My uniform fits snugly. Hair is brushed, shoes polished – but it’s certainly not the best of starts.

‘Can you tell me where the nearest ladies’ washroom is, please?’ asks an American guest.

‘I’m awfully sorry, but I can’t.’

Thierry Altuna, the French cruise manager (Terry to the Anglophones), takes me to one side as we line up for the Captain’s welcome speech.

‘You have your badge on the wrong way,’ he says. ‘It should always be on the right-hand lapel of your jacket.’

I move to make the switch but the magnet on the inside of my shirt – which holds the badge in place – falls and ends up somewhere near the top of my trousers. Retrieving it will require a partial striptease.

So, badgeless, I stand next to Thierry and listen to the Captain as he thanks all 107 guests for choosing Uniworld at the start of this luxurious Rhone river cruise from Arles, in the south of France, to Lyon, on board the 135-metre S.S. Catherine, named after the actress Catherine Deneuve.

Sportingly, but with understandable apprehension, Uniworld has agreed to let me join the crew for what can best be described as work experience.

There are 51 other crew and we’re an international bunch, including 13 from Bulgaria, 11 from Romania, nine from France and just one from the UK. Two, if you count me.

Thierry then takes over from the Captain, holding the microphone like a seasoned pro – and if there’s one thing I’ve learnt about cruise managers, it’s that they love an audience.

Thierry asks all those from America to raise their hands (43 of them); then wants to know how many are from Britain (27 in total), and so on.

After which, he waxes lyrical for 30 minutes about the various excursions, during which a smartly dressed passenger with a bouffant perm sidles up to me and whispers: ‘He never mentioned Ireland, and there are five of us here, you know.’

‘Thanks for that, I’ll have a word,’ I tell her. This formidable woman turns out to be Eleanor Walsh, a widow from Dublin, who is here with four other widows, three of them in their 80s.

By day two I refer to this gang as the ‘Frightening Five’, because they prove to be the most demanding passengers on the ship. Or as the hotel manager, Alexandru Marinescu, puts it more tactfully: ‘They are the ladies who need special attention.’

First, Mrs Walsh complains to me that the walk from the airport terminal at Marseilles to the coach was far too long in the 42c heat; and, second, that bottles of water should have been given to everyone upon boarding the coach.

I report this back to Alexandru the next morning at the daily heads of department meeting and he jots it down in a notebook.

Also in his book goes a note about a particular guest from the U.S. He’s been seen at the front desk naked from the waist up.

‘He must be asked politely not to do this again,’ says Alexandru – although it’s not entirely clear who will do the asking. Mind you, topless from Texas is a novice compared with Jan and Bush Hanna from Knoxville, Tennessee.

It’s the couple’s 14th Uniworld trip and it comes as they are about to celebrate their 57th wedding anniversary.

As I replenish the Hannas’ glasses with water one evening, I ask them what they make of the political situation in America. ‘Let’s not mess about – we’re for Trump,’ says Mr Hanna.

‘Would you back him if he is running the country from prison?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘Do you not think he’s brought politics into disrepute?’

‘No, sir.’

There’s been one other complaint during the first 24 hours. Apparently, the restaurant staff have not been coming round with wine fast enough.

I’m particularly mindful of this because, this evening, I shall be assisting the sommelier during the Gala Dinner.

But, first, I am on morning duty at the front desk with Adriana, from Croatia. I like her telephone manner and copy every word, just substituting my name for hers.

‘Thank you for calling the front desk. My name is Mark. How can I best assist you today, Mrs Rosenberg?’

I know it’s Mrs Rosenberg because her cabin number flashes up on one of three screens hidden from view. It’s just a matter of matching the name to the number.

She wants one breakfast tea, one yoghurt, one slice of brown toast and one poached egg delivered as soon as possible.

‘Within 30 minutes, Mrs Rosenberg. Thank you so much and have a wonderful day.’

There’s a strict hierarchy on cruise ships. The Captain is the big boss, of course, and on the S.S. Catherine we all answer to Captain Pascal Rech.

He’s been sailing on the Rhone river all his working life and this is his 18th year with Uniworld.

‘Every day is different and I never get bored,’ says Pascal, 55, who met his wife on a river cruise ship when she was working as a pastry chef.

I join him in what’s called ‘the wheelhouse’ (similar to the bridge of an ocean cruise ship) as we leave Avignon and head upstream in the direction of Viviers.

Amid all the technology and flashing lights there’s a sign that reads: ‘Work like a captain, play like a pirate.’

Second most senior in the pecking order is hotel manager Alexandru, 45, who is married with a 15-year-old daughter. He’s in charge of everything on board apart from piloting the ship.

I’m particularly grateful to him because he makes sure that my shift in the kitchen, working with ten chefs and three washer-uppers, with little room to move about, lasts no longer than is absolutely necessary.

I would also struggle to toil for long in the laundry room, where I am tasked with ironing guests’ clothes (bed linen is changed every three days) while simultaneously mopping my brow.

Uniworld has a fleet of 17 ships worldwide. The company is privately owned by the South African Tollman family, which also has in its portfolio the Red Carnation group of hotels.

