Did you know only one minute and seven seconds elapsed between Fredrick Fleet’s warning and the collision with the iceberg? It’s hard to comprehend how, practically in the blink of an eye, tragedy can strike on such a giant scale.
If there’s one thing that becomes startlingly clear at The Legend of The Titanic Exhibition is that there is still plenty to discover about the historic event, particularly about the people on board. This new exhibition, now open in Canada Water, looks at the disaster from a human perspective, using immersive elements such as 360-degree projections, VR and the metaverse to plunge you into the very heart of the story. We headed over for a maiden voyage back to 1912 – here’s our review…
Where is the Legend of the Titanic Exhibition in London?
You can find this new Titanic exhibition at Dock X in Surrey Quays, less than a five-minute stroll from the Canada Water tube station, which can be reached on the Jubilee line or the Windrush Overground line.
Fittingly, the entrance sits overlooking a freshwater lake, already setting the scene for the experience with its rippling waters; once a dock for Canadian ships (hence the name), which transported timber in the 19th century, but now serving as a plant-lined wildlife refuge. The history lesson only starts here.
What will I find inside the exhibition?
This journey into the past starts the moment you walk through the doors. Immediately, you are immersed in the world of the Titanic – think walls transformed into the ocean liner’s porthole-dotted exterior, floors panelled like a boat deck, wooden crates draped in fishing nets, an Edwardian phone just begging to be dialled…you get the picture.
Keep in mind before you set off that there is an AR guide, which helps to elevate the experience, so don’t be like me, and make sure your phone is charged up so you can scan the QR code to download the app. As well as providing AR elements throughout the exhibition, it also includes a map so you can get an idea of what is to come and plan your time accordingly.
There are about seven rooms in total, including an exhibition room containing artefacts and replicas, a virtual reality experience, an immersive room brought to life with 360-degree projections and a metaverse room. Each one explores a different facet of the Titanic’s story, covering everything from the outfits worn by passengers to the treacherous iceberg. There are even a few gems for fans of the iconic film, a selection of photo ops and a place for younger visitors to channel their creativity at the end.
Highlights
This exhibition is an invitation to step inside the stories of the thousands of passengers and crew on board, from families in third-class, journeying to a new life in the US, to some of the wealthiest people in the world at the time. This was an element that I found most interesting, with placards on walls shining a light on different people from all walks of life – some survivors, some who lost their lives – and exploring the stark class divide. A divide that ultimately spelt the end for many in third class, as opposed to the disproportionately higher number of survivors in first class.
The virtual reality experience gave a posthumous stage to the musicians on the ship. It felt almost like an old-worldly take on a music video with a dash of melancholy magic. The musicians played until the very end in an attempt to keep the passengers calm, and this was a moving ode to their act of bravery.
Later, the metaverse lets you become a fly on the wall, blurring the lines of reality even further as you slip on the headset and are transported to the bottom of the ocean, then through a portal in time. There, doors open of their own accord, inviting you to explore rooms, stumbling upon conversations and everyday moments along the way. It was a compelling reminder that these were ordinary people experiencing something extraordinary. It takes the concept of putting yourself in their shoes to a new level.
Ultimately, my favourite part of the exhibition was the immersive room. I have experienced the 360-degree spectacle of being wrapped in giant projections on multiple occasions, whether it’s Van Gogh’s paintings being set into motion or floating down the Nile in an Ancient Egyptian afterlife. This time, we stepped inside someone’s story.
Like jumping inside someone’s disjointed memories, you can follow a young girl and her father through the labyrinthine rooms of the ocean liner. One moment, she is scampering up the grand staircase, the next, gazing at you with binoculars from the corner of the room, then, a desperate reunion with her father as the ship is slowly submerged in the water. There was a concern that this digital retelling of such a tragic event, especially the last moments, could appear distasteful. But, I didn’t feel this to be the case; it wasn’t amped up for dramatic effect or glossed over, but instead inspired moments of reflection.
If you stay for the full sequence, you’ll also experience a dive under water, drifting alongside lazily swimming narwhals and frolicking dolphins, a chance to dance (only if you want) among silhouetted figures in the lavish interiors and an unsettling moment when you are swallowed up by the giant mechanics in the engine room.
It’s no secret that there are numerous events, exhibitions and much more which explore the storied tale of the Titanic. It’s easy to feel some kind of fatigue about the obsession with the ‘unsinkable ship’, particularly as history has no shortage of tragedy, but the fact that such a simple and cruel twist of fate took the lives of over 1,500 people has a way of sticking with you. This exhibition gave me a better understanding of why there’s still a fascination with the RMS Titanic all these years later.
I went into The Legend of the Titanic Exhibition with a basic knowledge of the events, and admittedly never having watched the film, but I emerged brimming with newfound facts. It rightly kept the focus on the people, serving as a platform to tell their stories, and used technology as a window into their worlds. There may not be Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet at hand with their Oscar-worthy performance, but this immersion in the past brings the story to life in an entirely new way.