Queen Mary's COLLAPSING Pool Room

Why is the pool room on the Queen Mary collapsing? Is the information accurate? I have compiled the most comprehensive collection of information I can about the swimming pool and the condition its in.

My Narrated TOUR of RMS Queen Mary in 4k:

See the latest REPAIR updates from the Queen Mary here:

#oceanliner #queenmary #shocking

CREDIT:
Footage from pool room entrance is credit to @LMGVids

Footage of pool room in the dark is credited to @LakeNipissing

Footage of pool room with lights shining at camera is credited to @pchparanormal6812

Photo of pool from bottom level is credited to @Sckadoo he has a video showing part of the room:

MUSIC:
"Alex Productions - Startup" is under a Creative Commons (CC BY 3.0) license.
@alexproductionsnocopyright

"Alex Productions - Pop" is under a Creative Commons (CC BY 3.0) license.
@alexproductionsnocopyright

"Alex Productions - Lost" is under a Creative Commons (CC BY 3.0) license.
@alexproductionsnocopyright

"Scott Buckley - Passage Of Time" is under a Creative Commons (CC BY 3.0) license.
@ScottBuckley

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I plan to sail to the UK to film historic places for this channel, click the links to learn more!

My X account: @AlexAHistorian
***If you see social media accounts that look similar, but do not match the above names/links. Then that account is impersonating me, and is NOT my account.***

DISCLAIMER: I am not a University-educated historian, Alex the Historian was a nickname I got while working at Disneyland as a tour guide. After 7 years of using it as a stage name for my channel, it would be detrimental to the channel to suddenly change the name.

[AlextheHistorian]

PLEASE READ THESE NOTES:
1) The pool room has reopened to select tours. Soon after my video published, it went viral, surpassing 1 million views. All the attention sparked Queen Mary management to reopen a section of the lower level of the pool room for tours to see. Management had also expressed that the room will undergo refurbishment once more pressing projects on the ship are completed.

2) At 0:18 I said the Queen Mary held her maiden voyage in March of 1936. I misread my own script, her maiden voyage was in MAY of 1936. I discovered this mistake soon after uploading the video to YouTube and considered correcting and re-uploading the video, but ultimately decided just to put a notation here in the comments section.

3). The Second Class Pool was destroyed in the early 1970s to make room for the Engine Room Tour lobby, today a 4D theater sits where the second class pool used to be.

4). 2:00 -Both classes had the exact same pool experience: They walked into a clean and freshly scrubbed pool room, all the furniture was arranged where it was supposed to be. The towels were clean, fluffy and warm. The water was freshly filtered just for them. You shouldn't be offended by the fact that the pool room was cleaned between uses. This is what luxury is. Luxury is getting good value for what you pay for (or at least it should be, but that's a whole other conversation). Third class's experience in the pool room was no different than that of first class.

5). Yes, I know, the Queen Mary is a BRITISH ship that served the UK, transporting people to and from the US and Europe. You don't make as many videos, and do as much research about the Queen Mary as I have and not know that much. I have Schizophrenia and each year it gets harder to structure sentences properly. I should have explained the Queen Mary's passenger service better so as not to confuse everyone, but hindsight is 20/20.

6). The reason why the boilers and generators were removed: The Queen Mary was purchased specifically for turning her mechanical spaces into a massive Jaques Custeau Museum of the Sea. Budgets ran short and the museum was only built into 1/3 of the spaces.

This was between 1967-1971, nobody was sure an ocean liner would be popular as a museum, because ocean liners were still around and weren't romanticized like they are in this post-James-Cameron-Titanic era. It was assumed none of the visitors would want to climb down into the dirty machinery spaces. They learned they were wrong, but it was too late.

[AA-dbcb]

People want outdoor pools on ships but I think indoor pools are nicer, more luxurious and definitely don't let themselves be at the mercy of the weather.

[zephyr]

Meanwhile the pool on the Titanic has stayed full of water with no maintenance for over a century.

[Lilly_the_Snek]

It truly makes me sad just how neglected thus beautiful ship was. Rooms that so easily could have been preserved were destroyed due to negligence, and the pool room is probably the saddest example.

[lucasread]

It’s so good to see Long Beach putting so much effort into restoring the Queen Mary. It’s not like it’s previous owners (after retirement) that just let it deteriorate because it was cheap and they wanted it to be a ghost attraction. Thank goodness it is back in the hands of Long Beach!

