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The royal barge often transferred the queen and Prince Philip to and from shore from the anchored Britannia. They last cruised up the Thames
River in it during the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012. Photo by Sharon Whitley Larsen

The Sun Lounge--a cozy area decorated with a blue-patterned lands) are in glass display cabinets on the side of the room.
sofa and bamboo furniture purchased by Philip in Hong It takes three hours to set the 56 places for a state banquet
Kong in 1959--was the queen's favorite place onboard. This (each place setting meticulously measured with a ruler), and
is where she would have breakfast and afternoon tea, enjoy- the menus--in French--were given to guests as souvenirs.
ing the special ocean views through the large windows. When the royal family was onboard, food was prepared by
chefs from Buckingham Palace, who were flown out to the
The Verandah Deck was used for cocktail receptions and ship. Today this room is rented out for corporate or private
group photographs taken with the royal couple by the ship's dinners, with food still prepared onboard.
photographer, dubbed Snaps. It was not uncommon for the
queen and Philip to sneak away during a state dinner and When the anteroom, drawing and dining rooms are opened
autograph the photos, which were then framed and handed together, up to 250 guests can be accommodated. The draw-
to the guests upon their after-dinner departure. This deck ing room, with its mix of antique and modern furnishings,
is where Philip enjoyed painting with an easel, where fam- including comfortable chintz sofas and chairs, Persian rugs,
ily members sunbathed or played deck hockey. A collapsible a fireplace and fresh flowers (often flown in from the gardens
canvas pool was set up here for use by the royal children. The of Windsor Castle), was used as the main reception room. It
two-inch thick teak deck was scrubbed daily with sea water; was also where the royal family could relax together, playing
the crew worked in silence and completed the task by 8 a. m. games, reading James Bond novels or singing. The Walmar
If royals strolled by, the crew had to stand quiet and still. baby grand piano, firmly bolted to the deck in case of rough
seas, was often played by guests, including Noel Coward, or
The State Dining Room hosted such dignitaries as Winston by Princesses Margaret and Diana.
Churchill, Rajiv Ghandi, Boris Yeltsin, Nelson Mandela, Mar-
garet Thatcher, Ronald and Nancy Reagan, Bill and Hillary "Overall, the drawing room was to give the impression of a
Clinton. In the early years, it doubled as a cinema or for short country house at sea," explained the ship's interior designer,
church services (which all crew members were invited to at- Sir Hugh Casson.
tend) and for dancing:
The ship was decommissioned at 3:01 p.m. on Decem-
Gifts given to the queen (which include shark's teeth swords, ber 11, 1997 (hence all clocks onboard are stopped at that
daggers, arrows and boomerangs from various South Sea Is- time). It was said to be the only time the queen was seen

Wine Dine & Travel 2016 43