Restoring the TS Queen Mary

Friends of TS Queen Mary

TS Queen Mary is a British icon.

She was built in 1933 by the world famous shipyard William Denny and Brothers, for Williamson Buchanan Steamers. The 252 ft “pocket liner” is the original “Queen Mary”, giving up her name in 1934 in deference to Cunard’s new liner (becoming TS Queen Mary II) before reclaiming it in 1976.

She is the largest and most luxurious steamship ever built to serve Glasgow and the west of Scotland, and in that role she carried 13,000 passengers each week. During WW2 she maintained lifeline services on the Clyde. She carried Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mother), Her Majesty The Queen (then the Princess Elizabeth), the Princess Margaret and Mrs Eleanor Roosevelt.

After her retirement she was relocated to London and served the community there from 1987 until 2009.
She is now the last of her kind in the world and is listed in the Core 40 fleet of the UK’s National Historic Ship register, as a ship of national pre-eminence.

Since taking ownership in 2015, the Charity has raised and invested almost £3M GBP of a £6M GBP target. Our vision is to restore TS Queen Mary and re-open her at Glasgow Science Centre, as a heritage destination and education/training centre, where an estimated 150,000 people each year will visit her.

Donate now

We invite you to be a part of our exciting restoration campaign – the most significant redevelopment of TS Queen Mary in her history. With your help we will have a Queen fit for the 21st century. Her iconic status and heritage will be preserved, but she will be repurposed for contemporary roles that will ensure she is part of Britain’s cultural and economic fabric for years to come. Your gifts will enable and inspire: innovation, apprenticeships, economic growth, education, heritage preservation and tourism. Your engagement and commitment as donors will be pivotal.

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Friends of TS Queen Mary

2 weeks ago

04.06.21. – The King and Queen Sail on TS Queen Mary (79 Years Ago Today)On the 4th of June 1942, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth arrived at Glasgow Central Station to be greeted by throngs of cheering onlookers, who lined their vehicle route from Gordon Street to Bridge Wharf on the River Clyde. The Royal Couple were on the West Coast leg of their Scottish tour.As Their Majesties boarded TS Queen Mary (then named Queen Mary II), crowds vied for position on King George V Bridge to catch a glimpse of the Monarchs. The ship was painted in drab wartime grey, but in contrast, the Queen was instantly discernible on deck, with her lavender coat and dress, with matching hat and quill.“Go To It” was the rallying slogan of the time, and both the King and Queen were eager to witness Clydeside’s immense war effort, first-hand. The Queen commented on how much she had been looking forward to sailing on the river, knowing it to be (as she described it) “a hive of industry”.The band on the quayside played the National Anthem. As the ship pulled away, the King returned the salute to the assembled Royal Navy and Women’s Royal Naval Service personnel, who subsequently raised their arms and cheered, joining the jubilant chants and applause from Glaswegians on the nearby bridge.The steamer proceeded down river, where every ship and shipyard on both sides was lined with workers (men and women), as well as Royal and Merchant Navy crews; many of whom were gathered in an orderly array on deck, waving and cheering. One by one, the ensigns of ships both large and small, were lowered in respectful salute to the Royal Standard, proudly flying from TS Queen Mary’s masthead, as she sailed by. Taking in the spectacle of such vigorous industry, tirelessly working for the victory cause, the Queen was heard to comment “This is one of the most inspiring sights I have seen”. The Royal Couple disembarked the ship at Rothesay Dock and continued on to inspect Clydebank’s Civil Defence services. Queen Elizabeth would sail again on board TS Queen Mary some 4 years later, with the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret.FOTSQM ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of TS Queen Mary

1 month ago

07.05.21 - Spring Clean for TS Queen MaryAs lockdown restrictions ease and with a view (fingers crossed!) to being able to offer tours once more, our volunteers have been hard at work in recent weeks undertaking various maintenance tasks aboard TS Queen Mary. This week, we have been able to turn our attention to repainting areas of the ship. In today's photos you can see the progress being made on Queen Mary's promenade deck (including transverse beams) and starboard side-shell.Bruce Goucher (one of our stalwart volunteers) has carefully re-applied Queen Mary's brown stripes, whilst - just today - access was taken via a cherry picker in order to facilitate access for touching up her white paintwork.All in all, TS Queen Mary is looking rather smart!FOTSQM ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of TS Queen Mary

1 month ago

03.05.21 - TS Queen Mary Work PartySome limited maintenance work parties have been able to restart aboard TS Queen Mary. One of this weekend’s jobs was to re-coat the ship’s rudder, as you can see from today’s photo. FOTSQM ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of TS Queen Mary

2 months ago

21.04.21 - "Naval Architect" Journal Features TS Queen Mary We are delighted that the project to restore TS Queen Mary has been featured in this month's "Naval Architect", the journal of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects.FOTSQM ... See MoreSee Less

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Friends of TS Queen Mary

2 months ago

13.04.21 - TS Queen Mary Partners with Strathclyde Law SchoolWe are delighted to be able to share this film, which spotlights a new post-graduate law course created by the team at the University of Strathclyde's Law School, called "Project Management for Lawyers".Described by the Law Society of Scotland as "innovative", the PML course is a great example of the Charity working collaboratively with an education partner of international renown, to use TS Queen Mary as a platform for experiential learning.The Law School's Mrs Frances Murray, and Trustees Iain Sim and Peter Galletly, talk about the background to the course and the topics it covers. They are joined by two current students, who explain the benefits they have derived from studying PML.The Trustees look forward to working with the University of Strathclyde's School of Law in developing the course further, in the years to come. It is fitting that TS Queen Mary is not just being restored, but also is being repurposed as unique education resource for young people.FOTSQM ... See MoreSee Less

Friends of Queen Mary Educational Film

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A video about the innovative elective Project Management for Lawyers on our Diploma in Professional Legal Practice.

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