Famous Ships and Boats

In history, movies, books, on exhibit

War ships, ship tragedies, steam ships, yachts, and more

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British/English Ships in Movies, TV, and Books

Aeolus — British cruise ship; movie set creation
A mysterious ship in the British movie Triangle. The movie scenes include the exterior of the cruise liner which the director insisted on constructing to avoid shooting everything with green screens LAUNCHED: 2009, movie release → FATE: Inconclusive.

Amethyst, HMS — British modified Black Swan class sloop
Subject of the 1957 movie Yangtse Incident, an actual event in April of 1949 during the Chinese Civil War. In the movie, she played herself. During World War II, she was deployed mostly on anti-submarine patrols and escort duties. LAUNCHED: 1943, May 18 → FATE: Scrapped January 19, 1957.

Bounty, HMS — English collier, three-mast
Mutiny aboard ship, April 28, 1789, led by Fletcher Christian against Captain William Bligh. Its mission was to pick up breadfruit plants from Tahiti and transport them to the West Indies. The mutiny was dramatized in several books and movies. LAUNCHED: 1784 → FATE: Was burned by the mutineers on January 23, 1790.

Compass Rose — British Flower-class corvette
The ship portrayed in the movie The Cruel Sea, about the conditions in which the Battle of the Atlantic was fought between the Royal Navy and Germany's U-boats. The movie ship was portrayed by the Flower-class corvette HMS Coreopsis. LAUNCHED: 1953 → FATE: Inconclusive.

Etoile du Roy — British frigate, sixth-rate
Stand-in for several different ships for the British TV series Horatio Hornblower, 1998-2003. The three-masted frigate was built specifically to represent a generic Nelson-age warship, with her design inspired by HMS Blandford built in 1741. LAUNCHED: 1997, September → FATE: Sold to a French company and now on exhibit at Saint-Malo, Brittany.

Glencairn, SS — British tramp steamer
In the movie The Long Voyage Home about the men on board on the long voyage home from the West Indies to Baltimore and then to England. Nine prominent American artists, all painters, were hired to construct the dramatic scenes during the film's production. LAUNCHED: 1940, for the movie → FATE: Inconclusive.

Golden Hinde — English galleon
A full-size replica of the 1577 Golden Hind and appeared in several movies. She has travelled a distance equal to more than five times around the globe. Like Francis Drake's ship, she has circumnavigated the globe. LAUNCHED: 1973 → FATE: Since 1996 she has been berthed at St Mary Overie Dock, Southwark, London.

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Goliath, RMS — British ocean liner
Fiction ocean liner in the movie Goliath Awaits. The interiors of Goliath were filmed aboard the RMS Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. LAUNCHED: 1981, movie release → FATE: Inconclusive.

Hero, HMAS — British Leander-class frigate
Setting for the popular British television series Warship, from 1973-1977. Seven different frigates played the role of HMS Hero, all were repainted with the pennant number F42 of HMS Phoebe, the main warship used for filming. LAUNCHED: 1973 → FATE: Inconclusive.

Hotspur, HMS — British sloop-of-war
Ship of Horatio Hornblower in the book series and British TV series Hornblower and the Hotspur by C. S. Forester. In the TV series, she is captured by the French. After Hornblower and the crew later discover the ship, they succeed in retaking it. LAUNCHED: 1962, for the book; 1988 2003 for the TV series → FATE: Unknown.

Laconia, RMS — British ocean liner, then converted to a troop ship
After a torpedo attack, a dramatic rescue of the ship's passengers turned to disaster and became known as the Laconia incident. U.S. planes attacked the several German U-boats trying to rescue its 2,732 passengers and crew most of whom were abandoned by the subs, resulting in a loss of over 1,649 people. The sinking was portrayed in the 2011 British TV movie. LAUNCHED: 1921, April 18 → FATE: Sunk by German submarine U-156 off the coast of West Africa, September 12, 1942.

Maggie — British Clyde puffer cargo ship
Appeared in the movie The Maggie which was released in the U.S. titled High and Dry. The story is about a clash of cultures between a hard-driving American businessman and a wily Scottish captain. LAUNCHED: 1954, movie release; boat origin unknown → FATE: Inconclusive.

MTB 102 — British motor torpedo boat
The the fastest wartime British naval vessel in service at 48 knots and the smallest vessel to ever serve as a flagship for the Royal Navy. In 1944 she carried Winston Churchill and General Eisenhower to review the fleet for Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy, World War II. She appeared as herself in the 2017 war film Dunkirk. LAUNCHED: 1937 → FATE: On exhibit at Lowestlft, on the North Sea.

Poseidon, SS — American cruise ship; British ocean liner
Subject of a ship sinking in the 1969 novel The Poseidon Adventure and four movie adaptations, 1972, 1979, 2005, and 2006. In each version of the story, the ship is capsized and several survivors try to make their way to the top of the overturned ship. LAUNCHED: 1969, original story → FATE: Inconclusive.

