time and not on the old favourite which had been my home so often in the past.

But I need not have worried, if indeed I did. Queen Elizabeth is a very homely ship. Whereas from the outside she is clearly a new generation of ship, perhaps several generations on from QE2, inside she seems to be from an earlier one. None of the chrome and neon glitz of modern ships here, but rather the polished brass, marble and rich wooden veneers of a more sedate and elegant age. No matter how often you see Queen Elizabeth’s public spaces, they always surprise with their space and magnificence. And yet, at the same time, the ship exudes a cosiness and air of tasteful comfort so frequently lacking in modern hotels

We were interlopers, of course, we 800 who boarded in Dubai. Many on board had been sailing the world since Queen Elizabeth set off from Southampton in January, and were now on the home strait.  But it was obvious from the off that the ship had settled in to her new role with ease, and  everything about her – including the crew – has the practised air of many years in service. Even the full world Voyage passengers give the impression they have been here for ever, so smoothly do things run.

The first leg of our adventure, homeward bound for Southampton, was to the Omani port of Salalah – a journey we were reminded by Captain Wells would take us through the much publicised and now notorious haunt of Somali pirates. But there seems to be no real concern on board, not only because everyone is reassured by the measures taken, but because there is a light-hearted view that even if pirates did manage to scramble aboard so large a ship travelling so fast, they would be rapidly dismissed by 2,000 passengers – many wielding handbags – determined that dinner shouldn’t be delayed for one minute by such nonsense. An air of ‘let ‘em dare’ prevails.

In Port Salalah, a surprisingly busy port ten miles from the town itself, most of our longer-established fellow passengers opted for organised excursions; we soon found out why. Those of us opting to travel ashore independently were met at the dock gate by a scrum of taxi drivers haranguing us for business in scenes reminiscent of a Coalition cuts protest. And word soon came back that while they were happy to take you to Salalah for ten dollars, they wanted considerably more to bring you back. The wise birds who have been on the entire World Voyage were obviously savvy to this practice had had zoomed off in the comfort of their air-conditioned coaches (with lavatories) rather than risking the mayhem at the gate. We put discretion before valour and slunk back to the ship where, instead of spending our money in Salalah we sipped tea in the Queens Room and sunbathed in the comfort of our magnificent ship. The right decision had been made for us – and the economy of Salalah suffered as a result.

As I write we are still cruising without incident through pirate alley between Yemen and Somalia, and about to turn north into the Red Sea bound for Aqaba. Here almost everyone on board seems to be booked for a tour to Petra, the famous ‘rose red city’. Everyone seems to anticipate it greatly, whatever the rigours of the journey to get there and back, except for one passenger who confided that he had no intention of going all that way to see a pile of stones. I pointed out that they were prettily arranged stones, but he remained unconvinced.

Our little group of four seems always to be the last to leave the restaurant; whether it is because we eat too much, drink too much or talk too much I’m not sure. Maybe a mixture of all three. but last night we decided not to outstay our welcome in the Britannia Restaurant, but leave in a timely fashion to catch the second performance of a group of tenors called 4Ever. How glad I am we did as they were truly magnificent. In all the times I have travelled on ships, and in all the shows I have seen, the number of performers to get standing ovations is in single figures. 4Ever got one – an enthusiastic one – and they deserved it. They are on again tomorrow and I’ll bet everyone goes, even if it means missing the pud.

Many of you will know Amanda Reid very well from Queen Mary 2 as Social Hostess and Assistant Entertainment Director, and most recently as Entertainment Director on Queen Victoria. But how many of you knew her when she was a dancer on QE2 in the 1980’s?

In an exclusive interview I chatted to Amanda about her amazing Cunard career, and boy have things changed!

Amanda was born in Kent in the UK where she still lives, but has recently moved to a new house just outside Ashord, Kent. Amanda first started classical ballet classes at the age of four and after completing her academic schooling, she studied professional ballet in London for three years. Having passed her Advanced Classical Ballet exam and her teacher’s qualification, Amanda set out on a career of dance, performing in London, Barcelona and Jersey in the Channel Islands, as well as working with an English ballet company.

Amanda’s career at sea began when she joined QE2, where she was Dance Captain for twelve years, during which time she also enjoyed occasionally assisting as Social Hostess. As well as QE2, Amanda also danced on Cunard Countess, Cunard Princess, Vistafjord and Sagafjord where she was the assistant and right hand to singer, dancer and choreographer, Peter Gordeno.

