Honeymoon on QE2 in 2002

[Lynda Bradford]

What a wonderful surprise to get an invite to the Bridge. 

Looking forward to hearing more.

[Andy Holloway]

If the missing word is rain, then no - the weather was perfect all day - as will be seen in a couple of days or so.

It was but, it could equally have been; Heavy Shopping Bags, Heavy night in The Yacht Club or Heavy plate of food from the Lido Buffet!

I'll have to check my QE2 log again, it must have been another call into Ajjacio, but i only remember going there  a couple of times, ah the joys of old age!

[Peter Mugridge]

Lynda - that was certainly "big grin territory".

Andy - as security chief, would you have been present on the bridge whenever there were visitors?  In which case if our call was your other visit, you might be in a photo or two of ours...?  Even if not, you'll certainly know every single office who appears in the pictures.  Some of them might even be on this forum...

Meanwhile, here are the first photos of that day, some time before we went for our visit.  At this point the ship was still preparing for departure.

[Andy Holloway]

Lynda - that was certainly "big grin territory".

Andy - as security chief, would you have been present on the bridge whenever there were visitors?  In which case if our call was your other visit, you might be in a photo or two of ours...?  Even if not, you'll certainly know every single office who appears in the pictures.  Some of them might even be on this forum...

Meanwhile, here are the first photos of that day, some time before we went for our visit.  At this point the ship was still preparing for departure.

Not usually, especially if the visits were while the ship was in port, too busy with gangway operations.

I had an uncanny knack of avoiding photos!

[Peter Mugridge]

Not usually, especially if the visits were while the ship was in port, too busy with gangway operations.

I had an uncanny knack of avoiding photos!

Ah, but we weren't technically in port - we were allowed up there for the actual sailing... ( which must be extremely rare on any ship, let alone on the Holy Grail of liners? ).

[Peter Mugridge]

I would say the caption on this page says it all doesn't it...?

[Peter Mugridge]

Tonight, more bridge views - including that iconic mast from an angle very few will have seen.

[Peter Mugridge]

More bridge visit images tonight; unfortunately I was not quick enough on the shutter to snap the dolphins that followed us out from port.  They're much faster at jumping in real life than you'd think from watching them on television!

[Peter Mugridge]

A final set of images of the bridge itself; this lot showing the inner sanctum with all the controls.

Who is the First Officer?  Is he on this forum?

[Lynda Bradford]

Thanks for the pictures Peter.  I have enlarged a couple of the photos just a little in the hope that someone can identify the First Officer. 

[Peter Mugridge]

A bit of detail about the bridge itself:

[Peter Mugridge]

The last few pictures taken from on the bridge as we left Ajaccio behind on our last evening on board QE2.

Notice just how perfect the weather was that day.

[Thomas Hypher]

Thanks for the pictures Peter.  I have enlarged a couple of the photos just a little in the hope that someone can identify the First Officer.

I believe this is Captain Peter Russell but when he was serving as Staff Captain (hence the four stripes the fourth stripe nearest the neck being narrower in width compared to the Captain's stripes being four of equal width) under Captain Paul Wright before being promoted as one of QE2's last appointed Captains in 2005.

[Thomas Hypher]

Was Ajaccio an anchor port like Propriano (also in Corsica) was?

[Peter Mugridge]

Was Ajaccio an anchor port like Propriano (also in Corsica) was?

No, we tied up alongside normally - though I believe QE2 did anchor offshore on at least some other visits to Ajaccio.


( ...and I think we should perhaps move swiftly on from the question of the First Officer on the day of our visit... )