White Star Liner: Liner

Southampton Dept: The ill-fated White Star liner left Southampton on April 10 a century ago on its first, and final, Atlantic voyage. Four days later it struck an iceberg and sank to the ocean floor. More than 1,500 people perished, according to The Star. The purveyors of kitsch have cashed in for almost a century, creating a shipload of tasteless items ranging from black mourning teddy bears to the appalling Gin & Titonic ice-making tray, producing ice in the shape of the doomed vessel for drinks. An unsinkable addition to your next party. Now, with the centennial of the Titanic s loss fast approaching, a memorial cruise is underway featuring passengers dressed in Edwardian garb retracing the liner s route. For some reason, the public seems more fixated than ever on this century-old tragedy and it wasn t the deadliest of maritime disasters not even close but the Titanic s sinking has captured the world s imagination like no other. Its legend goes on and on, mainly because there s a timeless element to the tragedy, and some lessons, too. Several museums and scores of memorials have been erected to honour the lost. But beyond that, the Titanic has come to pervade popular culture through movies, television shows, documentaries and music. Countless books have been written about the tragedy, including speculations on what went wrong, Titanic recipes and biographies of everyone from Captain Edward Smith to first violinist in the ship s band, John Law Hume. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.