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Stena Line have lauched a new website to celebrate their 50th anniversary, some nice images and stories are included on the site.

http://stenaline50.com/en/

Also Ferrypubs are launching a new book by Bruce Peter to celebrate the 50th.

http://www.ferrypubs.co.uk/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=581

Stena Line The Album, brings together a selection of outstanding photographs of Stena Line's operations of both the Baltic North Sea and the UK. Compiled by Bruce Peter with complimenting text out lining the companies history and operations. Over 200 photographs in both colour and black & white. Hardback, 128 pages, A4size

Stena have put the show on their youtube channel as well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brAfDaZUzCw&list=UUL3m9y_-6dCeywLnN8te8qA&index=1&feature=plcp

with regard to your points above,

The refits of the scale given to the Stena Mersey / Lagan will often overrun and be completed at sea, however I am surprised/stunned  the onboard crew did not have all areas open and only use the seating area featured as a last resort, putting all passengers in the newly refurbished areas and having the work area screened off would have been much better and would not have upset anyone, why have a sit down Met Restaurant open when most of the ship is not finished - Very silly.

When the Stena Europe was last given a major refit in 2010 they moved locations around and covered over some areas so the ship still functioned, while the work was ongoing.

Plenty of images on Scott Mackeys excellent Flickr Site

http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottmackey/sets/72157623466806142/?page=2

The housekeeping crew on the Britannica is a common situation throughout the shipping industry in international waters the minimum wage does not apply, however while it is not Stena's problem but an industry problem they did seem well looked after but no defence for the wages paid, however all board and lodgings paid for, so what you earn is yours nearly all ferry and cruise companies operate like this.

Thought the restaurant situation on the Britannica was totally bizarre for a ship of that size, the management should make changes asap, imagine telling people that the restaurant is being used for a private party on a ferry ! as the kitchens, I would assume those areas have already been fixed as they are easy to remedy.

As for Fishguard, the linkspan was modified years ago i imagine for the fast craft and the terminal building rebuilt I think in the mid 90's but I could be wrong. Images below show the Felicity at the old, the KB at the new - Images from Abergwaun.com (C) Mike O'Brien

A very interesting episode of Undercover Boss with plenty of ferry related images and experiences for the Stena Line CEO.

The show was based on the Stena Mersey, Stena Britannica and the Stena Nordica with plenty of shots of the Superfasts and plenty of other vessels including the old reliable Stena Europe in port at Fishguard.

If you did not Sky+ you can watch on 4OD at the link below:

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/undercover-boss/episode-guide/series-4/episode-6

This could be quite interesting

Sky Channel 135 @ 9pm

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/undercover-boss/episode-guide/series-4/episode-6

Gunnar Blomdhall, CEO one of the UK's biggest ferry companies, Stena Line, goes undercover on some of his own fleet of ships to find out if the business is delivering its promise of convenient, efficient and relaxing travel.

Stena has recently invested over one billion pounds on increasing the look and size of its operation, but Gunnar is worried that standards have slipped. What he discovers undercover shocks him - paying customers onboard a building site at sea, sub-standard customer service, and flawed design on a brand new superferry.

When he meets foreign crew earning less than the UK minimum wage and staff dealing with the uncertainty of seasonal contracts he faces difficult moral questions, and is moved by a Filipino crew member coming to terms with the death of his daughter while working away from his family.

When Gunnar returns to head office he's determined to make changes

Have watched this a few times, I could be wrong but its not Holyhead !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBaLhXT3-eY&feature=relmfu

Great staff corporate video from back in the old days, keep a look out for some Irish Sea vessels. The video seems to stop for buffering but will play through.

Found it on this site:

http://www.ferryfantastic.webs.com/ferrycompanies.htm#stena

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17183134

An Italian cruise ship with more than 1,000 people on board is without power in the Indian Ocean following a fire. No one has been injured.

The Costa Allegra is adrift in the dark more than 200 miles southwest of the Seychelles, near Alphonse Island.

Tug boats are on their way to the liner but will not reach it until around 1500 GMT on Tuesday.

The ship is from the same fleet as the Costa Concordia, which capsized off the Italian coast in January, killing 32.

Costa Cruises said in a statement that the fire broke out in a room housing electric generators. It did not spread and there were no injuries or casualties.