Guests on this trip are paying anything from £3,000 to £8,000 per person for eight nights, all-inclusive, with as much alcohol as they want at any time of day or night. The long corridors display more than 460 works of art, including original paintings by Richard Scott and signed lithographs by Joan Miro and Pablo Picasso. But the pièce de résistance is the Murano glass horse in the lobby, which was specially commissioned and cost £200,000.

Crew are billeted on the lower deck, two per cabin – unless you are a department head in charge of a team, which warrants a single room – all with their own ensuite shower rooms.

Before the Gala Dinner, the captain asks me to line up at the door to the lounge and greet guests as they file in. I clink glasses with a few of them, which seems a little forward but I notice Pascal does it in a refined sort of way. Follow the leader.

Then I report to the Bulgarian sommelier, Nedko Nikolov, who places a white napkin over my left arm and says I should hold a bottle each of the red and the white wine in my left hand, before pouring with my right.

‘The labels must be clearly visible to the guests and never let the bottle touch the glass,’ he tells me.

All goes well until I reach a table where a group of Australians are seated.

‘Could you tell me the name of the vineyard where the white wine comes from?’ says a burly man who seems to be the leader of this group. ‘I need to get back to you on that,’ I tell him.

‘I think you should know,’ he says.

I seek out Nedko, who comes up with the name, and I return with it to the Aussie.

‘You’ve spilt a couple of drops on the table,’ he says.

The correct response to this would be to apologise and dab the drops with my napkin. I master the dabbing but not the apology.

‘You’re just smarting because the England football team knocked your lot out at the Women’s World Cup,’ I tell him.

It must be a sackable offence to speak to a guest in such a manner, but I move on quickly and there are no repercussions.

A highlight of the cruise is ‘Seventies Night’. Several guests have brought with them flower-power shirts and T-shirts; some of the men wear wigs in the style of John Lennon.

The ‘Frightening Five’ take to the dance floor with gusto – and then Alexandru suggests that I should join them. ‘You have my permission,’ he says. ‘But don’t go mad.’

Working on a cruise ship is hard work. But there’s also a lot of camaraderie and you pass through some wonderful scenery. The level of service from the crew has been exemplary.

Uniworld’s motto is: ‘You deserve the best.’ I can’t honestly claim that I have been the best, but I’ve got away with it – and stood no nonsense from a bellicose Australian, who may or may not report my insolence to the Captain.

Disney has unveiled its latest cruise ship – with renderings revealing dazzling interiors.

Disney Treasure, Disney Cruise Line’s sixth ship, is slated to set sail from Florida on her inaugural cruise in December 2024.

The 4,000-passenger ship, which measures 1,119ft (341m) in length and weighs approximately 144,000 gross tons, is being constructed at Germany’s Meyer Werft shipyard. 

The vessel, a sister ship to Disney Wish, which launched last year, promises to ‘unlock the far-reaching realms of Disney, Pixar, Star Wars and Marvel and embrace dynamic tales from beloved Disney Parks attractions, through captivating and immersive experiences on the high seas’. A statement adds that Disney Treasure will ‘harness a design concept that calls upon the bold and heartwarming stories of beloved Disney characters’. 

First-of-its-kind features on board include a restaurant inspired by the film Coco, an Aladdin-themed ‘grand hall’ and a Zootopia-inspired sweet shop.  

The overriding theme of the ship is ‘adventure’, a decision made to ‘honour Walt Disney’s legendary passion for travel and exploration’.

This begins with the food offering. Unique to the ship is the aforementioned Plaza de Coco, the ‘world’s first theatrical dining experience’ themed around the 2017 hit Disney and Pixar animation Coco.

Detailing what to expect from the immersive restaurant experience, Disney says that the story of lead character Miguel and his family will continue where it left off on screen as they take diners on ‘colourful, music-filled journeys that celebrate family memories and togetherness’. Diners will enjoy ‘festive’ dinners with dishes that offer a ‘modern twist’ on traditional Mexican fare and a line-up of live entertainment. 

Another brand-new addition to the cruise line is Jumbeaux’s Sweets, a candy shop inspired by the ice cream parlour featured in Disney’s ‘Zootopia’.

For the adults on board, new to the cruise line is the Periscope Pub, a bar that’s inspired by the 1954 film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Here, ‘guests will dive into the mythical depths of uncharted oceans amidst the submarine-styled interiors and take a look at the watery world below through an intriguing glass ceiling’. Craft beers and light bites will be served.

Themed cocktails can be sipped at Skipper Society, another brand-new feature of the ship. This bar – complete with campground-style furnishings – is inspired by the Jungle Cruise boat ride attraction at Disney theme parks around the globe.

Many features echo those that are found on sister ship Disney Wish. For instance, Worlds of Marvel, Disney Cruise Line’s immersive Marvel-themed dining experience, which ‘celebrates favourite Avengers characters and stories’, is returning.

As is 1923, a restaurant named for the founding year of Walt Disney Animation Studios. It’s said to be ‘steeped in the glamour of Hollywood’s golden age’.

There are two adults-only eateries on board – Palo Steakhouse, offering ‘authentic Italian dining’, and Enchanté by Chef Arnaud Lallement, said to ‘offer the most luxurious dining experience on board, featuring a gourmet menu crafted by three-Michelin-starred chef Arnaud Lallement’. 

The new ship will also feature ’24-hour room service, speciality treats, [and] gourmet cafes’, a statement reveals.

