"Welcome to Queen Mary 2 - the grandest, most magnificent ocean liner ever built. She's a true heir to the timeless elegance, legacy and inspiration of the great Cunard liners of legend. You'll notice it the moment you walk through her doors into her soaring Grand Lobby, and be awed from the first instance you experience the famous Cunard White Star Service^SM. Yet this sophisticated monarch also boasts the most modern luxuries and amenities - from the pampering services of the only Canyon Ranch SpaClub^® on the seas to the fascinating Cultural Enrichment Programme led by prestigious experts. This regal royal must truly be seen to be believed - come live the adventure." 

So begins the introduction to the great present day passenger ships of the famed carrier, Cunard on their web site of www.cunard.com. Oddly, with such a rich tradition of British built ships, Cunard chose the French firm of Chantiers de L'Atlantique to build the Queen Mary 2. The keel was laid down on July 4, 2002 and was floated out of the dock on December 1, 2002, a remarkably short period of time for such a gigantic ship. The completion was equally speedy with first sea trials in September 2003 and formal acceptance by Cunard on December 22, 2003. A French yard builds a 151,400-ton liner from keel laying to first voyage in a little over seventeen months! C'est Maqnifique! Other statistics of Queen Mary 2 are equally impressive with a length of 1,132 feet, beam of 135 feet and draught of 32 feet 10 inches. The height from keel to funnel top is 236.2 feet. With a gas turbine/diesel/electronic power plant developing 157,000 hp the Queen Mary 2 exceeded 30 knots on trials and has a cruising speed of 28.5-knots. Maximum passenger capacity is 3,056 served by a crew of 1,253.

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The Cunard web site lists lists some other interesting facts about Queen Mary 2, "In 1839, Queen Victoria awarded Samuel Cunard the first ever licence to deliver mail across the Atlantic, proudly granting his steam ship the honoured title RMS (Royal Mail Steamer). In 2004 RMS (Royal Mail Ship) Queen Mary 2 was awarded this privileged title and continues to celebrate this golden heritage."

• QM2 is five times longer than Cunard's first ship, Britannia (230 ft.)
• QM2 is 113 feet longer than the original Queen Mary
• QM2 is more than 41 London buses (31½ ft. each)
• QM2's whistle is audible for 10 miles than twice as long as the Washington Monument is tall (550 ft.)
• QM2 is 147 feet longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall (984 ft.)
• QM2 is more than 3½ times as long as Westminster Tower (Big Ben) is high (310 ft.)
• QM2 is only 117 feet shorter than the Empire State Building is tall (1248 ft.)
• QM2 is more than three times as long as St. Paul's Cathedral is tall (366 ft.)

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Scherbak Ship Models has two highly detailed 1:1250 scale models of the Queen Mary 2. One version is in here appearance as originally entering service with Cunard. The second version, seen here is of the Queen Mary 2 after she was fitted with bridge wing extensions presenting her present day appearance. The model is made of resin, comes completely painted and is enclosed in its own display case.

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