Ship immobilised
The liner sent out a distress signal, Costa Cruises said, and all passengers and crew not involved in fighting the fire assembled at the muster stations.

There are no electric lights on board the ship as the batteries are being used to keep essential machinery going.

The Italian authorities have directed three merchant ships and two fishing vessels towards the stricken liner.

The authorities in the Seychelles say they have sent two tug boats and a coastguard ship to the scene.

The closest vessel to the ship - a French fishing boat - is likely to reach the Allegra at around 2300 GMT, ahead of the tug boats.

A spokesman for Costa Cruises said the situation on board was calm and the ship was stable.


Captain Giorgio Moretti said a helicopter would bring fresh food to the liner on Tuesday morning, as it is without cooking facilities.

Captain Moretti said it had not been decided whether to try to transfer the passengers to other ships, or leave them on board until it is tugged to shore.

A plane from the Seychelles flew over the cruise ship and confirmed that there was "no danger for the people on board," according to Commander Cosimo Nicastro of the Italian coast guard.

Cmdr Nicastro told the BBC that it took the crew a few hours to extinguish the fire.

Although the ship is in the middle of the Indian Ocean, there are "no problems for the passengers," he said.


There are 636 passengers and 413 crew on board the Costa Allegra, which left Madagascar on Saturday.

It was due to arrive in the Seychelles on Tuesday.

Further destinations on its itinerary include Alexandria and Naples in the Mediterranean.

Somali pirates are known to operate in the area where the ship is adrift, though they have never seized a cruise liner.

Nine members of the Italian navy's anti-pirate unit are on board the ship as a precaution.

A facility on Costa Cruises' website allowing people to track the Allegra's position says that "data transmission is temporarily suspended".

The Costa Concordia ran aground off the Italian island of Giglio on 13 January.

The Concordia's captain, Francesco Schettino, has been accused of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning ship before all those aboard were evacuated. He denies any wrongdoing

Image from Shipspotting.com

also

http://www.rte.ie/news/2012/0227/costa.html

Total nonsense but good fun trying to dock the ferry in this little game.

http://www.aferry.co.uk/game/

As I remembered, the book has many great images and contains this one, which I would not have thought possible. As someone rides a horse out at the end of the main pier in Rosslare Harbour, you can just see the discarded concrete casting discarded during the rebuilding of the pier for birth 1&2.

I think this book was published with another book about Rosslare Harbour, both sold in Larrys Supervalu at the time.

http://www.thehistorypress.ie/product.asp?strParents=100&CAT_ID=103&P_ID=415

I bought both for my father, and I remember one of the books has a picture of someone riding a HORSE near the lighthouse at the END of the main breakwater in Rosslare Harbour at low tide.

I will get a copy of the picture and post it within the next few weeks.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/Stenaline-Britannica-Ferry-diecast-model-/320743696141?pt=UK_ToysGames_DiecastVehicles_DiecastVehicles_JN&hash=item4aadd0670d#ht_500wt_1156

A great picture from Gordon Hislip on his website this month of the only member of the Belfast Four still sailing in Irish Waters.

http://www.gordonhislip.com/pages/photo.html

This gets interesting, if the The Carrier and Freighter go to Rotterdam, then the Stena Trader and Traveller could be rebuilt with extra passenger carrying capacity added and then maybe end up on the Belfast route replacing the Navigator, Caledonia, and HSS.

If the Baltica does return to Rosslare, then the Europe could arrive in Dublin and they could run three ships out of Dublin port, with the Europe having a much greater passenger capacity than the Nordica.

Stena Europe has just headed out to brave it, Oscar Wilde is staying put in Rosslare tonight, I must say during the rough weather over the past while the Europe has really played a complete blinder

Had a look at the Oscar this morning in Rosslare and it really looks ready for drydock the amount of rust streaking on the uppper deck windows and the container like unit at the back was quite noticeable, did not have a camera with me as I was not expecting to see it there, also looked like an Irish Lights vessel in the next berth.

cartour epsilon has been renamed epsilon.

https://www.facebook.com/IrishFerriesOfficial/photos_stream

Think that image could be photoshopped and the ais is still Cartour Epsilon, if you look closely the mooring rope seems to be quite different and there is a blur where Cartour would be.