Queen Elizabeth bid farewell to the QE2 ocean liner yesterday (02.06.08).
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The queen toured the famous ship – which she launched in September 1967 – on the 55th anniversary of her coronation, before it sails to Dubai where it will become a hotel.
The managing director of Cunard – the shipping company which operates the QE2 – Carol Marlow said: “The QE2 has been a symbol of all that is best about Britain. It is the most famous ship afloat bust all things move on and the vessel will now be going to Dubai where it will be admired by generations to come.”
The queen was escorted on her tour by the ship’s last master, Captain Ian McNaught.
When she visited the ship’s bridge – which was decorated with photographs from her previous visit in 1990 – the QE2’s distinctive horn was sounded. The tour also saw the queen become the last person to sign the boat’s visitors’ book.
During her visit the queen met captains, officers and crew who had worked on the ship and spent time with guest Baroness Thatcher, who commandeered the liner as a troop carrier during the Falklands war.