Beyond dinner and drinks, the vessel is chockablock with family-friendly entertainment venues that are said to immerse guests ‘in worlds both real and imagined, through interactive storytelling, character encounters and Broadway-style theatrical adaptations of inspiring Disney adventures’.

The Aladdin-themed Grand Hall – the ship’s ‘most prominent gathering space’ – will ‘host dedicated shows, character encounters and musical performances’.

Another new addition to the fleet will be Sarabi, a two-storey entertainment hub named after the lioness matriarch from The Lion King. The space, said to ‘evoke the natural beauty and openness of the savanna’, will be the setting for themed games such as ‘Family Time Game Show’ and ‘Villains Game Night’. 

Return features on board, meanwhile, include the Walt Disney Theatre, billed as an ‘opulent show palace that will come alive with original Broadway-style productions developed exclusively for Disney Cruise Line’. Shows include ‘Beauty and the Beast’ and ‘Disney Seas the Adventure’, which are both said to be ‘Disney Cruise Line fan-favourites’. 

Disney hints that there’ll be an all-new theatre show coming to Disney Treasure – but details of the production have yet to be released.

Just as they can aboard Disney Wish, guests can experience the Hero Zone sports venue and the Wonderland and Never Land Cinemas, where first-run films from Disney, Pixar and Marvel are screened. 

The Oceaneer Club – another return feature for kids and teens – is a ‘wonderland of immersive spaces’ that allows children to ‘enter the captivating worlds of [their] favourite Disney stories’.

It features the Marvel Super Hero Academy, where kids can train to become superheroes; Fairytale Hall, a collection of prince and princess-themed activity rooms; Walt Disney Imagineering Lab, where little ones discover the secrets of the ‘creative masterminds’ behind Disney theme parks; Star Wars: Cargo Bay, where children can be immersed in their own Star Wars story; and Mickey and Minnie Captain’s Deck, a maritime-themed playground.

On the upper decks of the ship guests will find an ‘expansive district themed to Mickey and friends’.

Herein lies the AquaMouse ride, a returning feature from Disney Wish. It has a brand-new theme aboard Disney Treasure, telling the story of the ‘Curse of the Golden Egg’, which ‘follows Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse on a zany misadventure into an ancient temple’. 

Describing the ride, Disney says: ‘Powerful jets will propel two-person ride vehicles through 760ft (231m) of winding tubes, offering breathtaking views of the ocean and the ship below.’

There’s also a Toy Story-themed district – just as there is aboard Disney Wish – designed for families with young children that will include a splash zone, wading pool, family waterslide and smoothie bar.

The Quiet Cove adult area is another return feature from Disney Wish. ‘This secluded adults-only district will feature a luxurious infinity pool, poolside bar and chic café,’ says Disney.

For even more rest and relaxation, adults can retreat to the Senses Spa, ‘a tranquil oasis offering indulgent spa and beauty treatments’.

For a workout, the Senses Fitness gym will offer ‘state-of-the-art exercise and wellness facilities’.

After action-packed days, guests will look forward to a good night’s sleep. A statement says the ‘luxurious accommodations aboard Disney Treasure will strike an inviting balance between modern design and nostalgic charm with a fresh, natural colour scheme and custom artwork that will entice guests to peer beyond their staterooms into fantastical worlds from heartwarming Disney adventures’.

It’s said that most of the ship’s 1,256 staterooms will offer an ocean view, and 70 per cent will feature a verandah space.

There are four different styles of ‘royal’ suites on board that are designed to ‘pay tribute to the faithful feline companions of daring Disney characters’. For instance, the Bagheera Royal Suites are inspired by the panther from The Jungle Book and the lush forests he calls home. 

The Rajah Royal Suites, meanwhile, are themed to Princess Jasmine’s protective tiger who dwells in the royal palace of Agrabah in Aladdin.

Those who splash out on the concierge experience will stay in ‘indulgent’ suites with interiors inspired by the ‘majestic grasslands Simba calls home in The Lion King’. They’ll also enjoy access to ‘an exclusive concierge lounge with a private sun deck that serves as the perfect place to relax, sip a cocktail and enjoy a variety of food and beverages throughout the day’.

Disney Treasure will embark on a seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruise from Port Canaveral, Florida, on December 21, 2024, followed by an inaugural season of itineraries to the Eastern and Western Caribbean. Disney Cruise Line Castaway Club members can book a cruise from September 12, 2023, while bookings will open to all guests on September 20, 2023. For more information visit disneycruise.com.

As Steffan the Welsh tenor belts out Con Te Partiro (Time To Say Goodbye), Crystal Serenity eases out of Venice. There are cheers on the pool deck, anticipation in the air.

Painters are putting finishing touches around the stern, the hardwood planks of the promenade deck are being resealed and buffed, and on the putting green below me, the synthetic turf receives a last vacuuming.

This is a relaunch in every sense of the word. Eighteen months ago, the Crystal company’s Chinese owners went bust. Their ships were impounded in the Bahamas over unpaid bills and U.S. offices shut down.

Many believed that was the end of Crystal, until the bespoke tour operator Abercrombie & Kent pulled its name and ships back from the brink.

I’m on board for Serenity’s first outing since a comprehensive rebuild and in the interests of full disclosure, I’ve never been on a cruise before, being put off by the ‘floating care home’ jibes plus the prospect of being hemmed in with a lot of people I don’t know. But from the moment our Serenity butler Roland welcomes us to our verandah suite with an offer of champagne and canapes, I’m up for a rethink.

