One of the most successful films of 1997 was Titanic, which told the story of the ill-fated vessel which sank en route to New York when it struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic. Surprisingly, given the tragedy which befell the Titanic, the film stimulated considerable interest in transatlantic crossings by ocean liner – voyages which were available only with Cunard Line on the ageing Queen Elizabeth 2. Cunard sensed an opportunity to revive the glamorous traditions of transatlantic sailings, and commissioned the naval architect, Stephen Payne, to design a brand new ship, which was expected to be the most magnificent ocean liner ever constructed. The result was the Queen Mary 2, on which this author recently had the opportunity to sail, in order to evaluate the extent to which Payne succeeded in his mission.