Titanic's 'birthplace' opens to public

Local & National

Visitors are able to see the Harland and Wolff drawing offices

Some of the artifacts on show at the drawing offices

Una Reilly in period dress for yesterday's event

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

The secrets of the world's most famous ocean liner were unveiled yesterday in the very place of its birth, as the drawing offices in the old Harland & Wolff building were opened to the public.

The original plans for the Titanic were drawn up in the historic shipyard building, which includes the private offices of Lord Pirrie, Chairman of Harland & Wolff, and Thomas Andrews, who helped design the vessel.

Among the exhibits on display yesterday were photos and drawings of the ship, period costumes and other memorabilia.

Una Reilly, from the Belfast Titanic Society, said the open day was the chance to show visitors and local people alike a little more of the Titanic.

"For years this was a closed world to the rest of the province," she said.

"Now the Titanic is becoming a brand. We want people to realise that this is where Titanic was for longer than anywhere else, apart from where she lies now.

"She was here for three years and grew with the skyline in the same way the cranes are a fixture of the skyline today."

Among the visitors yesterday were Indian journalist KS Vijay Elangova and his wife Jayamani, who travelled from Londonderry for the opening.

"We are very excited about seeing this. People in India are crazy about the film," said Mr Elangova.

"I never knew until I landed here that Belfast was where the Titanic was built."

Yesterday's open day was one of a series of events being held over Easter week as part of Belfast City Council's seventh annual Titanic Made in Belfast festival.

The centrepiece of the festival is a new exhibition at W5, telling the story of 'Titanic: Designed and Built in Belfast', which has been running for the entire month of March.

The exhibition takes visitors on a journey into the past through the photography of RJ Welch, the official photographer of Harland and Wolff, whose pictures offer a fascinating glimpse of the scale of the shipyard, the environment in which men worked and the variety of different crafts that led to the design and build of ships prior to the Titanic.

Other activities organised by Belfast City Council include two talks by G Michael Harris, who has made eight dives to the Titanic wreck site, including the largest to date in August 2000. Mr Harris will be at W5 on Friday, March 28, and Saturday, March 29.

On Tuesday, April 15, Belfast City Council and the Belfast Titanic Society will hold a ceremony to mark the 96th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic.

Full details of all the events being staged to celebrate 'Titanic Made in Belfast' are available in the March edition of 'Whatabout', available from outlets throughout the city.

Further information, booking details and tickets can be obtained from the Belfast Welcome Centre, by calling 028 9024 6609, by e mail from events@belfastcity.gov.uk , or online at www.belfastcity.gov.uk/titanicfestival