The ship will form the backdrop to the Liverpool FC title paradeDan Haygarth Liverpool Daily Post Editor and Regeneration Reporter
08:56, 24 May 2025
Cunard’s Queen Anne sails from Liverpool last year(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Cunard’s newest ship Queen Anne will return to Liverpool next week to mark the line’s 185th anniversary. Queen Anne, which had her naming ceremony in the city last year, will return to the River Mersey on Bank Holiday Monday (May 26).
It marks the start of global celebrations across the Cunard fleet to mark this year’s 185th anniversary of the line’s first transatlantic crossing, which left Liverpool in 1840. The ship is due alongside at Cruise Port Liverpool by midday, meaning she will form a backdrop to the Liverpool Football Club parade when it reaches the waterfront.
The ship was dedicated to the city of Liverpool by Cunard at her naming ceremony last June, which featured a performance from Andrea Bocelli and a DJ set from Craig Charles.
Queen Anne is expected at the following points and times as she makes her way to her berth on Monday, May 26:
The ship will remain on the Mersey overnight. The following day (May 27) Cunard will be honoured when HRH The Princess Royal makes a special visit to the ship marking the official start of the 185 celebrations.
Later that day the Sea of Glamour photographic exhibition curated by photographer and film maker Mary McCartney, daughter of Beatles legend Sir Paul, will open at the Royal Liver Building.
The exhibition features 185 images charting the Cunard timeline and some of the many milestones in its maritime history. It will also celebrate its bond with the city of Liverpool.
Mary McCartney said: “Curating Sea of Glamour for Cunard has been such a brilliant project for me as a photographer. To delve into 185 years of photographic history, I had the privilege of exploring not only Cunard’s iconic legacy but also the real, heartfelt moments shared by its guests on board.
Cunard Queen Anne arrives in Liverpool on the River Mersey waterfront in 2024(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
“As I went through the archives and read the stories submitted by passengers from all corners of the world, I was struck by the strong sense of community and connection that Cunard has fostered over the years. I loved seeing the personal submissions – moments of joy, connection, and family milestones.
“As I reflected on these stories, I was reminded that glamour isn’t only found in images of royalty or Hollywood stars, but in the shared experiences of all Cunard passengers.”
The 185th image will be of the five Liverpool icons chosen to represent the city at the Queen Anne naming ceremony last year – Melanie C, Ngunan Adamu, Natalie Haywood, Jayne Casey and Katarina Johnson-Thomson.
The ship is scheduled to depart Liverpool at 11.45pm on Tuesday, May 27. People will be able to come to the Pier Head and catch a glimpse of the ship the entire time she is here.
Queen Anne, the latest of Cunard’s four Queens in service, visits Liverpool as part of a Round Britain voyage. She will arrive in her spiritual home from Glasgow and leave on the evening of May 27 bound for Dublin then Cobh, Ireland before returning to Southampton on June 1.