A bygone age

Recent mention of the Ocean Liners exhibition at the V&A Dundee and regarding Edward Valentine’s contribution on the same subject, a Montrose reader recalls: “I was present at the launch of the replacement Empress of Britain passenger liner at Govan in 1956. She was named by The Queen and attracted a large crowd both inside the shipyard and immediate surrounding riverside areas.

“The narrowness of the Clyde and the sheer bulk of the impressive Canadian Pacific ship as she left the slipway created a miniature tsunami which quickly built up across and down the river. As the water level rose, I was fortunate to be standing behind a line of chest-high metal railings so was able to pull myself up off the level of the river bank.

“However a group of spectators close by were not so lucky. They were so engrossed in watching the ship that they were totally unprepared for a soaking and scattered back from the river’s edge. Quite a number must have gone home ‘drookit’ up to their knees as a result of the rapidly advancing tidal wave.

“During a holiday with a work colleague to Southampton in the late 1950s we were fortunate to see the Queen Mary enter and sail from the port. We also saw the Dutch flagship Nieuw Amsterdam, plus several P&O and Union Castle passenger liners.

“At that time visitor’s passes were available from the port authority offices to go on board one of the latter company’s ships and we took advantage of a look around the Athlone Castle.

“However, we missed the arrival of the crack American ocean greyhound United States by one day. I did have the opportunity to visit the retired Queen Mary at her permanent berth in Long Beach, California in 1973 and again in 1987. Names from a bygone era indeed.”