As Queen Anne’s maiden season approaches, we’re pleased to introduce you to her Senior Management Team (SMT).
A carefully selected group of leaders, focused on preparing to welcome and support their teams to get ready for the arrival of Queen Anne, build an inclusive culture, and create an unforgettable experience for our colleagues on board.
Learn more about the team below:
Queen Anne’s dedicated, talented and passionate Captains are extremely excited to bring their expansive experience and valuable knowledge on board our newest Queen.
Captain Inger Klein Thorhauge
Captain Inger Klein Thorhauge, Cunard’s first female Captain, will lead the team onboard Queen Anne and sail the ship from Italy to Southampton, ahead of her inaugural sailing in May 2024.
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Captain Thorhauge, who became Captain of Queen Victoria in 2010, started her career in 1997 as a Second Officer on board Cunard’s Vistafjord.
Originally from the Faroe Islands, her career with the company has seen her travel the world many times over as Captain of Queen Victoria, and for over eight years on Queen Elizabeth.
Captain David Hudson
Captain David Hudson Started his seagoing career in 2000, joining Cunard in 2006, where he was appointed to Queen Elizabeth 2 as a Senior Deck Officer.
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He then moved to Queen Mary 2 for five years, rising to the rank of Chief Officer and was present for both the 100th and 200th crossings of the Atlantic, several ‘meeting of the Queens’ events, and multiple world cruises.
From 2013 onwards Dave was Deputy Captain on all three Cunard Queens at various stages but predominantly on Queen Elizabeth, including Cunard’s stunning return to Alaska.
Taking command of a Cunard ship for the first time in 2017 and more permanently from 2019 onwards, is one of Dave’s greatest achievements. He considers the position to be one of the most rewarding jobs in the World.
The role of our Deputy Captains is to ensure maintenance is kept to a high standard in line with safety regulations. Bringing Queen Anne into service will require fresh thinking to overcome challenges which may arise, and the Deputy Captains will encourage all to embrace this mindset.
Deputy Captain Yuliyan Kostov
Yuliyan Kostov has been working with Cunard since 2012 as both Safety Officer and Deputy Captain. He participated in six Cunard World Voyages on both Queen Victoria and Queen Mary 2.
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Yuliyan has been a part of Queen Anne’s ship building team in Italy since April 2023, managing all aspects of compliance and operational readiness. He has been lucky enough to see Queen Anne start to take shape first hand and is excited to explore the world once again during her first World Voyage.
Deputy Captain Matthew Nicholls
Matthew Nicholls joined Carnival UK as a Cadet in 2004 and since then has worked on P&O, Princess, Ocean Village, P&O Australia and Cunard vessels.
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He was promoted to Deputy Captain in 2016 and passed the Captain’s promotion panel in 2022.
He has worked on all three current Cunard ships, most recently on Queen Mary 2 as Deputy Captain, and has been involved in the Queen Anne project since 2018. When not at sea, Matt lives in Oxfordshire with his wife and three sons.
Queen Anne’s Chief Engineers bring to the team a high level of expertise, unique insight, knowledge and dedication. They are working hard towards developing and supporting preparations to ensure Queen Anne’s seamless delivery to the fleet by meeting all the technical, training and manning requirements.
Chief Engineer Jon Cammish
Jon Cammish has 32 years’ service, starting out as a mechanic on board Royal Princess back in 1991. Queen Anne is Jon’s forth new build, having also sailed on Queen Victoria in 2007 and Queen Elizabeth in 2010 as Staff Chief Engineer.
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Jon joins Queen Anne from Queen Mary 2, where he fulfilled his ambition to sail as Chief Engineer on all three Cunard Queens.
He looks forward to bringing Queen Anne to life along with the fantastic team involved.
Chief Engineer Sinclair Ross
Sinclair Ross joins Queen Anne from P&O Cruises; sailing most recently on Azura, where he was also married on board!
Sinclair was born in Edinburgh to a sea faring family, with his father, elder brother and uncles also at sea.
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He started his career with the company in 1989 on the SS Canberra as an Assistant Engineer Officer.
He has been Chief Engineer since 2009 and was fortunate to be the Chief Engineer on Britannia when she was built, sailing with her until 2020 before joining Azura. This is Sinclair’s first time with Cunard.
Our Hotel General Managers (HGMs) are committed to working together to guide the hotel services team to ensure the successful delivery of Queen Anne, helping them to provide the best possible service for our guests and a great work environment for our colleagues working and living on board.
HGM Robert Howie
Robert Howie has been an integral part of the Cunard team since October 2004, working on Queen Mary 2 as both Food and Beverage Manager and Hotel Manager during some of her most iconic voyages.
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He has had key roles in the launch of Queen Victoria and project managed all aspects of the hotel department for Queen Elizabeth’s launch.
Queen Elizabeth was the tenth new ship that Robert has been involved with, and he is proud to have taken all three Cunard ships around the world on their Maiden World Voyages.
HGM Jacqueline Bott
For 20 years Jacqueline Bott worked her way up the ranks in the P&O Cruises Hotel Department. In 2003 she was seconded for the set-up of various aspects of the hotel department, inaugural events and cruises for the new cruise line, Ocean Village.
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In 2007 she was a major player in the hotel project team for Ventura’s launch, running the hotel operation for the inaugural cruises. She was also involved in a similar role for Britannia in 2015.
Jacqueline was honoured to work on board Cunard’s Queen Victoria in the autumn of 2015 where she quickly attained the role of HGM and has subsequently completed the role on board Queen Victoria, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth.
Our Human Resources Managers (HRMs) enable and empower the onboard leadership team to drive performance, ensuring our people are ready to make a success of the delivery of Queen Anne. They provide expert knowledge and guidance on all HR aspects, from performance and training, to crew welfare. They make sure we are compliant with all relevant regulations and play an active role in ensuring our ship’s company stay safe and well while working and living on board.
HRM Stuart Smart
Human Resources Manager Stuart Smart has worked in Human Resources for 18 years, within a variety of industries including construction, manufacturing, and professional services, before joining P&O Cruises in 2014 as the Onboard HR manager joining Aurora.
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Stuart has since worked on a number of ships across both Cunard and P&O Cruises and has supported the build and launch of both Iona and Arvia.
HRM Hannah Woodhouse
Human Resources Manager Hannah Woodhouse comes from a strong HR background shoreside, having worked in the healthcare and manufacturing sectors before transitioning to work onboard cruise ships as a HR Manager.
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Hannah joined CUK in 2022 and has worked as HR Manager on Britannia and Queen Victoria.
She is passionate about driving business success through connecting employees to purpose and working collaboratively together to achieve our goals.