LIVERPOOL'S 48-hour waterfront party ended in a downpour yesterday, but it didn’t dampen the spirits of crowds who lined the Pier Head to wave off hundreds of classic cars.
The cavalcade of Aston Martins, Lotus Elans, Bentleys and even a Batmobile, did a lap of the city, rounding off a weekend that had involved a cast of thousands and a year’s planning.
The highlight saw the city breaking the Guinness world record for the most models on a fashion catwalk. Led by fashion designer Wayne Hemingway, young and old set out to smash an existing milestone of 3,083 models, established by Mexico City in 2013.
At the end of a four-hour fashion show, in the shadow of Liverpool’s World Heritage waterfront on Saturday evening, an official from Guinness World Records announced the city’s Very Big Catwalk Extravaganza had beaten Mexico’s record with a new total of 3,651 people striking a pose.
Wayne Hemingway MBE gets stuck in dismantling a vintage clothing marquee yesterdayYesterday, the elated but somewhat exhausted Red or Dead founder was still getting stuck in - dismantling a vintage clothing marquee in the Albert Dock. "I'm looking forward to going home. It feels like a long time since I 've seen my own bed," he told Liverpool Confidential. "But," he added coyly, "I'll be coming back to Liverpool soon."
Quite why is possibly less to do with runway models and possibly everything to do with the sort of social housing regeneration design projects that earned him and wife Gerardine MBEs in 2006: "That's the real work for us," he said.
The catwalk event was a highlight of two days of activities to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the launch of the world’s first scheduled sea service between Europe and North America.
That voyage left Liverpool on July 4, 1840, when Samuel Cunard’s steamship Britannia left Liverpool to cross the Atlantic with 115 passengers aboard.
Fast forward to July 4, 2015, and the flagship of the Cunard fleet, Queen Mary 2, sailed from the very same spot to replicate that inaugural voyage.
Fireworks as the Queen Mary 2 sets off for New York on Saturday night, marking the 175th anniversary of the first such voyageThis time many of the 2,600 passengers aboard the luxury liner had a grandstand view of the waterfront, just yards away, to enjoy watching models sashay, strut, saunter or just amble along the 40-metre long catwalk.
Cheered on by an audience running into thousands, the catwalkers came from all walks of life. Professional models, drama and dance students, local organisations to just ordinary citizens. There were no age barriers as toddlers paraded alongside pensioners, each one guaranteed their few moments of fame.
The city’s Lord Mayor Tony Conception, in full official regalia, led a civic contingent of models. The city’s official town crier also took part , as did the city’s two Premiership football clubs.
Hemingway, the man behind the big catwalk event, said he was delighted Liverpool has set a new record but it was no surprise.
“Liverpool is pretty adept at taking its place on the world stage, so the fact we’ve smashed this Guinness World Record attempt comes as no surprise,” he said.
“What was really amazing was seeing all the many different parts of Liverpool’s community represented. We had everyone from a team strutting their stuff in vintage fashion from the 1920s, right through to the 1990s, to women giving their wedding dress a second outing in a category called ‘Here Comes the Bride’. Everyone, from local Brownie packs to goths got behind the attempt, and that’s why it was such a huge success.”
Hemingway himself led one group of catwalk models, featuring bald men, joking: “I knew losing my hair would come in handy one day.”
As the waterfront partying continued, a stunning firework display and a blast of the foghorns on the QM2 signalled the start of that replica journey.
Cunard’s first ship, the Britannia at just over 1,100 tonnes could easily fit inside her namesake Britannia Restaurant on the current 150,000 ton Queen Mary 2.
Cunard Director Angus Struthers said: “Once again Liverpool has given Cunard the warmest of welcomes. The atmosphere in the city is still amazing and the support for Queen Mary 2 has been fantastic on the exact day that Cunard’s first ship set out on her maiden crossing from Liverpool, 175 years ago.”
