Captain Greybeard

Perhaps Cunard wanted to keep the retirement of Commodore Bernie Warner a family affair. Perhaps the man himself didn't want a big fuss. And perhaps I was a bit unkind to suggest the cruise line had let their most senior captain slip away too quietly last week at the end of Queen Mary 2's world voyage. Because a video now posted on Peter Shanks's We Are Cunard blog pays a fitting tribute to the man, and reveals what an emotional morning it was for Warner, his wife Tina, and all those on the bridge for his farewell after 46 years [...]

George Richardson, whose wife Janet died four weeks after being dropped into the North Sea while being transferred from a cruise ship to a rescue vessel, is waiting for the results of a post mortem before deciding whether to take legal action. Mrs Richardson, 73, spent several minutes in near-freezing water before being pulled to safety. She was rushed to a Norwegian hospital on Bodo, and later transferred to the Cumberland Infirmary at Carlisle, nearer her home in Ousby, Penrith. The decision to evacuate her from the Ocean Countess, during a cruise to see the Northern Lights, was made after [...]

Captain Christopher Rynd has been appointed Commodore of the Cunard fleet - Queen Mary 2, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria - taking over the title held by Commodore Bernard Warner until his retirement on April 19.. After an uncharacteristic two-day silence, Cunard President and Managing Director Peter Shanks said today: "I must put on record our appreciation for the marvellous contribution that Bernie made to Cunard Line. We wish him and his family all the best for his retirement." Commodore Rynd joined Cunard in 2005 when he took command of Queen Elizabeth 2 and since then he has been master [...]

Opinion polls and surveys - don't you just love them? Anyone with a new product, service or website to promote does so with pseudo-scientific research which has little merit other than to draw attention to their particular sphere of activity. Take the recently-launched UK website which compares cruise fares and helps potential passengers get the best deal. Is it necessarily good for them to establish that people on cruises knock back more alcohol than when they are on land-based holidays? No matter, it's a talking point, so we get detailed statistics about the number of passengers (44 per cent) consuming [...]