Founded in 1988, Crystal has always been at the top end of cruising, aspiring to the tag of ‘ultra-luxury’.

It has also had a remarkably loyal clientele, with 60 per cent of all passengers being returnees. The new owners hope to continue that tradition and build on what they describe as the ‘Crystal family’.

Launched by Julie Andrews in 2003, Serenity has been extensively remodelled and upgraded, with the overall capacity down from 1,040 passengers to 740.

This gives the common areas, lounges and restaurants a feeling of space and queues are non-existent. There’s a lot of competition at the top end of cruising. Our Sapphire verandah suite comes in at about £800 per person per night, with stops in Venice, Dubrovnik, Naples, Livorno and Marseilles.

Even so, many customers take two or three trips a year. One wealthy American — ‘Mama Lee’ Wachtstetter — lived on this ship for a decade, paying about £200,000 a year at current prices.

She wrote a book about the experience entitled: I May Be Homeless, But You Should See My Yacht.

Though my wife Isabel and I have nothing to compare this cruise with, everyone around us seems to be an expert. For Stewart Chiron, from Los Angeles, who styles himself The Cruise Guy in an influential U.S. blog, this is his 312th cruise. It says something that even he’s impressed. It’s not difficult to see why.

The accommodation is bright and subtle, with fine attention to detail. The beds, bathroom, shower and furnishings are all top quality and the verandah itself a perfect place to linger, with a book or a cocktail feeling the gentle roll of the Adriatic.

Of the three restaurants, my favourite is the Waterside, which provides traditional fine dining. There is also the Japanese-Peruvian Umi Uma with a menu ‘curated’ and cooked by Nobu chefs and Osteria d’Ovidio specialising in regional Italian dishes. On top of that there are less formal bistro, cafe and grill options — 11 eateries in total. And if you overdo it, there’s a well-equipped spa and gym to get your waistline back into some sort of shape.

Sitting in the ship’s cosy Palm Court, sipping a Manhattan to the crooning of a pretty decent Sinatra tribute act is especially enjoyable. With its low lights and deco-ish fittings, there are echoes of the cabaret room at New York’s Algonquin Hotel.

Excursions are mixed. The highlight is a grand evening in Naples listening to four fabulous Italian sopranos perform a medley of classical and modern standards in the courtyard of a medieval castle within sight of Mount Vesuvius.

On the coach there, our guide Antonia explains that Napoli (don’t call it Naples!) is without question the best and most colourful region of Italy.

‘We don’t mind the other Italians,’ she says magnanimously. ‘Except the Venetians, who are the enemy. They say we are lazy, don’t pay our taxes and only live for having a good time. We say, what’s wrong with that?’

Slightly less impressive is a desultory trip around old Dubrovnik, with an almost unintelligible guide and an over-long outing to a small Tuscan farm outside Livorno.

Of course, as Andrea, a travel writer from Nashville, puts it: ‘For most people, the ship is the destination.’ It’s interesting how easily even the most ardent class warrior can be seduced by a little luxury.

Think Angela Rayner sipping the bubbly at Glyndebourne or John Prescott’s Dorneywood croquet parties. My wife is a prime example. Isabel is proud of her working-class Mancunian roots and the fact her maternal grandad died while campaigning for Labour in the 1920s.

But give her a butler, a spoonful of caviar and glass of good champagne and it’s amazing how effortlessly she adapts to the good life.

It’s the world’s biggest cruise ship and tickets are selling by the boatload.

Royal Caribbean has revealed that Icon of the Seas has been the fastest-selling ship in a maiden season in the cruise line’s history, with only limited spaces available for its debut Caribbean voyage in January 2024, which will depart from Miami.

And with CEO Michael Bayley telling investors this year that Icon of the Seas – which has a capacity for 7,600 guests – is the ‘best-selling product in the history of the business’, the mood at Royal Caribbean is undoubtedly buoyant.

Royal Caribbean’s floating city has been filmed out on the open water for the first time as she underwent sea trials ahead of her public launch.

Icon of the Seas sailed hundreds of miles on the open sea before returning to the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland, where she’s currently under construction.

Incredible video footage shows the colossal vessel, which is 1,198ft (365m) long and weighs 250,800 gross tonnes, gliding through the water, dwarfing the tug boats deployed to help steer her.

The camera also spins around the multi-coloured slides on the upper deck of the vessel. They are among some of the standout features on board, which will also include the first suspended infinity pool at sea and a three-storey family suite.

A third scene offers a close-up of the ship’s livery, while other clips show workers testing the ship’s key technical areas.

Carrying out the sea trials involved more than 2,000 specialists, four 37 to 67-tonne tugboats and more than 350 hours of work, Royal Caribbean reveals.

It notes that during the trials, preliminary tests were carried out on everything from the main engines and the hull to the ship’s brake system, steering and noise levels.

However, it says that Icon of the Seas passed its first sea trials’ with flying colours’, with its second sea trial due to take place later this year.

The latest construction update for the ship is that the ‘crew neighbourhood’ is being built. A space spread over four decks, it’s designed to be a ‘home away from home’ for the 2,350 crew members on board.

