Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 39 days

Following yesterday’s exciting news that Her Majesty will be naming Queen Elizabeth on 11 October, our new Queen is getting closer to completion. She is now making her way back to Monfalcone, whilst undergoing her second set of sea trials, and on this Blog I have some exclusive pictures from the dry dock in Trieste which I received just a couple of days ago. Firstly though as usual, it’s time for this week in Cunard’s history for the week of 27 August to 2 September.

Thanks as usual for all your comments; it’s great to hear that you are as excited as we are that Her Majesty will be naming the third Cunarder to bear the name Queen Elizabeth, and how wonderful it is to see her name glistening after her new paintwork in dry dock:

Following her sea trials Queen Elizabeth has been in dry dock in Trieste, Italy receiving her final coat of paint before going in to service in less than six weeks time. This is a view of her bulbous bow and bow thrusters with a unique view of her bow as the water came back in to the dry dock, before she left for her second set of sea trials.

Meanwhile at her stern, her Azipods were also prepared for her sea going career; and what a difference, as they touched the water coming in to the dry dock:

This is the view of Queen Elizabeth’s starboard side stabiliser, again ready for sea.

What a great shot this is of the water entering the dry dock touching our new Queen’s newly painted and treated hull, ready for her second set of sea trials and entering in to service.

Although a huge amount of work has been taking place on the ship’s hull, progress is as fast as ever on board, with many areas being transformed in just a couple of weeks since our last set of photos. Here for example is the Games Deck, where final preparations are being made in the area where our guests will be playing Bowls, Croquet and Paddle Tennis:

Meanwhile at the other end of our new Queen, the expansive Lido pool area has the lighting in place, and the pool is certainly looking very welcoming in the beautiful Italian sunshine.

And in Queen Elizabeth’s stunning Garden Lounge, the mural above the bandstand is looking fantastic and makes a great centrepiece to this venue.

Then Cunard’s latest Queen was on her way for her next set of sea trials, looking superb with her newly painted livery. She is now heading back to Monfalcone for the last stage of outfitting and preparation for service, with Captain Chris Wells observing the latest trials.

Big thanks to Chris Knowles, Queen Elizabeth’s Senior Production Manager, for taking these amazing pictures and for sending them to me to post.

By the time Queen Elizabeth reaches Monfalcone, more and more of the ship’s company will be arriving in the shipyard, but the majority won’t be arriving for another couple of weeks or so, when they’ll be able to move straight on board.

I’ll be flying out in just 10 days time and will certainly look forward to seeing our new Queen, and rest assured I’ll keep you fully updated with all the news as it happens.

Meanwhile I’ll be back on Monday, with news of Queen Mary 2 latest star of the month as well as other news from around the Cunard world. Cheers for now, Alastair

Cunard are both honoured and proud to announce that Her Majesty The Queen will name our new liner Queen Elizabeth in Southampton on the 11th October.

You know it is quite remarkable to think that at the young age of 12, The Queen was present as her mother named our original Queen Elizabeth in 1938. During her marvellous 58 year reign, The Queen has also honoured Cunard Line by naming both the QE2 and Queen Mary 2. We often talk of our history and heritage , but it is our special links to the Royal Family that set us apart from any other travel company or cruise line. I was asked recently how excited we were at the prospect of the Queen Elizabeth naming ceremony to which I answered ‘Well there are ship launches and there are Cunard ship launches’. We have invited over 1,600 people from around the world to be present at the event in Southampton on the 11th October and the scene is set for something very British and very special. The launch of a Cunard Queen is indeed a part of history and we are very aware of our part in ensuring that the tremendous sense of British Maritime History continues for many years to come. It is also remarkable to think that with the arrival of Queen Elizabeth we will have ‘The Youngest Fleet in the World’ and so as well as a sense of history and heritage we look forward to delighting our guests around the world for many, many years to come.

