Jayne, our UK CEO, organised the conference dinner to beat all conference dinners! We were treated to a tour of and dinner aboard the SS Great Britain, Brunel’s famous steel hulled ship, the fastest vessel on the seas when she was launched in 1843.
I’d recommend browsing the official SS Great Britain website at www.ssgreatbritain.org
The ss Great Britain was a world first when she was launched in Bristol in 1843. This uniquely successful ship design brought together new technologies in a way which transformed world travel.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the most daring of the great Victorian engineers, conceived the groundbreaking combination of a screw propeller, an iron hull, and a massive 1000-horsepower steam engine.
She was immediately successful – on her maiden voyage across the Atlantic the ss Great Britain easily broke the previous speed record.
Although effectively a prototype, she continued sailing until 1886, and travelled thirty-two times around the world and nearly one million miles at sea.
She was finally abandoned in the Falkland Islands, in 1937, after more than 40 years use as a floating warehouse.
In 1970 an ambitious salvage effort brought her home to Bristol, where today she is conserved in the dry dock where she was originally built.
Our guide, Bob Evans, was amazing. He articulated the history of the ship so very, very well we were totally enthralled. Exploring inside took us back to another era. They slept in tiny bunks – even in first class. One could imagine daily life in the ship with the help of very realistic models. The outside of the ship was fascinating as well and we explored the steel exterior of the ship in the dry dock (hot and humid – the world’s biggest dehumidifier!)
The dinner on board was excellent. A wonderful evening was enjoyed by all.
Bristol can be rightfully proud of it’s most industrious son, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It is good to be reminded of the context of technology.
Bob ended his presentation pointing out the significance of this ship in speeding up communication. In 1850 trans-Atlantic communications were shortened to 3 weeks. The SS Great Britain was the 19th century equivalent of the cellphone!
