Harland & Wolff got bad news the other day according to various news reports. It was a preferred bidder for a Falkland Island contract to redevelop Port Stanley. However the Falkland Islands government announced that after having discussions with the company, they have decided to end the contract. It is a blow to the beleaguered company that was unable to get British government to guarantee a loan. They have received a short term loan but its ability to fulfill a UK Royal Navy contract could be in jeopardy. Additionally the company has stopped a ferry service it was running as well.

Sources

Taylor, G. (2024b, August 6). Harland & Wolff crisis deepens: Titanic shipbuilder loses £120m Falkland Islands port contract. CityAM. https://www.cityam.com/harland-wolff-crisis-deepens-titanic-shipbuilder-loses-120m-falkland-islands-port-contract/

Oliver, M. (2024b, August 1). Harland & Wolff abandons ferry service amid scramble to survive. The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2024/08/01/harland-wolff-abandons-ferry-service-in-scramble-to-survive/

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During the recent Titanic expedition, a plaque honoring Paul-Henri Nargeolet was placed at the wreck site. Nargeolet was aboard the submersible Titan that imploded last year taking the lives of everyone aboard. Nargeolet was a well known and respected deep sea explorer and Titanic expert. RMS Titanic issued a statement about the plaque:

At the heart of #TITANICExpedition2024 is our beloved colleague and friend PH Nargeolet. “His memory has been etched into the DNA of this Expedition from the start. PH was intended to be on board, but his life was tragically cut short last summer. “

Source

Guinness, E. (2024b, August 6). Titan submersible victim honoured with plaque at Titanic wreck site. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/titan-submersible-titanic-oceangate-plaque-b2591272.html

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Rory Golden, who was on the support ship for the Titan submersible, has been giving interviews about that tragic day. He relates their fear and the false hope they would be found alive. They had an image in their minds that they were trapped down there running out of oxygen, but it was a false hope.

“We had this image in our heads of them being down there, running out of oxygen in the freezing cold, getting terribly frightened and scared,” Golden told BBC News

And when the remains were found, they all cried as they had formed a bond with all those who had been aboard that submersible. They had gotten to know them on the ship during the week.

Source

Sainato, M. (2024, August 1). Witness to Titan sub disaster tells of rescue effort: ‘We lived in false hope.’ The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/aug/01/titan-submersible-witness-rescue-effort-oceangate

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It looks like Dolly Parton, or rather her company, has bought the Titanic properties of John Joslyn, which includes the well known Titanic Pigeon Forge Museum in Tennessee. Apparently the deal was inked a little while back. So now Parton can include Titanic in her entertainment repertoire.  No one is commenting on any impending changes to either this one or its sister location in Branson, Missouri. With Dolly now part of it, you can bet she will find time to visit.

Source

Morgan-Rumsey, C. (2024, August 1). Pigeon Forge’s Titanic Museum purchased by Dolly’s Stampede parent company. https://www.wvlt.tv. https://www.wvlt.tv/2024/08/01/pigeon-forges-titanic-museum-purchased-by-dollys-stampede-parent-company/

 

Suggested Titanic Reading

Behe, G. (2012). On board RMS Titanic: Memories of the Maiden Voyage. The History Press.

Brewster, H. (2013). Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic’s First-Class Passengers and Their World. National Geographic Books.

Rossignol, K. (2012). Titanic 1912: The Original News Reporting of the Sinking of the Titanic. Createspace Independent Publishing Platform.

Wilson, A. (2012). Shadow of the Titanic: The Extraordinary Stories of Those Who Survived. Simon and Schuster.

 

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