For now we carry on with all the hard work that is needed to bring a new Cunard Queen to life – with a real sense of excitement and anticipation right around the company that we, along with our valued guests, are about to be part of something very special indeed. Below is the first picture of the ship on her her sea trials – I know I am biased but I think she looks fantastic

Best Regards

Peter Shanks

President and Managing Director

Cunard Line

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 67 days

Welcome to another special Blog with news, pictures and video footage from Monfalcone, Italy where Queen Elizabeth is less than ten weeks away from her maiden voyage. Thanks again for all your questions and comments; they are always great to read. I know you are all waiting to hear who’ll name our new Queen, and I assure you I’ll let you know on this Blog as soon as I find out. Also Ian; yes there will be a harpist on Queen Elizabeth; in fact we’ll have 28 musicians on board, which is the same number as we have on her sister, Queen Victoria. Before we get to those latest pictures from Italy, here’s our regular feature; this week in Cunard’s history from the week of 6 to 12 August:

August 6 1929

The Britannic is launched at Harland & Wolf in Belfast and becomes part of the Cunard White Star Fleet in January 1934

August 8 1922

The Doric is launched at Harland & Wolf, Belfast and becomes part of the Cunard White Star fleet in 1934

August 9 1990

QE2 completes her 500th Atlantic crossing

August 9 2007

Cunard introduces its new lecture series called “Cunard Insights”

August 12 1914

The Ultonia is among many ships that takes the B.E.F. (British Expeditionary Forces) from Southampton to Le Havre at the beginning of World War 1 

August 12 2008

Queen Victoria returns to Venice for the first time since leaving the Marghera shipyard over 8 months earlier 

As you may know, I spent a couple of fantastic days in Italy last week to see how Queen Elizabeth was progressing at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone. Although like you I had seen pictures of her progress, I was excited to see her again for myself, as this was the first visit back to the yard since her float out ceremony at the beginning of January. I was also lucky enough to be accompanied by our cameraman, Andrew, and you’ll be seeing a total of five Video Blogs over the next couple of weeks, with the first at the end of this post.

Arriving at the yard early on Thursday morning, there was a huge amount of activity surrounding Queen Elizabeth, but despite the rain and all the busy cranes, delivery trucks and shipyard workers, our new Queen was looking fantastic.

Once aboard, I could actually find my way around as everything had begun to look quite recognizable and so different from my last visit. I just couldn’t believe how much progress had been made since January. With the ship now powering herself the Grand Lobby had been dramatically transformed:

This was just one area of the ship where there were so many people working; it was incredible how they all managed to work in such a busy area. Our staff at this Purser’s desk will be welcoming guests in less than ten weeks time!

Moving up to deck 2, this is a view I have taken a shot of quite a few times; it’s looking across the Grand Lobby from Café Carinthia:

The ship is probably now at it’s very busiest, with so many specialists working on everything from marble, wood, glass, metal, artwork, plasterwork, lighting to the furnishings and carpets. Mind you as soon as something is completed, it is immediately covered and protected. To give you an idea of how much is going on at the moment all over the ship, this is the lobby by the C Staircase on deck 2.

The library, which will soon be receiving its 6,000 books, was looking very advanced with many of the finished decorative elements already covered, but it’s still instantly recognizable.

The distinctive and elegant Royal Arcade staircase was beginning to receive it’s Art Deco flourishes, and in the second of next week’s Blogs, I’ll be talking to Cunard’s President and Managing Director about the artwork that will be the centrepiece of this area.

Up on deck 10 in the Commodore Club, a lot of the lighting fixtures were already in place. The parquet floor was also being laid while we were there, (to the left of the picture), as the finishing touches were added to the marble work.

Despite the weather, they were still working outside, with teak being fitted around the Pavilion Pool, by a team of specialists under a temporary cover.

And now here is the first in a series of Video Blogs; firstly giving you an overview of how Queen Elizabeth is looking.

