RELAUNCHING THE RMS QUEEN MARY

As a £16million restoration project saves the British-built ocean liner beloved of Hollywood and royalty from, quite literally, going under, the Daily Express enjoys an exclusive tour as she reopens to visitors

- Peter Sheridan

DAVY JONES'S locker may have to wait. Only three years ago, one of Britain's most majestic and luxurious ocean liners was sinking. The RMS Queen Mary, launched by George V in 1934 and adored by royalty, prime ministers, presidents and Hollywood stars, appeared headed for the scrapheap.

Years of neglect had left the grand old dame of the sea submerged in red ink, requiring urgent repairs just to stay afloat and an estimated £204million to restore her to her former grandeur. A safety report filed in bankruptcy court warned of its leaking hull, with a risk of flooding and "potential capsizing", and the once-great ship seemed destined to be broken up for salvage.

Yet after a three-year closure for £16million in repairs and renovations, the Queen Mary has surprised doomsayers, once again welcoming visitors and sailing into the black.

The ship generated £9.9million in revenue in the four months to October, reaping more than £2.3million in profits - more than she earned during the entire year before the pandemic struck.

"People are coming from across the globe to see the Queen Mary," says Steve Caloca, the ship's managing director under its contract operator, Evolution Hospitality.

"There's nothing else like it anywhere in the world." The ship's Commodore Everette Hoard, silver-bearded and resplendent in black uniform with gold brocade as if he stepped out of a maritime history book, assures: "The Queen Mary is not about to roll over and sink, and if we look after her she could last the millennium." The liner retired from the high seas in 1967 after 1,001 Atlantic crossings. It was purchased by the California city of Long Beach, just south of Los Angeles, where it has served as a popular tourist attraction and floating hotel ever since, drawing more than 55 million visitors.