Icon of the Seas is taking the title of the world’s biggest cruise ship from another Royal Caribbean vessel, Wonder of the Seas, which is slightly smaller at 1,187ft (362m) long and a weight of 236,857 gross tonnes.

The ship’s three-storey family suite comes complete with its own white picket fence and mailbox. Other room options for guests include the ‘Surfside Family Suite’, with alcoves for kids ‘tucked away from the adults’, ‘Sunset Corner Suites’ and ‘Panoramic Ocean View’ quarters.

Once they’re out of bed, guests will find so many water features they may have trouble distinguishing the boat from the ocean.

For starters, Icon of the Seas will feature the largest waterpark at sea – called ‘Category 6’ – containing six ‘record-breaking’ slides: ‘Pressure Drop’ and its 66-degree incline – ‘the industry’s first open free-fall slide’; the 46ft- (14m) tall ‘Frightening Bolt’, the tallest drop slide at sea; ‘Storm Surge’ and ‘Hurricane Hunter’, the first family raft slides at sea – and ‘Storm Chasers’, which Royal Caribbean claims is ‘cruising’s first mat-racing duo’.

The waterpark will be on Thrill Island, which Royal Caribbean trumpets as a ‘lost island adventure where vacationers can test their limits and scale new heights’.

Icon of the Seas will also debut the line’s first swim-up bar at sea – called ‘Swim & Tonic’ – and ‘Royal Bay Pool’, the ‘largest pool at sea’. Both of these features will be on ‘Chill Island’.

The suspended infinity pool, meanwhile, will be in an area called The Hideaway and surrounded by a multi-level sun terrace with whirlpools.

Once guests have dried off they’re sure to be lured to ‘AquaDome’, a ‘transformational place unlike any other’ that’s perched at the top of the ship.

Royal Caribbean describes it as a ‘tranquil oasis by day’, where guests can enjoy a bite or drink while soaking up wraparound ocean views and gazing at an ‘awe-inspiring waterfall’.

By night, we’re told, the venue becomes ‘a vibrant place that’s great for a night out, complete with restaurants, bars and aqua shows’.

The vessel will sail seven-night Caribbean voyages throughout 2024. And in 2025? Another Icon-class ship will be launching. Watch this space.

Royal Caribbean said: ‘Since we revealed Icon of the Seas in October 2022, we have seen an incredible reaction. This interest contributed to the single largest bookings day and highest volume booking week in Royal Caribbean’s 54-year history when we opened Icon for sale. The ship has continued to be one of the strongest preforming in our fleet with sailings across its maiden season sold out. In fact, we have seen the one-of-a-kind Ultimate Family Townhouse sold across all of 2023.

‘With a more than 50-year history in building incredible ships and delivering memorable vacations to millions of guests, we are excited to officially welcome it to the fleet in January 2024.’

Visit royalcaribbean.com for more information.

The passengers onboard Titan include British billionaire adventurer Hamish Harding and OceanGate’s chief executive and founder Stockton Rush. 

Sources told GB News that two wives of the people on the sub are on a ship desperately waiting for their loved ones. 

Above the surface of the wreck five vessels remain on standby helping the frantic search efforts – with four more from the US Coast Guard on their way including one filled with medical personnel, according to marine tracking data.

In a heartbreaking plea today, one of Mr Harding’s close friends Jannicke Mikkelsen warned ‘we are losing time’.

The panicked friend told BBC Radio 4’s Today programmer this morning: ‘I’m nervous. I’m sick to my stomach with nerves. I’m terrified, I’m anxious. I’m not sleeping at the moment. I’m just hoping for good news. Every single second, every single minute feels like hours.’

Colonel Terry Virts, another friend who dubbed Mr Harding ‘the quintessential British explorer’, also stressed that ‘the clock is ticking’ to find the five onboard.

Meanwhile retired British navy rear admiral Chris Parry’ told LBC that hopes of finding the missing deep-sea vessel without an ’emitting signal’ will be ‘impossible’ to find in the timescale. 

Admiral Parry said: ‘I’m afraid the odds are vanishingly small. Obviously, we want to remain hopeful and optimistic but there are two problems here – one is actually finding the thing and secondly is how on earth are you going to get it off the seabed.

‘It’s never been done before and I don’t think anybody’s got any ideas about how to do it at the moment.’ 

Scientist Dr Michael Guillen, who ‘almost died’ when visiting the Titanic wreck in 2000, said that the trapped crew could be using cups to bang on the side of the sub to communicate.

He told Good Morning Britain: ‘If their hydrophone failed so early in the mission, less than two hours down which means they never made it to the bottom, the very least they could take their cups and bang it on the side of the sub.

‘That’s what I would do if I were down there and I am sure that’s what the pilot will be telling everybody.

‘They have five people, they can make quite a racket by just banging on the side as sound communicates extremely well in water.’

Dr Guillen added that when he heard the news it gave him ‘great hope that perhaps their still alive’.

Another friend of the British billionaire, who pulled out of the doomed voyage after becoming concerned about the quality of the technology and materials used in the vessel, said the ‘banging sounds’ is the kind of thing his missing friend would do. 

Chris Brown, 61, who is also an explorer, told BBC Breakfast: ‘That is just the sort of thing I would have expected Hamish to come up with.’

‘There’s always hope. As an explorer, you never give up anyway,’ he added.