 Don’t forget all our Video Blogs are available on YouTube at WeAreCunard or simply click on this link:

 http://www.youtube.com/WeAreCunard?gl=GB&hl=en-GB

That’s it for now but I’ll be back on Monday with the first of two Blogs, which followed members of the press who joined us on our second day. There’ll be more pictures and two more videos, along with interviews with the press as well as Peter Shanks. We’ll then have posts (and videos) featuring the progress of the Dining areas and Entertainment Venues.

That’s all to come, along with answers to your questions and all the regular news from around the Cunard World. Cheers for now, Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 77 days

Thank you for all the great feedback again, it’s great to hear from you and read so many of your comments and questions. I know everyone is eager to know who will name our new Queen, but I’m afraid I don’t have that information yet, but rest assured as soon as soon as I know I’ll post it here, along with any other announcements as and when they are made.

There has been a tremendous response to the entertainment feature that was posted on the 13^th of July, which gave details of the new Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company. With all that news in my mind, last week I was very lucky enough to be invited to see how rehearsals for our new shows were going. I went to the rehearsal studios in Northampton with Cunard’s Director of Entertainment, Martin Lilly, and after a series of planning meetings we went to meet members of the new Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company.

Regular Cunarders will be delighted to see some familiar faces amongst the team such as Dance Captain Sergey and Company Manager Masha. It was great to meet the new element of the programme as well in the form of our five actors. Then it was time to see how the shows were coming on and our first treat was to see all 21 members of the Theatre Company on Stage for the signature show; A Slice Of Saturday Night.

At this stage the choreography and setting of show had just been completed, so we were lucky to be the first to see a performance, albeit in a raw state that didn’t include costume, sets, lighting or orchestra. The first thing that struck me was how fabulous it was to see 21 talented cast members on stage – and yes, what amazing talent. The whole cast were stunning and the show was engaging, fun and will without doubt be an absolute hit.

 I don’t want to give too much away, but I can tell you it’s a great show that really has a fantastic “Feel Good Factor” and I loved it, and am sure you will too – I just can’t wait to see the finished production.

We were then treated to some numbers from the new dance show “La Danza”, which features some incredible choreography, with dance styles including the jive. We also saw the dramatic “Pasadoble” which has the literal meaning of double-step in Spanish, and is the type of music associated with the drama of a bullfight.

You could certainly sense the dramatic nature of the dance from the incredible cast, and as you can sense from this picture, even in this rather raw state it looked amazing.

 I’d like to thank everyone at Belinda King Creative Productions for looking after us so well, and making it such a great visit.

The following day back we were back in Southampton and Martin showed me some pictures that had just been sent to him by the theatre outfitting team in Monfalcone, Italy. I hadn’t seen pictures from the Royal Court Theatre for some time, so you can imagine how excited I was when I saw how far it had come on:

I’m sure you’ll agree it’s amazing progress, and looking around the venue you can see the Theatre Boxes in all their glory with the rich blue blending beautifully with the gold, complete with art deco flourishes that pay homage to the original Queen Elizabeth.

I’m now even more excited about going to see the ship for myself on Thursday, when as well as meeting members of the press to show them around our new Queen, we’ll also be filming some more Video Blogs, the first of which I am hoping we’ll be able to post next Monday.

Meanwhile coming very soon are a couple of great stories from Queen Mary 2 on her Transatlantic Crossings, and of course some news and special photos from Queen Victoria as she makes her maiden voyage around Britain.

That’s all to come, along with all the regular news from around the Cunard World. Cheers for now, Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 112 days

Before I get to some exciting news about Queen Elizabeth and also answer some of your many questions that you’ve been posting, we are very excited to announce that our Blog has won its first award. The great and the good of the online travel industry gathered at the 2010 TravelMole Web Awards last Friday, to celebrate its winners at the Canadian High Commission in central London. The great news is that WeAreCunard.com was awarded the accolade of Best Travel Blog. A lot of work goes in running the Blog and much of that is done by Shelley Turner back in Southampton who was at the ceremony to pick up the award.

