Princess Royal views continuing restoration work on Clyde steamer
The Princess Royal has visited Glasgow to see the ongoing restoration of a historic Clyde steamer whose passengers once included royalty, a famous general and a US first lady.
Anne was making her fourth visit to the TS Queen Mary, which is berthed at Glasgow Science Centre in Govan.
She met supporters, volunteers and funders involved in a project to restore the vessel once known as 'Britain's finest pleasure steamer'.
Launched in 1933, the Queen Mary was built in Dumbarton by William Denny And Brothers Ltd, with an initial capacity of 2,086 passengers.
She was named after Anne's great-grandmother.
At the height of her success, the steamer carried 13,000 passengers each week.
Anne's grandparents, King George V and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, and the then-Princess Elizabeth, as well as Margaret and Lord Mountbatten of Burma, sailed on the vessel.
Other well-known passengers included US first lady Eleanor Roosevelt, Second World War Allied commander Viscount Montgomery of Alamein and music hall star Sir Harry Lauder.
The vessel's final cruise was in 1977, and after a time in London she was towed back to the Clyde in 2015, where she has been based since.
Restoration work began three years ago, following an announcement by Anne during a visit in March 2022 that the Queen Mary would sail again.
Friends of TS Queen Mary, the charity tasked with the restoration, has raised more than £5 million for their work, saying it has been 'overwhelmed by the generosity of corporate donors and individuals'.
Charity chairman Iain Sim said they were 'delighted' to welcome the Princess Royal, who is the vessel's royal patron, for her fourth visit.
'Our ongoing task to ensure TS Queen Mary sails again on the Clyde continues to gather pace with some significant progress in the last year,' he said.
'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.'
In the last 12 months, steel decks have been laid in place of the original Burmese teak decks to comply with modern safety rules, and the interior and exterior of the vessel have been painted.
Queen Mary is officially a dry ship!
Almost 1,200 square metres of steel deck have been laid and the impact has been transformational.
Made with British steel supplied by @TataSteelUK and support from @WBAlloys and @BAES_Maritime.
Enjoy that #FridayFeeling!#follow pic.twitter.com/BwKvcfZmF4
— TS Queen Mary (@fotsqm) October 11, 2024
The task of replacing all 164 windows has progressed, with their design and safety requirements approved.
Several partners and supporters of the project were introduced to the Princess Royal, including Rajesh Nair, chief executive of Tata Steel UK.
The charity also released an image of what the Queen Mary will look like when fully restored.
It is hoped the Queen Mary's return to sailing will provide a boost to Scotland's tourism, particularly the Clyde coast resorts such as Rothesay and Dunoon, which were destinations in the vessel's heyday.
When not sailing, the restored vessel will remain based at Glasgow Science Centre as a heritage attraction.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Florida gears up for annual 'Python Challenge' aimed at solving snake infestation: 'A great way to get people directly involved'
Preparations are underway for the latest annual event to combat a persistent invasive species in the Florida Everglades. Starting July 11, contestants will compete for cash prizes while helping control the population of Burmese pythons wreaking havoc on the ecosystem. The annual Florida Python Challenge is a 10-day event where contestants across eight designated hunting areas compete to capture the most pythons. As the Tampa Free Press reported, last year's event saw 195 invasive snakes removed, bringing the total of all events to date to 1,112. In addition to the grand cash prize ($10,000), there are prizes for runners-up and the longest python. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the 2024 winner bagged an impressive 20 snakes. Burmese pythons are an invasive species that first came to the Sunshine State as exotic pets that escaped or were released into the wild by irresponsible homeowners, per the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Invasive species harm an ecosystem by outcompeting native species for resources. The Burmese python's immense size, longevity, and fertility make it a serious problem for the Everglades. They have absolutely devastated local mammal populations. A 2012 study estimated a 99% reduction in bobcats, opossums, and raccoons in areas where pythons infest. The initiative is one of several novel community-based approaches to tackling invasive species and a great example of taking local action. While some invasive species make for tasty dishes, pythons shouldn't be consumed due to their dangerous mercury levels. Of course, there are less adventurous but no less valuable ways to combat invasive species and protect local biodiversity. Better yet, they involve very little effort and can even save money in the long run. Gardening with native plants and rewilding your yard are suitable for crucial pollinators and require less water and fewer harmful chemicals. The 2025 Florida Python Challenge is shaping up to be the biggest yet. "The Python Challenge is a great way to get people directly involved in the protection and stewardship of the Everglades," the fantastically named "Alligator Ron" Bergeron, a South Florida Water Management District Governing Board member, told the Tampa Bay Free Press. Should we be actively working to kill invasive species? Absolutely It depends on the species I don't know No — leave nature alone Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Miami Herald