The bangs heard at 30 minute intervals are likely coming from those trapped within the submarine intensely banging on the vessel’s hull so that is could be picked up by a sonar.

Sonobuoys within the ocean listen to sounds before transmitting the sonar sound energy – this most commonly referred to as a ‘ping’ that notifies the buoys at the surface. 

Rear Admiral John Mauger, who is helping coordinate the search, said yesterday the submarine it could be stuck.

‘We don’t have equipment onsite that can do a survey of the bottom,’ he said.

‘There is a lot of debris, so locating it will be difficult. Right now, we’re focused on trying to locate it.’

Titan stopped transmitting signals on Sunday. It is supposed to send a sonar ‘ping’ (radar and GPS not functioning underwater) to mothership Polar Prince every 15 minutes, but the last one was at 9.45am on Sunday – an hour and 45 minutes into the dive as it was floating right above the Titanic.

Speaking of the conditions in the depths of the ocean, Admiral Parry added: ‘It’s utterly dark down there, and you have also got a lot of mud and other stuff getting swept up. You can only see about 20 feet in front of you with searchlights. There are very strong ocean currents which are pushing you along.’

Colonel Virts, a former commander of the International Space Station, told the Today programme he believes if the group ‘can be rescued they will be because of the amount of effort being put in’.

He added: ‘There in a tough situation and the clock is ticking. According to the company and submarines spec, by Thursday they will be out of oxygen.

‘So hopefully we get them up soon as the clock is ticking.’ 

‘The water is very deep – two miles plus. It’s like a visit to another planet. It is a sunless, cold environment and high pressure.’

Last night, search equipment was seen being loaded onto the Horizon Arctic to help with the frantic search, hours after the Canadian aircraft first detected the noises.

The bangs within the ocean were occurring at 30-minute intervals, in the area where the capsule vanished. It was first noted in an email exchange with the US Department of Homeland security – seen by Rolling Stone – but was later confirmed Coast Guard officials.

They said underwater noises were heard by a plane and operations were ‘relocated’ to determine the origin. As of early Wednesday, they have ‘yielded negative results’.

The memo, while did not reveal the timing or cause of the noises, read: ‘CC Halifax launched a P8, Poseidon, which has underwater detection capabilities from the air,’ the DHS memo read, ‘reported a contact in a position close to the distress position. 

‘The P8 heard banging sounds in the area every 30 minutes. Four hours later additional sonar was deployed and banging was still heard.’

Rescue crews will now analyse the data further to help form a search plan into the deep Atlantic Ocean. 

As the search continues, OceanGate has continued to come under fire, with Admiral Parry slamming the company this morning claiming the submarine trip was ‘fundamentally dangerous’ and had ‘no back-up plan’. 

‘Why on earth you would go in a dodgy piece of technology where you actually have to sign away any right to sue the company for emotional damage, injury or death is beyond me’, he added.

‘It is fundamentally dangerous, there was no back-up plan, it’s experimental and I’m afraid to say there’s an element of hubris if you want to go down and do that.’ 

But a businessman who has previously made the deep-sea voyage to the wreck of the Titanic said he had confidence in the crews, adding ‘there’s a very good chance they will be found.’

Oisin Fanning told the BBC: ‘The two guys on the sub currently, so Paul and Stockton, are both consummate professionals.

‘I mean, to be honest, if I was in trouble, I’d want to be on a sub with them.’ 

Richard Garriot de Cayeux, President of The Explorers Club, confirmed in a Tuesday night social media post that ‘there is cause for hope.’

He said in a statement: ‘We have much greater confidence that 1) There is cause for hope, based on data from the field – we understand that likely signs of life have been detected at the site.’ 

Garriot de Cayeux added The Explorers Club are confident the U.S. Coast Guard ‘precisely understand the experienced personnel and tech we can deeply’ and ‘believe they are doing everything possible with all resources they have’.

One of the five men on the ship, Harding, is a founding member of the Board of Trustees for the Explorers Club. 

The group said they have a direct lines to Congress, The Coast Guard, Air Force and Nave and the White House. 

A DHS announcement also stated that ‘the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre is working to find an underwater remote-operated vehicle through partner organizations to possibly assist.’ 

A massive search operation remains underway to find the missing OceanGate submersible, the Titan, after it lost contact with the mothership during its descent to the shipwreck Sunday morning. 

If the mini-sub lost power, with no working propellers, lights or heating, its five passengers will be in total darkness in temperatures of around 3C (37F) as the doomed craft rolls along the seabed.

Oceanographer and Titanic expert David Gallo said: ‘Where is it? Is it on the bottom, is it floating, is it mid-water? That is something that has not been determined yet. 

‘The water is very deep – two miles plus. It’s like a visit to another planet. It is a sunless, cold environment and high pressure.’

For some reason, OceanGate Expeditions, the company that runs the tours of the Titanic, took eight hours to call the coastguard Sunday. It was reported to the US Coastguard at 5.40pm, and Canada’s Coastguard was alerted even later, at 9.13pm.

The vessel’s oxygen supply was estimated at 96 hours, which gives rescue teams until Thursday morning to find the vessel.

As families wait in agony for news, OceanGate, who started dives to the Titanic in 2021, is facing questions after it emerged the Titan suffered electrical damage and had to be rebuilt for not being able to withstand the ocean before it vanished.