 TravelMole Managing Director Graham McKenzie said: “We just couldn’t believe the sheer numbers of nominations in each category – it just goes to show that this award ceremony is reflecting a growing sector of the travel industry that is just going from strength to strength.”

This is our 191^st post and we are proud of the teamwork that goes in to making the Blog, so a big thank you to everyone involved from our Guest Bloggers to the team in Southampton, Richard, Matt and Shelley, but mostly to you our readers. You have given us many of our ideas and helped us shape the Blog over the last eighteen months, so thank you for all your support and encouragement.

Before I get to some more breaking news, I would like to answer a few of your questions. As the excitement builds and The World Awaits Queen Elizabeth, it was great to get such an amazing response to the recent posts on her progress and in particular her dining options.

The Verandah will indeed be a wonderful addition to our new Queen, and as many of you have spotted, it will be located on deck 2 in the Grand lobby (the space occupied by the Todd English restaurant on Queen Victoria), and yes it will be available to all guests for a small surcharge.

Preparing for the expansion of the Cunard Fleet, making it the youngest in the industry does create challenges for our Fleet Personnel department in Southampton, as they need to recruit and train over 1,000 new staff so they can continue the tradition of delivering Cunard’s legendary White Star Service. So to answer your question Barrie and Diane, this process has already begun with White Star Academies on both Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria hard at work welcoming new crewmembers to the Cunard family. In fact we are working on a special Blog which will give you an insight in to how this is coming on. So as many of our experienced crew members prepare to go to Queen Elizabeth, there will still be a wealth of talent on our other two ships as they gradually welcome new faces to the team.

Now for the breaking news about the Entertainment Programme on Queen Elizabeth. Cunard is renowned for the quality and variety of its on board entertainment and our President and Managing Director, Peter Shanks recently gave a sneak preview of what to expect on Queen Elizabeth.

Our new Queen will add an exciting element to Cunard’s entertainment programme, in the form of her Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company which will consist of a 21-strong team of singers, dancers and actors and which will be a first in the industry.

The theatre company will be staging a tremendous repertoire of shows from lavish musical productions to classic dramatic theatre, and more details of that to follow in a future blog.

Peter added: “The whole programme has not yet been settled on but is being designed to appeal to the sophisticated international audience who sail with us. Our research suggests that 50 minutes is about right for an evening show on board and the productions, which include some novel and exciting new ideas are being designed to fit that time period.”

As you can imagine I am very excited about heading up a department offering a number of new concepts and as soon as the programme has been finalised in the coming weeks I will give you the details.

That’s it for the moment but I’ll be back tomorrow with a Blog featuring Queen Victoria’s latest Star of the Month and then on Thursday I’ll be introducing a special guest Blog featuring the Youth Programme on Queen Mary 2 following a suggestion from CJ earlier this month.

Cheers, Alastair.

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 117 days

Hello from the beautiful, hot and sunny Mediterranean. Queen Victoria is sailing on one of my favourite voyages heading up to Dubrovnik and Venice before heading back to Naples, Rome, Corsica and finally Cadiz. The exciting news is that we will have the rare treat of being docked very close to St. Mark’s square rather than the usual Stazione Maritima near the bus and railway stations. This means our guests will have the best possible views of Venice during our stay on Monday, so it’s also certainly worth a look on the Web Cam that day. If you haven’t seen it yet, there’s a great video that was shot last September of Queen Victoria sailing into Venice which is on You Tube/WeAreCunard and on this link:

http://www.youtube.com/wearecunard#p/u/19/gajRuK9mlJ0

Meanwhile Queen Mary 2 is enjoying one of her few Norwegian voyages and no doubt receiving a lot of attention as she always does in those wonderful ports.