[Taffthat]

While on vacation in the 90s my grandparents took my uncle and aunt to visit the Queen Mary, however they “broke in” and without a ticket they walked through the ship and accessed areas that aren’t open to the public. In 2015 my uncle took me to visit the ship and we did the same thing, without a ticket we explored the depths of the ship. I will never forget that day. Later in 2020 just before the pandemic he took my sister and I and again without paying for a ticket we explored places we hadn’t before. My uncle passed away in 2022 from Cancer. He was an amazing person and those memories will always have a special place in my heart.

[cryptomonkey]

My grandfather was a master joiner/cabinetmaker from Southampton, England. He worked on the Queen Mary in the 1930s, installing fixtures and fittings and removing them when she became a troop carrier during WW2. I have a bone door handle and a large soap dish from the ship. The soap dish was used in my grandparents' laundry room for as long as I can remember. My grandfather had so many stories about the Southampton docks and all the great ocean liners of the period that he saw and worked aboard. I miss him.

[pheebs]

Former tour guide (early 1980s) - so glad to hear that the old girl is getting the TLC she needs! And yes, I have spent a LOT of time in the pool area.

[ellah]

So sad! If they just had taken proper care when the first problems emerged, it might just be as beautiful as it was originally to this day. I really hope they are able to restore this stunningly beautiful pool. Thanks for another interesting and fascinating video Alex.

[susie]

I had my senior prom on this great lady ship in 1972! Very classy👍

[Gemashke]

I wish Disney didn't feel the need to add the special effects to the pool that necessitated drilling through the glazed brick. When various operators "Violate" the original integrity of the Queen Mary, it feels to me like they're ruining a piece of art. Excellent video, Alex!

[davidgmaloof]

This video is why I watch YouTube and not TikTok. Very well made video. Thank you.

[billmoran]

Indoor pools, especially when installed on above ground floors are always a constant source of problems and need a lot of maintenance. Given the nearly 100 year old structure of the QM, and the fact that it was a seagoing vessel for much of its life, it’s understandable that the pool area has severely deteriorated. A thorough rebuilding is needed just to restore its cosmetic appearance. Hopefully at some point, funds and craftsmen can be found to do just that.

[proteus]

We rented the back half of the QM for my wife's 50th birthday, the Art Deco is fantastic !

[martinsuter]

The pool just needs 4 things done to have it open to the public again and even used for it's intended purpose as an actual swimming pool - 1) a proper and complete major refurbishment and repair followed by 2) proper ongoing maintenance, 3) proper ongoing maintenance, 4) and more proper ongoing maintenance! It's a bloody shame bordering on a crime that it's been allowed to deteriorate to the abysmal and completely unusable condition that it's in now!😠😠😠

[kittymaya]

I own an 1890 worker’s cottage in the Chicago area. It’s simple, by Victorian standards, but complex by modern day standards, and contractors frequently run out of here in terror & frustration after not being able to figure out how to fix items like a non-working hallway light or refinish my 133-yr old oak floors. (You can’t refinish them, but you can buff them & restain) What I’m trying to say is: Good luck, Queen Mary Stewards. May you find skilled artisans who don’t run away in tears. I gave up & no one but me is allowed to work on my house because no one loves it like I do. Gimme a call if you need help with that pool. Neither ghosts nor historic places scare me, so that’s a plus.

[lindadrewitt]

Thanks for the interesting video. Brought back many memories of swimming in it when we crossed the Atlantic in 1964. It was such a beautiful pool and a pleasure to swim in as an 11 year old.

[thejerseyj]

In '85 my friend and I visited the Queen Mary. She is a special ship not only for her beauty but for her historic career as one of the premier ocean liners. I am very happy to hear that she is enjoying a renewed interest in her. Her WW2 service is fascinating as well, able to transport 15, 000 soldiers and their equipment per crossing. Incredible!

[cyberleaderandy]

Really sad that Disney contributed to the decay of this amazing ship. I visited when the Spruce Goose was also there and its sad to see its condition now 😢 Hopefully they will find the money and get this repaired and looking beautiful again.

[manugamer]

Are you kidding me? To leave a swimming pool filled with water for TWENTY YEARS? Are you serious?