The tourist company responsible for the missing submersible also took eight hours to report it to the Coast Guard after it lost contact an hour and 45 minutes into its descent on Sunday, the DailyMail.com revealed yesterday.

By yesterday, a fleet of US and Canadian rescue ships and aircraft had swarmed to the scene, along with a growing number of private vessels.

Speaking at search headquarters in Boston, Captain Jamie Frederick of the US Coastguard announced: ‘Those search efforts have not yielded any results.’ 

But last night some of the commercial vessels with specialist underwater drones were sending them down. Frederick offered his ‘most heartfelt thoughts and prayers’ to the lost crew and their loved ones, and pledged they were doing ‘everything possible’. But he admitted the rescuers were entering the final hours.

When he was asked ‘Even with that amount of time left, if you were to find the submersible at this moment, would that give you enough time to save those five people on board?’ he replied: ‘I don’t know the answer to that question. All I know is we will do everything within our power to effect a rescue.’

The Titanic wreckage lies at 12,500ft, and Titan was one of the only craft in the world capable of reaching it. Even nuclear submarines cannot safely go that deep. Deep water dive specialists are assisting coastguards in the ‘unique and challenging’ operation, said Frederick.

Standing on a dockside, he told reporters: ‘Getting salvage equipment on scene is a top priority. It is very heavy equipment, it is very complex, but the best experts are on scene. If the sub is located, the experts will look at the best course of action for recovering the sub.’

Among the equipment is a decompression chamber for the five passengers should they be brought to the surface.

Mr Brown, also a thrill seeker who intended to join Harding on the missing Titanic sub pulled out of the dive because he thought OceanGate was ‘cutting too many corners’, it has emerged.

He paid the deposit to go on the doomed voyage but said he changed his mind after becoming concerned by the quality of technology and materials used in the vessel, The Sun reported Tuesday night. 

Among his concerns were OceanGate’s use of ‘old scaffolding poles’ for the ballast and the fact that its controls were ‘based on computer game-style controllers’.

He told the newspaper that despite being ‘one of the first people to sign up for this trip’, he ultimately decided the ‘risks were too high’.

Brown added he felt ‘really upset about Hamish’, who is among the five passengers on the submersible, called the Titan, that are currently missing.

Brown and Harding signed up for the voyage after sharing a ‘few beers’ while holidaying on Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island.

The pair paid the 10 percent deposit for the trip, which has since more than doubled in price, while the Titan was still being developed, he claimed.

But Brown alleged that in the years that followed, he learned OceanGate had ‘missed key targets’ when depth-testing the submersible.

The multi-millionaire digital marketing tycoon found it concerning that the vessel was controlled by a modified Playstation controller.

He also is understood to have been worried by the technical issues and delays throughout the development process.

He told The Sun: ‘I found out they used old scaffolding poles for the sub’s ballast.

‘If you’re trying to build your own submarine you could probably use old scaffold poles. But this was a commercial craft.’

Brown, who said he is ‘not one to shy away from risk’, eventually emailed OceanGate and asked for a refund.

He is worried for his friend but said Harding is not the panicking type. He believes the billionaire is likely keeping ‘extremely calm’ and ‘processing plans, schemes and ideas through his enormous brain’.

Brown said Harding will be ‘giving hope’ to the other passengers.

A US Navy veteran warned of the chilling health effects of being trapped in a submarine just weeks before the Titanic tourism sub went missing, DailyMail.com can reveal.

In a scientific paper published in a medical journal last month, Dr. Dale Molé, the former director of undersea medicine and radiation health for the US Navy, detailed the ‘hostile’ environment onboard commercial submersibles, with passengers facing depleting oxygen supplies, toxic carbon dioxide levels and plummeting temperatures.

The Titan vessel that is still missing will have a carbon dioxide scrubber on board to remove excess toxic gas that builds up when passengers exhale in the confined space, but in most craft, those have a limited capacity.

A scrubbing system removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, making the air safe to breathe. 

Speaking to DailyMail.com Tuesday, Molé said it is ‘very much’ a race against time to rescue the passengers, if they are not already dead from a ‘catastrophic rupture of the pressure vessel.’

He added: ‘Anytime humans are confined in an airtight space, most people may think of oxygen, but carbon dioxide is actually a bigger concern.

‘In a submersible, they’ll have some system of scrubbing carbon dioxide. If they lost battery power, then that system would no longer work.’

There is also a risk of hypothermia due to the low temperatures in the depths of the ocean, as well as hyperventilation induced by panic attacks, which can use up more valuable oxygen. 

It has also emerged that a Florida couple sued the Rush, CEO of the Titanic tourism company OceanGate Expeditions, accusing him of misleading them about their trip to visit the wreck and refusing to refund their $210,258 when they complained.

Marc and Sharon Hagle, who made their fortune in commercial real estate, are well known for their philanthropy and their adventurous spirit. In March 2022, they were on the fourth Blue Origin passenger space flight and became the first married couple to become space tourists.

In 2016, while on a trip to the South Pole, they decided their next adventure would be underwater. In 2017 they were announced as among the first customers for OceanGate, which was founded in 2009 by Seattle-born aviator and businessman Stockton Rush, now 61.

But they never got to take their trip, and in February this year sued Rush, accusing him of selling the adventure knowing it was not on schedule, and refusing to refund their cash. 