When Peter Gordeno was invited to join another cruise line in 1990, Amanda joined him as Dance Captain until she decided to hang up her dancing shoes to become Social Hostess two years later. It wasn’t long before Amanda felt the tug of her Cunard roots. She returned to the Cunard family by joining Queen Mary 2 in May 2004 as Social Hostess, and within two years she was promoted to the position of Assistant Entertainment Director.

She was delighted to be a part of the Queen Victoria inaugural team, joining the ship at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera, Italy.  Amanda was promoted to relief Entertainment Director in 2008, and last year, in April 2010, she became the permanent Entertainment Director on Queen Victoria.

I began my interview with Amanda by asking her how she feels after her first year in her role as permanent Entertainment Director:

It’s been a new chapter in my seafaring career with new challenges and responsibilities, and I’m really enjoying running the department, looking at ways of enhancing the Entertainment Programme for our guests.

When you were dancing could you have ever imagined where you would be now?

I was totally dedicated as a dancer and although I knew dancing was a short career, I didn’t really think about the future. I loved what I was doing and that’s where my focus was.

Tell us a bit about your days as a dancer and what it was like working on QE2 in 1980’s

In one sense the atmosphere was not that much different to now, with a tremendous team spirit amongst us working on board welcoming regular guests back time and time again. I worked with many different choreographers over the years so there was always a new challenge. Looking back it was so much fun and I still remember all those costumes, the hairstyles and even the routines!

I have fond memories of those days and I am still in touch with many of the girls, who have gone on to be wives, mothers and Maggie on the left hand side of this next picture, runs her own ballet school in Wales.

It’s great to look back and remember some of the routines that we did from the traditional, to this picture which shows a very modern space-age style:

In those days it was quite different being a dancer as we had so many other duties as well, which today are run by the Entertainment Staff, such as the Bingo, Horseracing and the Daily Tote, as well as socialising with the guests at cocktail parties. Here I am on my first contract with Staff Captain Alan Bennell, and fellow dancers Ruth and Carole.

Could you talk us through some of the changes in the on board Entertainment that you have seen during your career?

The Entertainment on board has become so much more sophisticated and elaborate. We worked in ballrooms without sets or scenery and the lighting was either on or off! I’m still in awe of the beautiful theatres we have on our new Queens. Behind the scenes on Queen Victoria we now have thirteen professional technicians, but back in the 80’s on QE2 it was one of the Cruise Staff who operated the rather basic sound and lights.

As a dancer we had to negotiate microphone cables and as you can see from this 1984 Daily Programme, we had to perform in both the Double Room for the Transatlantic Class passengers, and then later on the same night in the Queens Room for the First Class passengers;

There is so much more choice of activities today on our ships; who’d of thought back then that today we would be offering fencing classes and croquet! The actual theatres are where the main changes have taken place, with magnificent purpose built auditoriums with excellent views, amazing sound and lights and a stage that spans five decks……..we would never have thought that theatres like that could have been built on ships.

Some things haven’t changed such as being a mermaid at the traditional crossing the line ceremony! Here I am in 1989 in a great, but rather impractical, costume meaning I had to be carried in to position!

What have been some of the highlights during your career at sea?

I have been so lucky to meet quite a few members of the Royal Family, including, Her Majesty the Queen Mother, Princess Diana and then more recently at Queen Victoria’s naming, HRH Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall. It’s also been fun meeting so many stars and celebrities from Rod Stewart, Carly Simon, Pat Boone and Frankie Vaughan to George Burns, Mickey Rooney and Bob Monkhouse, to name but a few.

What does “We Are Cunard” mean to you?

I really enjoy the prestige of working on the most famous ocean liners in the world and being a part of the fantastic Cunard family.

What is your ideal way of relaxing when you are on leave?

Like many of us at sea, I like to do things that are probably considered by most to be mundane at home, such as driving, cooking and shopping. It’s also a great opportunity to catch up with family and friends as well as taking the time to go to the theatre. 

Do you have any unfulfilled dreams?

To be quite honest I am really happy where I am at the moment. I love the business I am in and at heart I’m still a performer. I’m reminded by the lyrics from a Bob Fosse routine which probably best sums up how I feel;

I want be a dancing man, while I can,

I want leave my footsteps on the sands of time

even if I never leave a dime.

I’ll never be a millionaire, but I don’t care.

I’ll be rich as old king midas might have been,

at least until the tide comes in.

let other men build mighty nations and stairways to the sky.

