By Bill Heaney
Pictures by Martin Shields
MSP Jackie Baillie joined forces with the Princess Royal again this week, to celebrate the 90th anniversary of a historic Denny-built steamer.
And it was also a right royal occasion for Dumbarton lad Joe McGroarty, who presented Her Royal Highness with a gift to mark her role as Royal Patron of the iconic Clyde steamer TS Queen Mary.
The Knoxland Primary pupil, 10, was amongst supporters, volunteers and fundraisers who met the Princess during a reception at Glasgow’s Hilton.
He presented the senior royal with a framed picture of the ship, dating from 1956, to mark her visit.
Her Royal Highness was in the city, alongside Dumbarton constituency MSP Jackie, to be briefed on the progress of restoration works and round off the year-long celebrations to mark the vessel’s anniversary.
Efforts to revitalise the Queen Mary have gathered pace since HRH, The Princess Royal, made the landmark announcement on a visit two years ago to the ship – berthed at Govan.
It was a landmark development for the iconic steamer which was named after her great grandmother, Queen Mary.
More than £5 million has been raised in a campaign launched by charity Friends of TS Queen Mary, pictured right.
The sum is half-way to the anticipated cost of making the vessel fit to sale again and resume her role as the Firth of Clyde’s premier steamer.
It is also hoped that the ship relaunch will ultimately provide a boost to Clyde coast resorts such as Rothesay and Dunoon, which were familiar destinations in the ship’s heyday.
The charity Friends of TS Queen Mary – tasked with the restoration – says it has been “overwhelmed by the generosity of corporate donors and individuals” keen to see the Queen Mary restored to her former glory.
Built at Dumbarton in 1933, the vessel was successfully towed back to the Clyde from London, in a marathon voyage along the coast of the United Kingdom, in 2015.
At the height of her success, TS Queen Mary carried 13,000 passengers each week and was renowned as ‘Britain’s Finest Pleasure Steamer’.
The vessel has long-standing links with the Royal Family and carried King George V, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, as well as then Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret and Lord Mountbatten of Burma.
Other famous names to step aboard, included US First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, Viscount Montgomery of Alamein and music hall legend Sir Harry Lauder.
The vessel last plied her trade in 1977.
Iain Sim, Chairman of the Friends of TS Queen Mary said: “We are delighted to welcome back to Glasgow our Royal Patron HRH The Princess Royal. Our ongoing endeavour to ensure TS Queen Mary sails again on the Clyde continues to gather pace with some significant progress in the last year.
“We feel very privileged to have HRH The Princess Royal as our Royal Patron – celebrating, as it does the important link with the Royal Family which the ship is renowned for.”
Jackie Baillie, who last met Princess Anne when she awarded her Dame Commander of the British Empire at the Palace of Holyroodhouse in January, has long backed the restoration of the vessel.
She said: “The TS Queen Mary, as well as having historic links with the Royal Family, has an unbreakable bond with Dumbarton.
“She was built at the legendary William Denny shipyard and is one of the finest examples of her class, as well as a testament to the craftsmanship and engineering skill, for which the tradesmen of Dumbarton were known across the globe.
“I will be delighted when she is once again sailing the Firth of Clyde as a lasting example of the legacy of Dumbarton shipbuilding.”
- To mark her visit HRH The Princess Royal was presented with a wooden plaque carved from the ship’s original Burmese teak decking and a framed vintage picture of the ship in 1956.
Some of the eye-catching achievement in the last 12 months include:
- Removal of the original Burmese teak deck with salvageable wood being re-purposed around the ship when restored and laying of a replacement steel deck
- Removal of the 2 funnels with new ones being manufactured and painted in the original buff and black colour scheme
- Removal of the wheelhouse with an exact replica being built and moved into place later in the restoration
- 151 windows have been removed and new ones will be manufactured
Further information on the Queen Mary, contact Ross Wilson, PR TO TS QUEEN MARY 07768 280021 or at ross@rosswilsonpr.com
About TS Queen Mary:
Launched: 30th March 1933
Builder: William Denny & Bros Ltd., Dumbarton
Original Owner: Williamson Buchanan Steamers Ltd
Engine Builder: William Denny & Bros Ltd., Dumbarton
Type of Engine: 3 steam turbines – direct drive – triple screw
Length: 252.5 ft
Beam: 35.1 ft
Depth: 10.1ft
Trial speed: 19.7 knots
Such was TS Queen Mary’s position in the fleet of steamers on the Clyde that other ships would often give way to her
Her crew were considered a cut above their contemporaries and a position on the vessel was considered the pinnacle of a career
One former purser famously said of the TS Queen Mary – “they didn’t have to paint – they simply polished the gold!”
She had a name change in 1935 to Queen Mary II in deference to the Cunard-White Star super liner Queen Mary, the largest liner of its kind and an icon of the British merchant fleet. Her initial capacity was 2086 passengers
The ship was originally built with two funnels but new boilers were installed in 1956-57 which meant a single funnel was required. Its two- funnel appearance was restored while the ship was berthed on the River Thames in an effort to replicate its original look.