Back to the past part 2....The Empress Of Ireland some interior photos, the ship that collided with her and a painting of the wreck.

1st Class Dining Room

2nd Class Dining Room

3rd Class Dining Room

SS Storstad

Back to the past part 1...The Empress of Ireland was an ocean liner that sank in the Saint Lawrence River following a collision with the Norwegian collier SS Storstad. The Empress would sink in just 14 minutes with 1,477 passengers and crew on board, 1,012 would die making her one of the worst maritime disasters in history with the Titanic just 2 years earlier.

The SS Rex was an Italian ocean liner launched in 1931. The Rex was the larger running mate of the Conte di Savoia. On September 28 1944 Rex was hit by 123 rockets by the RAF that set her ablaze for 4 days causing her to capsize and sink in shallow water.

The Rex under attack by the RAF

SS Conte di Savoia was an Italian liner launched in October 1931, she made her maiden voyage to New York in November 1932. The Conte di Savoia's fate was to be set on fire and sunk by retreating German forces on September 11 1943.

The RMS Empress of Britain was an ocean liner built between 1928 and 1931, and owned by Canadian Pacific Steamship Company. She was torpedoed on October 28 1940 by U-32, she was the largest liner lost during the Second World War and the largest ship sunk by a Nazi U-boat.

Empress of Britain...Titanic's Sister Olympic is on the left.

Rita Hayworth boarding the MV Britannic 1948, my parents were on board with her. If my brother and I had been on board we would have searched the ship for her...Thanks to my brother for the photo.

MV Britannic, photo of my mother taken by my father on the ship in 1948. Rita Hayworth who left her film career to marry Prince Aly Khan were also on board.

MV Britannic, both my parents sailed on this ship.

MV Britannic launched on August 6, 1929 on the right is dwarfed by the Queen Mary (centre), the RMS Mauretania 2 (1938) is on the left.