I’ll leave a few creations, to show that I was dancing by.

I want to be free as any bird can be, yes sir-ee.

I want to leave my footsteps on the sands of time.

even if I never leave a dime.

A dancing man with footsteps of rhythm and rhyme.

What is your favourite quote and who said it?

Something that goes hand in hand with the job is always struggling to be slimmer, so I like the anonymous quote; “I would be happy with my weight – if I was eleven feet tall”! Then there is always the fun element of life itself and Bob Monkhouse summed it up beautifully by saying; “Growing old is compulsory but growing up is optional”.

Thank you Amanda for such a fantastic interview, and your candid reflection of your life at sea. I’ll be back on soon with the latest three Cunard Stars and more news from all three of our Queens. Cheers for now, Alastair

Guest Blog

Peter Shanks

President & Managing Director

Cunard Line

I took the opportunity to pop over to Dubai to spend 24 hours on Queen Elizabeth. I last saw her in Sydney as I wanted to say hello and see how things were going on the world voyage. It is over two years since I was last in Dubai for the emotional handover of QE2. It looks as though many of the new buildings are now finished, the Metro is finished and the city is beginning to look more like a city than a building site. The most remarkable sight is the recently opened Burj Khalifa – the tallest building in the world. It is ridiculously enormously tall. I don’t like heights – unless I am on skis – so there is no attraction for me in going up that thing. But, well done Dubai – they clearly have been through tough economic times, but their vision of a modern city is now looking like reality.

So rather than playing with tall buildings, and after an overnight flight, I arrived at the dock just as Queen Elizabeth was making her approach. As I waited on the dock, just behind me was another ship. A beautiful, sleek, famous and striking ocean liner – the QE2. From the outside she looks exactly as we had left her two years ago – as these terrific pictures show:

Queen Elizabeth approaching QE2:

The old world meets the new world:

How tall is that building behind QE2?!

So here we were with another royal rendezvous on our hands – and what a great experience for our guests. We often talk of the experiences our guests have on a Cunard voyage. On this World Voyage they have seen Two Queens in Southampton, Three Queens in New York, Two Queens in Fort Lauderdale, Two Queens in Sydney – and today a very special rendezvous with QE2 in Dubai. Whistles went – and it was lovely for us to hear the famous QE2 whistle again.

So how is QE2 – well she looked very good from the outside. She has a small crew onboard to keep things going and I understand that she has been well kept on the inside – despite the very high temperatures in Dubai. Given the tough economic situation in Dubai – they have not yet commenced their extensive plans for the ship and we all wait to hear what lies ahead for QE2. But for today she looked magnificent.

I took this shot myself on my Blackberry as I stood on the aft deck of Queen Elizabeth with our Red Ensign flying proudly with the famous QE2 profile and funnel in the background:

I was able to spend the rest of the day with the ship’s company – hearing how the ship is doing and having a good look around. Our guests had found briefing and drills in advance of going through the Suez Canal fascinating. Those guests who were completing their sector from Hong Kong to Dubai were on their way home and I spoke with a number of them. Another 750 guests were boarding that day for the sector from Dubai to Southampton and they were looking forward to their adventure. And of course I saw many of our full world voyagers who I last saw in Sydney were in rude health and very relaxed. Of course they should be relaxed – how could you not be after spending so long on Queen Elizabeth.

Here’s a couple of chaps relaxing – I suspect their wives may have gone ashore shopping – but here they were playing English Garden Bowls on the top deck of Queen Elizabeth against a background view of QE2 and the city of Dubai. Where else can you do that……..

I mentioned ‘Three Elizabeths’ – so where was the third? Well as I was walking round the ship I paused outside our new Clarendon Fine Art Gallery. It is doing very well by the way – we have stopped Art Auctions and instead have a wonderful gallery as you might find in your local high street and we sell beautiful and popular art. We also sell the famous Black and White photographs nicely framed of many of the famous people who have travelled with us in the past. And there was our third Elizabeth. The reason I noticed was because very sadly she passed away recently – a true British Star and much loved. Here she is – taken whilst sailing on board the original Queen Elizabeth:

Yes – it is the much loved actress Elizabeth Taylor – they just don’t make them like that anymore, but we will cherish her forever and are touched that she once sailed with us.

A long way to go for 24 hours, But I managed to speak with many guests and many of the ship’s company. As I walked through the Queens Room that afternoon, one of our Entertainment Staff walked past me and said – ‘Welcome Home Peter’. Marvellous – I was actually a long way from my family home but I do always feel at home when I am on board one of our ships.

