The Last Ticket, 1970

The object 

This ticket is one of the final issued for a journey on SS Great Britain, marking the end of a remarkable voyage that spanned continents. Issued on 16 July 1970, it allowed Ian Bell to board the ship for her last crossing, from the Y Shed to the Great Western Dockyard on 19 July 1970.  

Though brief, this journey completed a historic return. Exactly 127 years earlier, SS Great Britain had been launched from the same dock, beginning a pioneering career at sea.  

The ticket was produced by Charles Hill of Bristol Limited, shipbuilders and owners of the Great Western Dockyard at the time. Numbered 7, it reflects the limited access granted to those aboard, though the total number of tickets issued for the final journey is unknown. Fold lines suggest it was carefully carried, likely folded to fit into a pocket or wallet, a small but personal link to a significant national moment. 

Returning to Bristol 

Returning the ship to Bristol was a major engineering challenge. After decades abroad, her hull was badly corroded and cracked. She was carried across the Atlantic from the Falkland Islands on a pontoon, before being towed into the River Avon without it, due to the narrow waterway. 

In June 1970, the ship was placed into dry dock at Avonmouth, where the hull crack was sealed using quick‑drying concrete. On 5 July, she began her journey upriver, escorted by three tugboats — one pulling, one slowing her from behind, and a third on standby. Crowds gathered along bridges and towpaths as she passed beneath the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the only time SS Great Britain ever sailed under the completed structure. 

After safely navigating the Cumberland Basin, the ship entered the harbour but had to wait moored by the Y Shed, as the water was not yet deep enough to return her to dock. 

The final journey: 19 July 1970 

After waiting for a high spring tide, SS Great Britain made her final move into dock on the evening of 19 July 1970, watched by invited guests including HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, who toured the ship during the move. The manoeuvre was a tight fit, requiring careful positioning so the ship would sit correctly once the water was removed. 

As passengers disembarked and the dock gate was returned, the water gradually drained away, and SS Great Britain came to rest safely back where her story had begun.