Ocean Liner Storms, Cunard Lives, and Italian Voyages

Stormy Weather & Rough Seas

At the World Ship Society, Port of New York Branch, we had a night at the movies. We joined for a light supper and then marched to a nearby theatre along Broadway to watch The Poseidon Adventure. There were 50 of us in the group – including a retired captain and a former officer from the United States Lines.

Caught in a ferocious North Atlantic storm, the author took on his crossing on a rolling and pitching Queen Mary as his inspiration – except he took a step further: the big liner completely capsizes and then lingers for a time as the passengers try to escape.

Yes, it was great adventure. But counting the years that was in 1972, now 53 years ago!

The cast of The Poseidon Adventure poses together on a ship's promenade. From the William H. Miller collection. — The cast of The Poseidon Adventure poses together on a ship’s promenade. From the William H. Miller collection.

Cunard Memories

Terry Foskett was a senior officer onboard Canadian Pacific and later Cunard – and especially on the beloved QE2. He was also a very fine singer.

The Cunard liner Queen Mary 2 makes a grand entrance into Sydney Harbour in 2008. From the William H. Miller collection. — The Cunard liner *Queen Mary 2* makes a grand entrance into Sydney Harbour in 2008. From the William H. Miller collection.

Recently, he wrote to us: “When I finished and came off, Deputy Captain Alan Bennell looked at me as if seeing me for the first time and said, ‘Terry, I didn’t know you could sing like that’.

“In 2002, the Nelson Riddle Orchestra was on board. I had known Christopher Riddle Nelson’s son since the 1970s. Christopher was a great fan of QE2 and a good friend of mine. He asked me if I would sing, as he put it, ‘some of Dad’s arrangements for Sinatra’. He gave me the arrangements and the lyrics, which I already knew by heart. So at 10.30 pm at night in the Queens Room in uniform with twenty-first-class American musicians backing me, I sang three classic Great American Songbook songs. I was a bit nervous, and in the middle eight bars of the first song, I looked at the pianist, who smiled and put a thumb up. At the end, Christopher turned to the orchestra and said, ‘Just like we rehearsed it!’. Of course, we hadn’t. I knew then he was happy with my performance.”

Terry Foskett performs in formal dress in the Queens Room aboard QE2. From the William H. Miller collection. — Terry Foskett performs in formal dress in the Queens Room aboard *QE2.* From the William H. Miller collection.

Terry added, “Just some background to the photo. Christopher had me sing again with his orchestra when he returned to QE2 in 2003. Just one last thing: When Christopher was sailing with the ship as a private passenger, we were having a drink in the Golden Lion and Karaoke was on. A passenger sang I’ve Got You Under My Skin, and I could see Christopher wincing as the passenger made a complete hash of it. Christopher said to me, “You sing it, Terry, as my Dad would have liked it”. Cruise Director Bob Haines, a great singer himself, introduced Christopher, who stood by the Grand Piano as I sang the song. It was a great moment and a great honour!”

Memories from the Purser’s Office

Some 65 years ago, back in 1960, then 18-yr-old Jane Coulon (from a little village in Suffolk in England) had friends who worked for the great Cunard Line. They had endless stories of adventures and fun. And besides, Jane liked uniforms (her father was retired British military).

Excitedly lured and prompted, she wrote to Cunard – but in reply was said to be too young (only 21 and over for young ladies!). But she persisted – by her fourth letter, Jane was summoned to Southampton for an interview. The clincher was that she spoke French, which was needed for passengers joining Cunard liners at Cherbourg or Le Havre.

A classic Cunard poster promotes the Cherbourg–New York service of Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary. From the William H. Miller collection. — A classic Cunard poster promotes the Cherbourg–New York service of *Queen Elizabeth* and *Queen Mary*. From the William H. Miller collection.

Jane recalled, “I was hired and quickly assigned to the Queen Mary. The day I joined there was only one policeman guarding the entire ship [at Southampton]. I was all but overwhelmed – looking-up at this bloody great ship! I was soon sent to the first class purser’s office given a three-cornered cap and a uniform – and assigned to cabin class.

