Liner Speed Trials (1961)

L/S of the SS Oriana at sea, travelling towards the camera; M/S of the bows of the ship as she passes. M/S on the bridge of the ship, showing the Captain and helmsman with other members of the crew.



M/S looking out from the bridge, showing the games deck and radar mast as commentator tells us this brand new ship "cost her owners £14 million but what few people realise is that until the trials have been completed, the ship is still the responsibility of her builders, and unless the trials go off smoothly, someone could have a spare liner on their hands!". M/Ss of the stern, showing a Blue Ensign flag flying; wind mechanisms and various other flags flying in the wind.



M/S of two engineers on deck; one holds up a pole to test wind levels and reads from a meter, while the other makes notes on a clipboard; M/Ss on the bridge as the Captain talks to another member of the crew. C/U of an officer reading the sextant as we are told the highlight of the trials was the measured mile speed test, before which conditions such as wind force and direction are tested. M/S as a rating looks over the rail of the ship, with a very choppy sea behind him.



M/S in a chartroom as an officer measures distances on a map, and the sextant officer comes into shot to plot the course, which is set in the Firth of Clyde off the Isle of Arran. M/S from the ship looking out to sea from beneath a lifeboat. L/S of the Oriana passing by. C/Us of the Captain and crew on the bridge; the helmsman and wheel, the Captain giving orders; the engine telegraph operator and machinery. M/S of the engine room as a man there receives orders from the bridge; an officer speaks into a telephone. Panning C/U of dials in the engine room.



M/S of the shaft which drives the propellors; a man comes into shot and adjusts something on it. M/S on the bridge, then various shots of the Oriana passing by and the spray from the bow as she speeds along the measured mile course. We are told that the average speed recorded in the trial was 31 knots. M/S of the timekeeper looking through his binoculars, checking his stopwatch and looking at the dials on the machinery before him; C/U of dials whirling round.



M/S of the man at the propellor shafts; C/U of the stopwatch ticking round and being stopped. L/S of the mountainous shore, looking quite misty; C/U of the spray coming up off the bows; M/S of the Captain and officer outside the bridge as a rating brings them a message and they shake hands. M/Ss of a rating hoisting a flag; L/S of the Oriana moving away through the water.



Note: there are articles from the London Illustrated News and Daily Express on file about the ship, design and decor. Most of this footage probably comes from the documentary 'Oriana' - see separate record.



No neg for this story - print was used for transfer. The print has some scratches - not too bad though.



Cuts exist - see separate record.
FILM ID:121.12

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