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Search for people shown in nostalgic Cunard photos

PA Media A couple lean in for a kiss at the docks in 1982PA Media
A couple bidding farewell before the 1982 Falklands War are among the people being sought

Celebrated cruise liner company Cunard is hoping to track down people depicted in photos from years gone by for a nostalgic photo exhibition to celebrate 185 years of ocean travel.

To mark its anniversary, the luxury shipping firm has collected images from former guests, workers and newspaper archives and wants to uncover some of the stories behind them.

One of the photographs, which will go on display in the Sea of Glamour exhibition in Liverpool in May, shows a couple leaning in for a kiss as British troops bid farewell before leaving Southampton on the QE2 during the Falklands War in 1982.

The liner was converted into a troop ship at the time.

Organisers also hope to identify a team of cleaners on board the QE2 in 1975.

PA Media Dozens of women in their cleaning dresses pose with a vacuum cleaner on the deck of Queen Elizabeth 2 in 1975PA Media
Cleaners wearing matching uniforms posed on the deck of the QE2 for a newspaper article

The 26 women, in matching uniforms, posed on the deck for the newspaper photo, with the caption revealing they were known as "cyclic cleaners" because of the constant circle of work in keeping the ship clean.

It named one of them as Linda McAndrew, from Bournemouth, Dorset, who would help clean seven spiral staircases - each 13 storeys high.

In the piece, she said: "Often I'm cleaning one side and they're already dropping sweet papers and cigarette ash on the side I've just cleaned."

The team behind the exhibition also want to track David Lawrence, shown in a picture from 1982 standing on the QE2's lifeboat, which he bought at auction and kept in the drive of his semi-detached home in the village of Llanharry, outside Cardiff.

PA Media David Lawrence standing on a QE2 lifeboat outside his homePA Media
David Lawrence standing on a QE2 lifeboat outside his home in a photo from 1982

A group of young men shown in 1967 playing football beneath the hull of the QE2 at the Clydebank shipyard, near Glasgow - where it was built - are also featured in the exhibition.

If they are tracked down, their stories could be included in the display.

PA Media A group of men play football on the dockyard near the hull of a cruise ship being builtPA Media
A group of men are pictured playing football on the dockyard near the hull of a cruise ship being built

Lee Powell, vice president of brand and product at Cunard, said they had been "overwhelmed by the incredible response to our call for photos".

"Among the wonderful submissions, these particular images truly stood out to us, capturing some of the behind-the-scenes moments of the curation of our ships and the remarkable people who have helped shape Cunard's rich history," he said.

"We would love to uncover the stories behind these photographs and we're hoping the public can help us reconnect with the people featured so their stories can become a memorable part of our Sea of Glamour exhibition."

Organisers appealed for anyone with relevant information to send details to [email protected].

The Sea of Glamour exhibition will be curated by photographer Mary McCartney, daughter of Beatles star Sir Paul McCartney, and will launch at the Liver Building on 28 May before sailing around the world on the Cunard fleet.

PA Media The many-storied Queen Anne cruise ship at a Liverpool dock surrounded by crowds at a celebration with multi-coloured confetti in the air PA Media
Crowds attend the naming ceremony at Liverpool Pier Head for Cunard's Queen Anne in 2024

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