But with less than four months before our new Queen enters service, I’m very excited to show you the very latest pictures from the shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, where she is in the final stages of construction. All that after this week in Cunard’s history from the 18^th to the 24^th of June

Queen Elizabeth is at a stage in her construction where the progress is incredibly fast. Since the last pictures I posted, her engines have been switched on and she is powering herself, as you can see from this picture of her bow and the lights on the forward balconies.

There is a tremendous amount of work taking place all over the ship, with all of her superstructure being treated with special protective paint before the final coats of white and the traditional federal gray are applied.

This is a great view of the whole ship’s starboard side which really shows the progress that has been made, showing off the extended Lido deck aft and the new enhanced Games Deck forward.

Meanwhile the interior of our new Queen has been transformed with the ship’s power illuminating the public rooms, such as the stunning sweeping staircase at the entrance of the Britannia Restaurant.

Another grand staircase is in the Royal Arcade where much of the plasterwork has already been completed, waiting for the final elegant art deco lighting fixtures to be fitted.

Another venue really taking shape is the Commodore Club on deck 10 forward. The marble covered planters have been protected under the black coverings and the deck heads will soon be completed.

We recently featured the stunning piece of Linley artwork that will grace the Grand Lobby, and you can see that the space is now free of scaffolding, and much of the wrought ironwork on the elegant staircases has been finished although they are also under protective coverings.

And finally for the moment, a space I’m particularly interested in; the Royal Court Theatre which is really taking shape. The tiered seating is all ready to receive the carpeting with the bolts all in place for the seating. The Theatre Boxes are now recognisable with some of the final embellishments complete, again under the protective covering.

I’m sure you’ll agree these pictures are a fantastic reflection of the incredible progress that’s been made, and of course I hope to get you some more pictures very soon. I’ll also soon be revealing some announcements along with some more interviews with some of the Officers who will be serving on Queen Elizabeth during her maiden season.

I’ll be back on Monday with Queen Victoria’s June Star of the Month I promised and lots more news from around the fleet. Thanks as always for all your comments and questions; please keep them coming. Cheers, Alastair.

 Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 126 days

In a press release today, it has been revealed today that Queen Elizabeth, will offer a selection of the most popular dining opportunities from her sisters, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, but will also introduce several new concepts.

Peter Shanks, Cunard’s President and Managing Director, said: “In planning the dining options that will be offered on Queen Elizabeth, we looked for inspiration in venues Cunard has created during its 170-year history and took the best from those. With Queen Elizabeth, Cunard will become one of the oldest names in ocean travel sailing the industry’s youngest fleet, so it is natural for us to recognise our past while always catering for the needs of today’s discerning traveller.”

Cunard’s renowned Global Culinary Ambassador Jean-Marie Zimmermann, who is responsible for all things culinary on Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, will continue in this role on Queen Elizabeth. Readers may remember we featured Jean-Marie in a Blog last year which you can see by clicking on this link.

http://wearecunard.com/2009/12/31/

In their day the Verandah Grills on board the original Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth were perhaps the most exclusive restaurants at sea, on a par with exclusive private clubs in London, New York and Paris. These Grills were available to first-class passengers who wanted a truly exclusive experience and the rooms would be frequented by royalty, film stars, the rich and the famous. In keeping with this tradition, The Verandah on Queen Elizabeth will offer an experience of exquisite cuisine, contemporary design and impeccable service with menus created by Chef Zimmermann, who has paid homage to his homeland and created a menu of fine French cuisine. There’ll be artwork inspired by the playful and whimsical murals on the first two Queens, while the vintage menus will tell the story of the dining experience on board the original Queen Elizabeth.

The dishes will evoke the personality and flavour of regions such as Périgord, Pyrenees, Alsace, Bresse and Burgundy and will include Monkfish and Rascas Fish Bouillabaisse, Magret Duck, Baked Brie de Meaux Brioche, and Hot Vanilla Soufflé infused with Edmond Briottet Peach Liqueur. The Verandah will be open for lunch and dinner for a small surcharge.