(Another )

Queen Elizabeth, RMS — British ocean liner
With sister ship Queen Mary, dominated the transatlantic passenger service. She was used in World War II as troop transport. After being converted to a university and renamed Seawise University, she was destroyed by fire. The charred wreck was featured in the 1974 James Bond movie The Man with the Golden Gun. LAUNCHED: 1938, September 18 → FATE: After a fire, capsized in Hong Kong Harbor, January 9, 1972.

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Queen Mary, RMS — British ocean liner
Once dominated transatlantic passenger service with sister ship Queen Elizabeth. She was used in World War II as troop transport carrying up to 15,000 passengers at a time. Featured in the 1972 movie The Poseidon Adventure and the 1981 movie Goliath Awaits. LAUNCHED: 1934, Septmber 26 → FATE: After sailing nearly 4 million miles, she was retired in 1967 and berthed in Long Beach, California as a museum ship and hotel from 1974 to present.

(Another )

Rhone, RMS — British packet ship
Sunk during a hurricane with the loss of approximately 123 lives. The wreckage is now a popular diving site and was used in the 1977 film The Deep that featured Jacqueline Bisset in a wet T‑shirt. LAUNCHED: 1865 → FATE: Wrecked in the British Virgin Islands on October 29, 1867.

(Another )

Sea Tiger, USS — American submarine
A fictional U.S. Navy submarine in the 1959 movie Operation Petticoat during the opening days of World War II. Stand-in boats were USS Balao painted pink for exterior shots and USS Archerfish with the standard colors of gray and black for interior and some exterior shots. LAUNCHED: 1959 → FATE: Inconclusive.

Seraph, HMS — British submarine
Known as "the ship with two captains," briefly became the USS Seraph. During World War II, she released a corpse ("The Man Who Never Was") onto the shores off Gibraltar carrying decoy papers to fool the Nazis as part of "Operation Mincemeat." LAUNCHED: 1941, October 18 → FATE: Scrapped in December of 1962.

(Another )

Titanic, RMS — British luxury ocean liner
The most famous ship sinking in history, she sank after hitting iceberg in the Atlantic, claiming over 1500 lives. Believed by many to be unsinkable, her disintegrating remains lie at a depth of 3,784 meters. Many movie have been made about her sinking including the 1997 film. LAUNCHED: 1911, May 18 → FATE: Sank in the North Atlantic April 15, 1912.

(Another )

Unicorn — British three-masted sailing ship
Royal Navy vessel appearing in the comics series by Belgian cartoonist Hergé The Adventures of Tintin, and the movie. She is the setting of a battle between pirates and sailors, then scuttled, and discovered years later by the boy Tintin and his friends. LAUNCHED: 1943, first appeared in print; movie release in 2011 → FATE: Inconclusive.

(Another )

Vital Spark — British Clyde puffer cargo ship
Star of the book series and British TV comedy series, The Vital Spark about the adventures of the boat captain and his crew. The BBC Scotland TV program The Vital Spark (1959-1974 series) was set in the western isles of Scotland in the 1930s, based on the books by Neil Munro LAUNCHED: 1931, book published; 1959 for the start of TV series; boat built in 1943 → FATE: The boat is to be restored as a tourist attraction with the Inveraray Maritime Museum.

The number of British/English Ships in Movies, TV, and Books listed is 22

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For a full list of all ships, select HERE

First Ship on each page
Page	Ship Name (Country and Type)
1.	Amethyst, HMS (British modified Black Swan class sloop)
2.	Goliath, RMS (British ocean liner)
3.	Queen Mary, RMS (British ocean liner)

British/English Ships in Movies, TV, and Books
1.	Amethyst, HMS British modified Black Swan class sloop
2.	Bounty, HMS English collier
3.	Compass Rose British Flower-class corvette
4.	Etoile du Roy British frigate
5.	Glencairn, SS British tramp steamer
6.	Golden Hinde English galleon
7.	Goliath, RMS British ocean liner
8.	Hero, HMAS British Leander-class frigate
9.	Hotspur, HMS British sloop-of-war
10.	Laconia, RMS British ocean liner
11.	Maggie British Clyde puffer
12.	MTB 102 British motor torpedo boat
13.	Poseidon, SS American cruise ship
14.	Queen Elizabeth, RMS British ocean liner
15.	Queen Mary, RMS British ocean liner
16.	Rhone, RMS British packet ship
17.	Sea Tiger, USS American submarine
18.	Seraph, HMS British submarine
19.	Titanic, RMS British luxury ocean liner
20.	Unicorn British three-masted sailing ship
21.	Vital Spark British Clyde puffer