A VOYAGE on the Queen Mary was a truly memorable experience and back in the 1930s, with the miseries of the Depression still fresh in people's minds, the style of life on board was all the more remarkable.

The many various ocean going liners of the time each had its own style and character but there was never one to compare with the Queen Mary. Travellers on the great Cunarder were awe-struck with the ship and what they found on board.

National newspaper reports of the time reflected the vivid impression the Queen Mary made on everyone, both in regard to her sheer size and sumptuous elegance and splendour inside.

If the Queen Mary was awe-inspiring from the outside, she was breath-taking on the inside. She was splendid on a grand scale, nothing had been spared — the Queen Mary was truly floating luxury.

Interior designers Arthur Davis and Benjamin Morris searched the world for the finest materials and then the most gifted craftsmen and women were employed to put it all in place.

The sheer elegance of the liner astounded passengers, and even to this day visitors in Long Beach, California gasp as they enter her vast public rooms. Divided into Cabin, Tourist and Third classes the Queen Mary became the rich, extravagant standard by which other liners were compared. She was quite simply second to none Famous artists have contributed pictures and portraits, and never before has such scope been given to craftsmen and designers to exercise initiative and ability in decorations, furniture and upholstery. Rare woods and timbers form an outstanding feature in the mighty vessel's public rooms. No fewer than 50 varieties, for which the world's forests have been searched, were included in the decorative schemes, with many of them have never been seen afloat before.

The drab years of the Depression made people even more fascinated with the opulence of the Wonder Ship. For example the grandeur of the Cabin Class restaurant became a talking point in Southampton as soon as the ship arrived for the first time. The art deco restaurant, about 143 feet long, the width of the entire ship and with spectacular dome in its ceiling, was probably the largest room in any ship afloat. Amongst the pillars, panelling, plants and flowers up to 815 passengers enjoyed some of the finest food of the day while sitting on sycamore chairs upholstered in specially woven tapestries of deep rose and gold. The most famous aspect of the restaurant was the huge map of the North Atlantic.