DETAILS OF UPCOMING TALKS & SPEAKERS

SUMMER SPECIAL ... don't miss out on seeing and hearing from internationally renowned speaker Bill Miller ... 

2.30pm, Saturday, August 14th 2021 

~ Rule Britannia: Bygone British Ocean Liners ~ with Bill Miller ~
... Biggest passenger fleet of the ‘50s & '60s … Cunard, P&O, Blue Funnel, Shaw Savill & more … a nostalgic review ...

In the 1950s & '60s, Britain had the biggest, most diverse passenger shipping fleet on the seas. There were so many great ship-owning names - such as Canadian Pacific, Cunard, Blue Funnel, P&O and Shaw Savill. In this "maritime scrapbook," Bill Miller recalls dozens of bygone British passenger ships.  A nostalgic fleet review - the whistle is already sounding!  

Bill Miller

Bill Miller is an international authority on the subject of ocean liners & cruise ships. This includes great ships of the past, those “floating palaces,” as well as the current generation of cruise ships, the “floating resorts”. Called “Mr. Ocean Liner,” he has written over 60 books on subjects from early steamers, immigrant ships and liners at war to celebrated passenger ships of today.

Opening our NEW SEASON of EVENTS ...

2.30pm, Saturday, September 11th 2021 

~ Shout at the Devil ~ with Kevin Patience ~
... German cruiser Königsberg … East Africa 1914/15 … blockaded and destroyed by Royal Navy & RN Air Service ...

A unique piece of naval history from the First World War about the German warship Königsberg blockaded and destroyed by the Royal Navy and the Royal Naval Air Service in an East African river in 1914/15. One of the lesser-known campaigns of WW1 took place in (what is now) Kenya and Tanzania. With a British presence at Zanzibar, only 20 miles off the coast, and Germany holding Dar es Salam and a coastal strip - a German surface raider had to be stopped. 

Kevin Patience

Having grown up in Kenya and taken up commercial diving, in the seventies Kevin became a commercial diver based in the Gulf and went on to establish a marine salvage company. In the early eighties Kevin was appointed MD of a Kenya diving company in Mombasa responsible for operations in East Africa. Later he established a new diving company back in Bahrain with contracts throughout the Gulf and East Africa. With an interest in military history, Kevin has been a published author for over 30 years, many on military and transport history, together with presenting talks on a variety of subjects.

2.30pm, Saturday, October 9th 2021 

~ Stockholm's amazing Vintage Steamers ~ with David Trevor-Jones ~
... Still in service ... the Lake, Canal & Archipelago fleets ... a parade unparalleled in Europe ...

In watery Sweden before the development of good roads, steamers plied carrying passengers and goods both inland, across the country and out to the Stockholm Archipelago from the centre of the capital.  Somewhere between the Clyde puffers and the south coast excursion fleets in size and style, the steamers were vessels of beauty.  While we in the UK have a miserable record of maintaining our maritime heritage, in Stockholm’s clear and brackish waters the steamers have survived in remarkable numbers.  Many centenary-old examples are still in service, carrying excursion passengers rather than agricultural goods and labour.  In this talk David will survey the scene, with a look at the Lake, Canal and Archipelago fleets, some un-rebuilt coal-fired and some long-ago converted to diesel, a parade of historic vessels surely unparalleled in Europe.

David Trevor-Jones 

David is talks organiser / director at the Ocean Liner Society and a long-standing branch member, friend and speaker at WSS Dorset. David’s shipping research and photography focusses on classic liners, most recently - the Russian “Author” class.

2.30pm, Saturday, November 13th 2021 

~ Panama Canal Panorama ~ with Neil Davidson ~
... Canal transit via the old locks … views from visitor centres at Miraflores and Agua Clara … plus ships in the Pacific anchorage ...

Images from a week-long trip to Panama in 2017 including an excursion boat trip through the Canal. A wide range of vessel types seen from tugs to tankers and container vessels to cruise ships (such as Azamara Quest and Island Princess). Plus, one or two trains for good measure … and a WWII floating crane.

Neil Davidson

Neil spent his entire working career in the port and shipping industry and has been a member of the World Ship Society for over 40 years. 

2.30pm, Saturday, December 11th 2021 

~ Voyages & Visits from the archive ~ with Bill Mayes ~
... From a collection of over 60,000 shipping images scanned from slides – we get to see Bill’s “special selection” ...

Bill moved from prints to transparencies during 1977 and we will see images from the first decade of slides including some ship visits organised by the London Branch of the WSS and those arranged independently, Falklands activity in Southampton, and a special selection of images from 1984 featuring the first Astor, World Renaissance, the first St Helena and Royal Princess. Expect to see some ships in dry dock in Southampton and maybe a few random images.

Bill Mayes

Bill Mayes is well known as the Chairman of the Ocean Liner Society, a director of The World Ship Society and a regular contributor to Sea Lines and Ships Monthly. He has amassed a huge “back catalogue” of voyages worldwide and a wealth of knowledge specialising in cruise ships and ferries. A good and longstanding friend of WSS Dorset. 

2.30pm, Saturday, January 8th 2022 

~ In the Wake of the Intermediates ~ with Andy Skarstein ~
...Via Suez to East & South Africa … 

A voyage on Clan MacIndoe in early 1978 from London to Cape Town via Suez, Aqaba, Djibouti, Kenya, Tanzania and Mozambique.

Andy Skarstein

Andy is an ex B&C Radio Officer from 1970-1978 with a lifelong interest in ships and shipping history.

Your first invitation link to one of our Zoom events comes with no obligation and we hope you enjoy the afternoon.

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