I'm Chris Frame and today we're going to be looking at how the Oriana and her sister
ship Aurora helped transition P&O to create the P&O cruises brand in the UK that we know today
formed in the 19th century p was established to operate passenger and mail services to the Iberian
peninsula the line quickly grew to become a vital transportation link across the British empire
but throughout its long history P&O has had to adapt to many challenges
P&O survived pandemics two world wars and even survived the introduction of jet aircraft services
which led to many shipping lines going out of business but by the 1980’s P&O
was starting to be left behind there had been a resurgence in interest in passenger ships
off the back of cruising driven by new American companies that saw a new way to handle passenger
ships creating a whole host of new amenities and expectations for the traveling public P&Os cruise
offering had in many respects been left behind this included their flagship the Canberra which
had been successfully transitioned into cruising but did have a heritage that dated back to the era
of long-distance line voyages between Britain and Australia P&O did have a new build in 1972 when
they launched the spirit of London but she only remained with the brand for two years before being
transitioned to P&O’s Princess subsidiary but as the popularity of cruising grew across the UK and
Europe P&O had to look to new tonnage to remain relevant in an increasingly competitive market
this led to a new project to build a new ship for P&O cruisers specifically designed for the
UK market the design called for a 69,000 ton, 260 meter long ship that was built at the mail
worth shipyard in Papenburg Germany she was named Oriana after the popular orient line ocean liner
that had sailed from 1960 through to 1986. The design of Oriana had to balance the needs and
wants of regular P&O travellers while introducing a suite of new features that would enable the
ship to compete with other new build cruise ships modern design elements included the inclusion of
an entire deck of balcony cabins something that existing P&O ships lacked Oriana also boasted
a west end style show lounge the largest of its type on a cruise ship at the time but the Oriana
also carried across popular elements from the Canberra this included the crow's nest bar the
forward observation bar that has since become P&O cruiser's signature room like Canberra,
Oriana’s lifeboats were set inboard while the aft decks were terraced creating a huge amount
of open deck space for meeting friends watching sail aways and sunbathing Oriana was designed to
be a fast ship particularly for a cruise ship and her engines were set out in a unique configuration
Oriana’s engine layout called for eight engines arranged in pairs each pair consisted of one
larger nine-cylinder engine and a smaller six-cylinder engine in a layout known as
a father-and-son configuration while most modern cruise ships utilize a diesel electric propulsion
system Oriana employed a direct drive setup the four propulsion engines are directly linked to the
propeller shafts by gearboxes and couplings the remaining four engines are utilized to generate
power for hotel services Oriana’s bridge was far more modern than Canberra’s with electronic
systems that allowed the ship to be controlled via a small joystick yet the bridge also shares
some commonalities with older ships such as a wooden main wheel and open bridge wings added at
the request of the ship's first master Commodore Gibb who had previously served aboard Canberra
the completed Oriana entered service in 1995 and immediately transformed the P&O cruise experience
although the ship suffered from vibrations at high speed throughout her career particularly
at the stern in the most part the design of the vessel proved popular with P&O regulars
as well as new cruisers and Oriana quickly became a much loved member of the fleet
the Canberra retired from P&O service in 1997 with P&O sourcing additional ships from the princess
fleet this included Sea Princess renamed Victoria as well as Star Princess which was renamed arcadia
however with the success of Oriana P&O turned its attention to building a fleet mate laid
down in 1998 at the same shipyard in Germany the new ship was named Aurora and aimed to improve
on the design of Oriana significant changes included the addition of far more balcony cabins
three decks worth in fact Oriana had already been superseded by other cruise ships in terms of
balcony accommodation including by P&O princess's own sun class of cruise ship i made a video about
the sun class of cruise ships which you can find in the info card or the description below Aurora
featured the same terraced aft decks as Oriana but her forward profile was given a number of changes
enclosed bridge wings and a bulkier crow's nest bar gave the ship a commanding profile
while the ship's lifeboat supports were straightened up making Aurora's boat deck
appear more squared off Aurora entered service in 2000 to a lesser auspicious start with the
ship experiencing significant mechanical issues during her maiden voyage resulting in it being cut
short less than 24 hours from departure definitely not what P&O was hoping for and while the Aurora
would suffer from further mechanical issues like the Oriana she did become a widely popular ship
working together both ships ushered in a new era of modern cruising for peanut
designed specifically for the British cruise market their interiors were customized for British
taste setting them apart from American style cruise ships the two ships also offered year-round
cruising from the UK greatly expanding the UK cruise market for the British public both Oriana
and Aurora were designed for long-duration voyages and much effort was put into considering the top
speed of each ship with Oriana’s 26.5 knot top speed outpacing Aurora's more sluggish 24 knots
this design feature allowed Oriana to transit the often rough bay of Biscay quicker than slower
cruise ships reducing the time it took for her to reach the sunny Mediterranean her speed led the
ship to hold the golden cockerel trophy held by the fastest P&O cruise ship previously held by the
Canberra and the first Oriana the design of both ships made Aurora and Oriana popular for world
cruises with both ships undertaking regular world voyages throughout their careers their dimensions
made them capable of transiting the original locks of the Panama canal with their voyages taking the
ships to locations all over the world such as Australia, New Zealand, southeast Asia and the
pacific this expanded the appeal of P&O's UK brand around the world carnival corporation took over
management of P&O cruises in 2003 following the merger between Carnival Corp and P&O princess this
means that Aurora entering service in 2000 was the last passenger ship ever built for the peninsula
and oriental steam navigation company but the ships had established a path for P&O cruisers
developing the UK market and introducing a new generation of travellers to the P&O experience
their success led carnival to invest further in the P&O UK brand transforming it into the cruise
brand that we see today in 2012 Aurora and Oriana were both involved in P&Os anniversary celebration
with both ships selling in the rendezvous event undertaken in Southampton 2014 saw P&O UK revise
its livery dropping the iconic buff funnels for a blue design with a union flag painted on the bow
Aurora was the first ship to wear the new colours Oriana followed some months later both
ships remained well maintained thanks to regular refurbishment with Oriana undertaking her final p
o refit in 2016 and Aurora receiving similar treatment in 2018. Oriana lost her flagship status
in 2015 when the new Britannia was introduced to P&O Cruises but the ship remained popular
with new and repeat P&O travellers however despite the growing fondness of the ship among regular and
repeat travellers Oriana’s time in P&O sleep was cut short in 2019 when the ship was retired from
P&O after just under 25 years of service sold to become a cruise ship in China the vessel was
renamed P&O land and departed British waters with Oriana retired Aurora became the holder
of the golden cockerel continuing a series of cruises from Southampton until covert 19 shut down
rendered the 2020 season write-off at the time of upload Aurora remains in warm layup alongside
her fleet mates in waters of Great Britain while the Oriana as Pianoland remains laid up in China
thanks so much for watching and if you enjoyed the video please give it a like and don't forget
to subscribe so you don't miss future videos if you're interested in more information about
Aurora and Oriana, I've written a couple of books about the ships which you can find information
about in the info card below their photographic journeys that take you on a tour of both ships
so if you're missing Oriana or longing for a cruise on Aurora you should check that out for
those of you who are interested in a more in-depth historical look at the ships I highly recommend
this book here by Andrew Sassoli-Walker and Sharon Poole, I've linked that in description below as
well thanks so much for watching and when it is safe to travel again I hope to see you on board