You know World Voyages – either all the way round or just on a sector – are unique ways to see the world. One of the guests said to me ‘It has been remarkable. We have been to Vietnam, to China, to India – places that we have never been and were daunted to travel to. But doing it by ship is the best of both worlds – you see the real world, so many local cultural experiences but your safe home goes round the world with you’ I thought I might use that quote in a blog one day. Oh – I just did….

Best Regards

Peter Shanks

President and Managing Director

Cunard Line

It’s hard to believe that Queen Elizabeth is still only on her third voyage, yet has already been in service for six weeks. She continues to be warmly welcomed wherever she goes, and for the first time tomorrow she will make her second call to a port, when she arrives in Gibraltar. We were delighted to receive this photo from one of our admirers in Croatia, showing Queen Elizabeth last week, arriving at the port of Gruz which serves the stunning medieval city of Dubrovnik.

And here she is moments later in her berth; but before you think our latest Cunarder has an interesting addition to her superstructure, there is a very modern and beautiful bridge just behind her!

It’s been an exciting voyage on board and one where the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company has been busy rehearsing for their latest shows in their repertoire. This voyage the company entertained our guests with two premiere’s; Hotel Royale and a matinee performance yesterday of a Neil Simon Triple Bill.

There was a tremendous response to those shows as well as the other shows performed by the Company during the voyage, and it was great to hear so many compliments about our very talented cast. As you will know from our previous Blog on the subject, the Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company is a new concept to Cunard. You can see more from the Blog below, which I posted when the Entertainment on Queen Elizabeth was first announced.

http://wearecunard.com/2010/07/breaking-news-cunard-announces-queen-elizabeth-theatre-company/

It’s great to see the repertoire coming to life, and we will be posting a special Guest Blog in a short while written by a member of the Company, which will give us a unique insight to the rehearsal and set up process from a performer’s perspective.

Entertainment has certainly come on a long way over the years and this was highlighted at our gathering of guests who have travelled on all three Queen Elizabeth’s. On this voyage there were nine guests who had travelled on all three, and here they are at the get-together yesterday.

There was just one guest this week, June Rawlings, from Coventry in England, who had travelled on all six Queens. Her first voyage was on Queen Mary in 1964 and she travelled quite regularly on the Queens including Queen Elizabeth in 1968. She told me that she remembered how First Class passengers would sneak in to the Cabin Class where she was, as they told her it was more fun there!

Getting back to the subject of entertainment; I was reminded about how much things had changed over the years when Mrs Wood from Dover in England, showed me some of her memorabilia. The item I found most interesting was this Programme of Entertainment for the Third Class Lounge on the Carinthia in 1938.

This of course was a show performed by the on board Entertainment Committee formed by the passengers. Among the performers of “The Three Musketeers” was Mrs Woods’ grandmother; Mrs Cureton, who was on the Transatlantic Crossing to visit her daughter (Mrs Wood’s Aunt), who had emigrated from Britain to Cleveland Ohio, during the depression.  Mrs Woods went on to tell me that she had travelled on Queen Elizabeth in 1953, and when she heard QE2 was about to be sold, she told herself she had to sail on her before she ended her service in the Cunard fleet. She managed to convince her daughter to go with her and she told me she is now a committed third generation Cunarder!

She also showed me one of her original tags, which were designed for luggage that wasn’t needed for the crossing, but would be transported across the Atlantic in the ship’s storage area until it was collected at the destination port.

It’s always lovely to see guests’ memorabilia, which have such personal memories, and luggage labels are not easy to look after. However Mrs Angela Wall from Hatfield in Hertfordshire showed me the pristine labels from her journey to New York on the Ivernia and her return crossing on Queen Elizabeth.

They had stayed with her mother’s cousins for three months and she told me how her mother had seen the original newsreel of Queen Elizabeth being launched in September 1938. On that day her mother vowed she would one day go on that wonderful liner, and 21 years later in 1959 her dream came true. Here’s Mrs Wall on the deck of Queen Elizabeth on that crossing to Southampton.

There was another special voyage for Mrs Wall when she celebrated her 40th wedding anniversary on QE2 during her 40th year, and she told me how much she was enjoying the new Queen Elizabeth.

That’s it for this Blog, but I’ll be back soon with the final part of Lisa’s series of Guest Blogs from her recent Transatlantic Crossing on Queen Mary 2. Cheers for now, Alastair