The Queens and Princess Grills will be very similar to those on Queen Victoria, but will be decorated distinctly in an Art Deco fashion to create an individual feel in each restaurant.

Each restaurant will offer a single seating and A la carte menus featuring classic dishes as well as some new specialties. French-style doors will open from each Grills Restaurant onto the Courtyard where al fresco dining will be offered.

Like Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth also will offer the Britannia Club, where guests travelling in AA category staterooms will enjoy single-seating dining at a time of their choosing.

As many of you know already, Queen Elizabeth’s two-tiered Britannia Restaurant will have a dramatic sweeping staircase as well as Art Deco decorative features. Breakfast and lunch will be served by open seating and guests have the option of either early or late sitting for dinner.

 As on Queen Victoria The Lido will be open 24 hours a day and in the evening several new dining options will be offered such as Asado which features South American cuisine and the traditional style of cooking meats on a grill. Guests may choose from a selection of dishes from the Rotisserie and Grill, such as Roasted Chimmichuri Chicken and Argentinean Lamb Chops with Pistachio.

Aztec will offer authentic regional Mexican cuisine, exploring the variety of spices and ingredients which are native to the country. Guests can look forward to appetizing dishes such as Chile Relleno de Espinaca and Banana-Wrapped Snapper Veracruzana. Finally Jasmine offers Pan-Asian cuisine, drawing on influences from Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand and China. Tantalizing dishes are inspired by the many flavours of the region, producing dishes that range from Aromatic Crispy Duck to Char Siew Pau.

The three night-time dinner options are available to all guests for a small surcharge and for those seeking a more informal dining option for dinner; a buffet station will also remain open.

Many of you have seen the pictures of the beautiful new Garden Lounge with its magnificent vaulted glass ceiling. On select sea days, a Champagne afternoon tea service featuring Veuve Clicquot Champagne will be offered for a small charge.

Occasional evening ‘Supper Clubs’ will combine dining with dancing under the stars, where small plates of savouries and sweets will be accompanied by live music.

Also on Queen Elizabeth, just like her sisters, guests will be able to enjoy pub food in the Golden Lion Pub and traditional afternoon tea in the Queens Room.

As well as this Blog you can follow all the news about Queen Elizabeth on a new micro site;

 http://queenelizabeth.cunard.com/

I’ll hope to get you some more pictures from the shipyard in Italy soon but in the meantime Thursday’s Blog will feature news from our flagship, Queen Mary 2.  Cheers for now Alastair.

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 144 days  

As Queen Victoria’s guests and TOGs enjoy the Mediterranean and Queen Mary 2 continues her transatlantic season, last night the focus was all on our new Queen. I was fortunate enough to be invited to an event, not where Queen Elizabeth is currently under construction, in Italy, but at David Linley’s Gallery in London’s West End. I attended the special event with Cunard’s President and Managing Director, Peter Shanks, the Cunard Marketing and Public Relations Team, David Linley and his staff as well as about thirty members of the press. I’ll continue the story after this week in Cunard’s history from 2 to 27 May: 

There was an air of anticipation and excitement last night as the gathered guests wondered what announcement was about to be made at the exclusive cocktail party. With less than 21 weeks before entering service more and more details of our new Queen are being revealed as The World Awaits her naming and maiden voyage in October.  

As we soon found out, the evening was to celebrate a major piece of artwork which will be the centrepiece of Queen Elizabeth’s Grand Lobby. The challenge for designers was deciding how to treat the significant central space on the sweeping staircase of the ship, which is the first area to greet embarking guests. In a short speech just before the unveiling, Peter Shanks said:  

 “We needed to fill that space with something which would not just be dramatic, a ‘wow’ factor in an area already full of ‘wow’, but which would also reflect our emphasis on traditional and sumptuous materials. After much thought and exploratory work, it was decided to commission a 5.6-metre (18 ft 6 in) high marquetry panel depicting the original Queen Elizabeth, an Art Deco icon, using a variety of natural woods from around the world. Once we had decided on the theme and the medium, it didn’t take us long to conclude that no-one was better qualified for this detailed but monumental work than the company of the exceptional craftsman David Linley, whose creative ability and mastery of wood is renowned”.  

