The above is the largest ship in Cunard’s fleet of Ocean going liners, and is the Flagship, so I guess it is a Ship and not a boat! And is apparently the only active ocean liner still in service. To be sure it is not the largest cruise ship, but it has to be stressed that it is not a cruise ship, but a deluxe ship that does cruises! The ship will hold up to 2,600 passengers plus 1,290 crew.

We were fortunate to be in one of the better cabins ( it was huge plus a large balcony). Our little trip was all part of the ongoing celebrations of HIS birthday and it is not done yet! This was just a short trip of 4 nights aboard this iconic ship.

The Queens grill which was our dedicated restaurant can seat up to 130 passengers and is available for breakfast, lunch and dinner along with Afternoon Tea in the adjacent Grills lounge.

We ate well with a slightly changing daily menu, the food was excellent albeit not exciting. And having been on other trans Atlantic boats, I was very much underwhelmed by their bakery.

That being said, the ship is beautiful, with everything you need from shows ( we didn’t see) to a large casino , perfect for those on their mobility scooters ( not us, and we didn’t play) to a large Bridge/ Card room , to designer shops ( didn’t buy) and then the library, large and beautiful. The walk from our cabin ( sorry State room) took 5 minutes ! YES FIVE Minutes! As the ship is just short of 1,000 feet in length ! Oh and I forgot, there is a golf net which I tried out.

Onto food, breakfast was nice ( such a terrible word) absolutely nothing wrong with breakfast ( well the toast was rubbish, as was the coffee, catering for the USA market, methinks!) choice was fine, service was good, though looking at the photos, I think my poached egg was the best option!

Moving on, we ate one night Chateaubriand, which was excellent and the next Beef Wellington ( meat overload here?) and again excellent, but cooked in the traditional way, with a mushroom duxelles and the whole wrapped in a Crêpe to stop the puff pastry going soggy.

However, for Beef Wellington there is a new way and that is to wrap the meat and mushrooms in Pancetta or Serrano ham! What could be better and easier ( no need to make pancakes for starters!)

To serve about 8 people

• About 1.5 kilo beef fillet trimmed off
• +/-200 grams Parma or Serrano ham
• a knob or two of unsalted butter
• +/- 250 grams mushrooms, assorted if possible
• Small bunch parsley finely chopped
• +/- 3 minced cloves of garlic ( to taste)
• 3 finely chopped shallots
• +/-125 grams goose liver pâté ( optional)
• 1kilo puff pastry, ( room temperature) shop bought is fine and a beaten egg to glaze
• Salt and pepper to season

Season the beef all over with the salt and pepper. Melt a knob of butter in a sturdy frying pan and sear the beef on all sides.

Remove the beef and put to one side.

Add more butter to the pan and sauté the shallots and then the mushrooms, then the parsley and garlic. Chop all finely and leave to cool.

If using the pâté put onto a board or plate and mush it until soft and creamy .

Rollout the pastry on a floured surface to roughly the size of the beef ( needs to be wide enough to wrap the beef and long enough to tuck in the ends. Put the pastry onto a baking tray .Lay the ham slices on the pastry and spread the pâté on top of the ham, followed by the mushroom mixture. Brush the edges of the pastry with water, this acts as a sealing agent and wrap up the beef into a parcel. Trim excess pastry, make sure the ends are tucked under and sealed. use the excess pastry to decorate the top of the pastry case. Beat an egg and use it to brush all over the parcel, this is an egg glaze.

Heat your oven to 200C/180C fan or gas mark 6. When the oven has reached required temperature, place the baking sheet on the middle shelf and cook for about 35 minutes ( rare to medium) or up to an hour for medium to well. Remove from oven and leave to stand for 15 minutes before carving ( this is so that the juices are absorbed into the meat.

Serve with your favourite vegetables ( I would go for Pommes Aligot ( Posh Mashed)) and maybe a sauce, a gravy, or simply a jus!