Pictured: Hurtigruten’s first-ever zero-emissions cruise ship, set to launch in 2030 with ‘AI manoeuvring’ and amazing 164ft-tall retractable sails covered in solar panels

By Ailbhe Macmahon For Mailonline

Updated: 09:10 EDT, 7 June 2023

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To most cruisegoers, what goes on below deck is a mystery – but one cruise ship musician is lifting the veil on the experience.

Jack Nolan, a performer on Virgin Voyages’ Valiant Lady, is amassing an impressive TikTok following by sharing eye-opening videos about his life at sea, doing what he believes is ‘one of the best jobs in the world’. 

Taking his audience behind the scenes on the ship, the 32-year-old’s videos show him meeting Virgin Voyages’ boss Richard Branson, relaxing in his ‘teeny tiny’ windowless cabin and experiencing dramatic weather on a transatlantic crossing, with footage showing a huge waterspout whirling beside the vessel.

Speaking to MailOnline Travel, the British singer and musician reveals he has been working on cruise ships for the past seven years and was pleasantly surprised by ‘how fun they can be if you’re an outgoing person’.

In one video, the musician – who has garnered more than 54,000 TikTok followers to date – reveals how the ship’s performers rehearse for two weeks in a studio in Orlando before boarding the ship for a six-month season.

‘By far the best part is they put you up in a really sweet hotel,’ Jack says, filming the hotel’s hot tub and basketball courts. He adds: ‘It’s all paid for by the company. They even gave us a car to get around in.’

The performer says that the crew get ‘so much’ downtime in Orlando when they’re not rehearsing, giving them the opportunity to explore the city and check out its bars and restaurants.

On board Valiant Lady, Jack gives a tour of his single cabin, noting: ‘When you live in a tiny cabin with no porthole, there’s no natural sunlight, obviously, and it can really mess with your head if you spend too much time in there… it’s so small that I can touch almost every wall at the same time.’

He has a nifty trick for making the most of the space, using magnetic hooks – which stick when they’re thrown at the cabin’s metal walls – to hold up his belongings.

Jack also turns the camera on some of the areas where the crew spend their downtime, capturing the crew dining area and buffet, the laundry room and the crew gym, which is open twenty-four-seven and is free to use. ‘If you’ve tried lifting heavy weights on a moving ship, that part is not fun,’ he remarks.

The ‘secret’ sunbathing spot on the top deck that’s reserved for the crew is also captured, with Jack noting: ‘You can see most of the ship and you [get] some great views around you.’

The crew’s barber, Shandy, is shown cutting Jack’s hair in the crew stairwell. Jack also shows how the crew receive Amazon packages, getting them delivered to the ship’s home port so they can pick them up each weekend. ‘You can order pretty much whatever you want,’ he says. One of his recent purchases was a set of darts so he could play rounds of darts with his crewmates. 

The TikToker was surprised to see billionaire Branson mingling with the crew when he boarded the 2,770-passenger ship, which made its maiden voyage last year. He says in a video: ‘I’ve heard about his philosophies on “employees come first” but I was not expecting that one day he’d walk into the crew areas and into the crew mess. I felt lucky enough to get a two-second video selfie with him.’

Other clips capture the ‘eight straight rocky sea days’ of a transatlantic journey aboard Valiant Lady. Jack films ‘the wreckage’ left in the wake of the waterspout – tornadoes that travel over water – as it passed over the ship, leaving sun loungers upturned across the pool deck. ‘No one was injured,’ Jack notes. 

Jack breaks down how he spends his time at sea, explaining that as a musician, he only performs at night, so his days are free to disembark the ship and go exploring. 

One clip shows him enjoying Virgin Voyages’ privately owned beach club in the Bahamas while another captures him swimming in the sea in the South of France. ‘We’re really lucky to have that time off in port,’ he says, adding: ‘I feel very fortunate that as a musician on board, the hours are very favourable.’

Jack, who works on a cruise ship for 10 months of the year, reveals there’s a major financial incentive to working on a cruise ship – he ‘can easily save thousands each month because two of life’s biggest outgoings – rent and food – are totally free’. 

Other top perks, he reveals, include travel opportunities and the chance to meet people from all over the world. On top of that, as a musician, ‘getting to play music every day is a joy’, Jack admits. 

Reflecting on the low points to working in the cruising industry, he remarks: ‘The food on ships is of course free but can also be quite repetitive and boring.’ 

Another drawback is the Wi-Fi, which can be ‘slow’, though Jack notes that since Virgin Voyages installed Elon Musk’s Starlink, ‘it’s a little faster than it was’.

One of the most unusual things about his job, he reveals, is waking up in a new place each day. He also says that living where you work can take adjusting to. He says: ‘You’ll see managers in suits at work in the day but at night chilling with a beer at crew bar with everyone else.’

Being away at sea for such extended periods of time, there are lots of things that Jack misses, including his girlfriend, ‘good Wi-Fi’, his dog, home-cooked food and his family. He notes that he also misses ‘the freedom of not having to be back on board [the ship] at a specific time’.

And the reaction to his videos? It’s been ‘mostly positive’, Jack reveals, adding: ‘Many people [are] curious and interested about it… also many [have been] asking how to get a job on a ship!’

For more videos from Jack, follow him on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.