3 days ago
- Miami Herald
Three hunters capture this huge invasive species in Everglades swamps
Three hunters captured a 16-foot-long, 105-pound python in the Everglades just as they were returning home after a night of searching for the enormous invasive snakes that have become a scourge in South Florida. Zach Hoffman, Jan Gianello, and Justice Sargood hunted the snake in the early morning hours of May 31 near Everglades City, in Collier County in the southwest of the state. Hoffman said they decided to check one last spot on the way home when they suddenly saw what looked like a shadow. They immediately jumped out of the truck and ran toward the snake that was between the road and the ditch. Sargood held the python by the head and began wrestling with it. 'Jan and I controlled the rest of the body so it wouldn't coil too tightly. Once we had control of the snake, we ethically removed it. Then we realized what we had just caught,' Hoffman told the Naples Daily News. Read more: Do you want to help protect the Everglades ecosystem and win up to $10,000? The trio has been hunting the monstrous snakes for three years, and as of last May, the largest they had caught measured 10 feet, 2 inches, he said. The three have captured more than 100 pythons. Another group of python hunters captured the longest Burmese python ever measured on July 10, 2023, in Big Cypress National Preserve in eastern Collier County. It measured 19 feet. Burmese pythons have a negative impact on native species. They are primarily found in and around the Everglades ecosystem in South Florida, where they feed on birds, mammals and other reptiles. These snakes were first found in the Everglades swamps in 1979 in Miami-Dade County and are believed to have been released or escaped from captivity. A breeding population was confirmed in the early 2000s, and the snake was recognized as an established invasive species. They are found in Broward, Palm Beach, and Monroe counties, and on the southwest coast of Florida. Since 2000, more than 23,000 Burmese pythons have been removed from Florida's natural habitat, according to data from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Burmese pythons are aggressive predators that disrupt the food chain, affecting native birds, mammals, and reptiles. A single female can lay more than 100 eggs at a time, which accelerates their spread.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
'Python Huntress' takes on invasive snakes in the Everglades
By Maria Alejandra Cardona OCHOPEE, Florida (Reuters) -Amy Siewe was a successful real estate agent -- but her life changed after she captured her first python in Florida's Everglades. "I just had this fascination with snakes. So when I learned that there was a python problem here in Florida ... I went on a hunt, I caught a nine-foot (2.75-meter) python, and that was it. I was hooked!" she said. Within two months she had sold her business in Indiana and moved to Florida to become a python hunter. Now, with more than 600 dead pythons under her belt, she is known as the "Python Huntress" -- one of a handful of women amongst hundreds of men hunting the invasive Burmese python in Florida's Everglades wetland ecosystem. "This python is about 10 feet (3 meters) long," she says as she wrestles a snake she has just captured in the tall grass in the middle of the night. "It's probably about three years old, and to date it's eaten about 200 of our native animals, including mammals and birds." Burmese pythons have been spreading through the Everglades National Park since Hurricane Andrew in 1992 destroyed a breeding facility for the pet trade, freeing some 900 snakes. Originally native to Southeast Asia, the python can grow up to 18 feet (5.5 meters) long and has a voracious appetite, consuming the local wildlife, including mammals, birds and even alligators. The Everglades is a unique subtropical ecosystem, with the largest continuous mangrove ecosystem in the Western Hemisphere. It is home to a vast array of unique species, including the endangered Florida panther, the American alligator and the American crocodile. But it provides no natural predators to the Burmese python, allowing the population of the invasive species to balloon. Scientists have noted dramatic declines in raccoons, opossums, bobcats, and rabbits in the region. "There's an estimated 500,000 pythons out there," Siewe said. The pythons, which are hunted by night, cannot legally be transported alive, so they are killed on site after being captured and measured. Once home, Siewe skins the dead snakes, and then has the skins professionally tanned into leather to be made into purses, wallets, watch bands and other goods. It takes an average of 12 hours to catch one. "So it's not that effective, right," she admits. "We're always going to have pythons in Florida. What we're trying to do is figure out how to decrease their numbers. Hunting right now is the most effective tool that we have."