“There was a purser for each class (first, cabin and tourist class) but I soon discovered no one wanted tourist class. I began by typing long crew lists – and creating 10 copies using 10 sheets of carbon paper. There were no copy machines back then! I used a big, upright typewriter but that would shift as the ship rolled. There were three ‘lady cabins’ with one shared bathroom (that same room is now a gift shop on the Queen Mary out in Long Beach, but that little bathroom is still there). I had the upper bunk, using a ladder. And the pay was ridiculously low.”

Jane Coulon, a junior purser aboard Queen Mary, poses on deck in uniform in the early 1960s. From the William H. Miller collection. — Jane Coulon, a junior purser aboard *Queen Mary,* poses on deck in uniform in the early 1960s. From the William H. Miller collection.

Jane added, “Arriving in New York was very, very exciting – but very frightening to me as well. We’d have 5 or 6 hours free to go ashore. But on my first visit, I was much too frightened. Actually, I just looked at the booming city and tall skyscrapers from the deck.

Later, after I met a fellow purser, we’d go ashore (and then married for 53 years). He’d come over from the Saxonia and Ivernia – the ‘Sax” and ‘Ivy” as we called them – and disliked the Queen Mary. It was much too formal compared to the other, smaller Cunarders.”

The Cunard liner Queen Mary lies alongside at Southampton.. From the William H. Miller collection. — The Cunard liner *Queen Mary* lies alongside at Southampton.. From the William H. Miller collection.

Jane herself did two years on the Queen Mary. “As a junior purser, I also did passenger secretarial service. I went to the suites and cabins of first class passengers and took stenography (and afterward did the typing). I met some fascinating people – and typed film scripts, long medical reports, business contracts. Guests paid Cunard for this service – but we were not permitted to accept gratuities.”

“During our off hours, we were not allowed to use the public rooms, but could use the cinema and library. It was all very structured. As a uniformed junior officer, I remember being dressed down for seeing (dating) a gym attendant!”

Jane later went ashore, joined British Airways (in management at Heathrow Airport) and currently has logged over 50 cruises (30 with Silversea).

A vintage Cunard baggage label evokes the ritual of transatlantic departures. From the William H. Miller collection.

Italian Voyages!

A friend wrote recently to say that his favorite passenger ship firm was Italy’s Lloyd Triestino. Indeed, it was a fascinating company. Back in the 1950s, they had no less than seven passenger ships, if smallish, on three different routes.

Vintage Lloyd Triestino posters promote long-distance passenger services. From the William H. Miller collection.

A quick review: The trio of Australia, Neptunia and Oceania traded on a monthly service from Genoa, Naples and Messina to Port Said, Suez, Aden, Colombo, Djakarta, Fremantle, Melbourne and Sydney. Each carried some 750 passengers in three classes.

The Lloyd Triestino liners Oceania and Africa lie together at Genoa.From the William H. Miller collection. — The Lloyd Triestino liners *Oceania* and *Africa* lie together at Genoa. From the William H. Miller collection.

The 11,700-ton sisters Asia (seen below at Genoa) and Victoria looked after the Middle and Far East trades – Genoa and Naples to Port Said, Suez, Aden, Karachi, Bombay, Colombo, Singapore and Hong Kong. More moderate in capacity, they carried 450 passengers each and in two classes.

The Lloyd Triestino liner Asia lies at Genoa. From the William H. Miller collection. — The Lloyd Triestino liner *Asia* lies at Genoa. From the William H. Miller collection.

Finally, the East and South African run was offered by the Africa and Europa. Their routing was Trieste, Venice and Brindisi to Port Said, Suez, Aden, Mogadishu, Mombasa, Dar-es-Salaam, Beira, Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and East London. They too carried some 450 passengers in first and tourist class accommodation.

The Lloyd Triestino liner Europa departs Cape Town (left), and Africa at right. From the William H. Miller collection.

But in 1963, Lloyd Triestino took a big step and added their largest, fastest and finest liners – the Guglielmo Marconi and Galileo Galilei. They sailed on the Italy-Australia route.