Then commenting on the challenges faced by the bespoke commission, Linley’s Chairman, David Linley, who founded the company in 1985, said: “Though we have made fittings for luxury yachts in the past, this is the first sea-going work we have done on this scale – but it was a commission I was delighted to accept. I recall my father saying the interior design on Cunard’s QE2 made one proud to be British, so I am hoping our achievement on the new Queen Elizabeth will make him – and others – equally proud”.  

Then ribbons on either side of a blue silk cloth were cut simultaneously by Peter Shanks and David Linley to reveal the beautiful artist’s impression of the artwork that will be the centrepiece for Queen Elizabeth.  

Then it was time for some photos and here are Peter Shanks and David Linley next to the newly revealed piece, which shows the port bow of the original Queen Elizabeth seen dramatically from sea level, intricately executed using the technique of marquetry inlay in nine different types of wood veneers. Spanning 2½ decks, the marquetry panel features Madrona, Indian ebony, American walnut, grey ripple sycamore, burr ash, bird’s eye maple, satin walnut , ash, burr walnut and Macassar ebony – all used to depict the evocative image of Queen Elizabeth.  

I then chatted to Peter who told me about Linley, a company specialising in the design and manufacture of fine furniture and marquetry, and how the company was commissioned to design and make this stunning piece of artwork. He told me work is currently under way, and the completed panel will be shipped during the summer to the Fincantieri shipyard at Monfalcone, Italy, where it will be installed over a period of four days to take pride of place just before the ship enters service in October. Here’s an artist’s impression of the full piece.  

As well as Peter Shanks I was also able to chat to David Linley and the head of design at Linley, Mark Blanchard, and fortunately our film crew were they to capture the whole event in an exclusive We Are Cunard video blog.  What a great evening and we are all excited to see the finished work taking its place in Queen Elizabeth’s Grand Lobby, and here is an artist’s impression of how the lobby will look in October.  

What a great evening and we are all excited to see the finished work taking its place in Queen Elizabeth’s Grand Lobby, and here is an artist’s impression of how the lobby will look in October. What a great evening and we are all excited to see the finished work taking its place in Queen Elizabeth’s Grand Lobby, and here is an artist’s impression of how the lobby will look in October.  

 That’s it for another Blog as The World Awaits Queen Elizabeth, and I understand there are lots of announcements coming up revealing more details of our new Queen and I assure you that as soon as I know anything it’ll be posted on this Blog. 

I’ll be back on Monday with more news from the TOGs voyage on Queen Victoria as the team welcome Sir Terry Wogan on board. There’s also more news coming up from Queen Elizabeth in Italy as well news of what’s happening on Queen Mary 2; in the meantime thank you again for logging on. Cheers Alastair.    

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 158 days    

Welcome to the second part of the special Blog showing the latest pictures of Queen Elizabeth in the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy. This time we are looking at the interior of our new Queen which is changing every day with completion just over five months away. Before I show you those pictures – here’s our regular feature of this week in Cunard’s History from 7 to 13 May 

In the last Blog we showed you the latest pictures from Italy which featured the outside areas of Queen Elizabeth. Now it’s time to look inside, and one of my favourite venues on Queen Victoria is Café Carinthia, which will be expanded to become a larger space on Queen Elizabeth. As you can see from this first picture a tremendous amount of work is taking place in the deck head area with cabling.      

      

Another area that’s starting to take shape is the outside of the Golden Lion Pub and this is becoming quite recognisable now with the windows looking into the Pub from the Casino area of the Royal Arcade.    

Up on deck three in the Grand Lobby is the entrance to the Card Room, with the Alcove on the right hand side. This shows how much cladding work takes place around the ship, where decorative panels and moulds are added; often covering structural supports.        

