HMS Belfast

Join Ngaire Bushell to hear about the vital role that HMS Belfast played in the Second World War and, 70 years after the signing of the Armistice, the experiences of her crew in the Korean War. There will hopefully even be time to discuss the ship’s circumnavigation of the globe during her final years in commission, and how Belfast became the first flagship to be saved for the nation since Nelson’s Victory. Over her years on board, Ngaire has had the great privilege of getting to know many veterans who served across all of Belfast’s years in service. For these sailors Belfast was more than a warship; it was their home and Ngaire will share many of their memories to bring the history of their ‘Tiddly B’ alive, revealing why Belfast was known by them as both a happy, and a lucky, ship.

A former primary school teacher, Ngaire was the Learning Officer on board HMS Belfast from 2003 to 2008 before running the learning department at Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum. After this she accepted the exciting opportunity to work in Brussels as an Educator on the European Parliament’s team creating the House of European History. Ngaire returned to the UK to take up a role with Public Engagement and Learning at the Imperial War Museums, and of all the fascinating items which make up the museum’s vast collections her favourite object remains IWM’s largest; HMS Belfast!