Staying in the Grand Lobby but moving to deck 1, is what is often called the hub of the ship; the Purser’s Desk, which, at the moment takes a lot of imagination to see what it will look like in a few months time.        

Another favourite venue on both Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria is the Commodore Club on deck 10. The raised area around the bar to the left has been completed and there’s a lot of work taking place on the decorative elements of the deck head.        

Just below the Commodore Club is the Royal Cunard Spa featuring the huge gym with amazing views out of the panoramic windows. This view shows the main part of the venue where all the exercise machines will be located.         

Finally, towards the middle of the ship up on deck 11 is the Grills Area which is also coming on well. Some of the decorative deck heads are being worked on by the various craftsmen and this picture shows the Queens Grill with the entrance to the courtyard on the left hand side.          

Well that’s it for another Blog, but with less than 24 weeks to go I hope to have a lot more coverage from our new Queen over the coming months, with hopefully some more announcements about some of the unique features you’ll find on Queen Elizabeth. Meanwhile I’ll be back on Monday with a post featuring Joanne Brown, who recently won a draw to become an Entertainment Staff Member for a day. I’ll also have more news from Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria as they settle in to their summer seasons. In the meantime please do keep your comments and questions coming in as it’s always great to hear from you. Cheers for now Alastair.

 Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 160 days

Although I’m at home enjoying some leave I’ll still be keeping you up to date with what’s going on both at sea and ashore. Thanks for all your great feedback, especially about our new look Blog, please keep it coming.

Just before I left Queen Victoria, I received some photos of Queen Elizabeth in the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone Italy. While Queen Mary 2 heads back across the Atlantic to her homeport of Southampton and Queen Victoria heads south to the Canaries for her first voyage there of the summer season, Queen Elizabeth is only just over five months from her Maiden Voyage. In this Blog I’ll show you some of the newest exterior pictures and then on Thursday we’ll have the interior updates.

Currently in her outfitting dock you can see some of the external progress of our new Queen with the balcony doors in place and many of the glass panels on the balconies themselves.

Her hull is receiving another coat of the traditional Cunard Federal Gray paint, and the big white metal supports on deck 4 will be for the life boats which have just arrived with one already being lifted in to place.

If you look carefully you’ll also be able to see one of the ship’s tenders which are used in ports where Queen Elizabeth won’t be able to dock. Moving on to the top decks on the ship this view is looking up from the deck ten Quoits Court, to the Sports Deck.

As you can see from the same view on the right on Queen Victoria, the big difference between the Queens will be the canvas canopy over the court which will cover the whole area on deck eleven forward. The canvas will be fitted later, but the support structure looks like it’s nearly complete. From the forward part of deck eleven looking aft you can see the main mast.

The scaffolding is in place so the various pieces of navigation and satellite equipment can be installed, and then it will end up looking like the one on her sister that you can see through the Paddle Tennis Court net.

Moving aft and down to deck ten is an external view of the Yacht Club with the windows still covered with protective plastic.

The right hand picture of the same space on Queen Victoria shows the work left to be done such as the railings and lighting and woodwork finishes. The next two photos show a very different view on the two ships, with the Pavilion and the Garden Lounge on the new Queen Elizabeth.

The stunning vaulted roof is nearly complete and the supports behind it are ready for the satellite domes to be installed for television and communications. Inside the Garden Lounge the venue is taking shape with the glass panels in place with the lighting fixtures yet to be installed.

On Thursday I’ll post the latest pictures of how the inside of our new Queen is progressing, again with comparisons to her sister. I’ve also got some great posts to come including a feature with Joanne Brown who became an Entertainment Staff Member for a day, an interview with Daniel Bowden who recently celebrated his 100^th Birthday on board Queen Victoria, as well as a profile of the Queen Victoria Chef who was recently named Barcardi Chef of the year. Cheers for now Alastair.