DES KIRKPATRICK:   1932-2024

By Bill Miller

“His shell is just a shell. His spirit is free to travel again (and what he loved most)” from Angson Sim

How very fortunate:  I knew Des Kirkpatrick for almost 40 years.   He became a dear & cherished friend – and altogether was a most remarkable man.  I’ve known many world travelers, for example, but very few as well traveled as Des – he’d been from Bombay to Bhutan, and from Angola to Antarctica.   He also rode the great liners and tiny Arctic expedition ships, flew just about everywhere, rode trains & mountain jeeps (and, yes, camels too), and even made 2 trips on the supersonic Concorde.   It was an extraordinary life, all beginning from a small, Depression-era village outside Manchester in the north of England.   

But his grand journey came unexpectedly to an end on December 17^th.   Des passed away following a fall and an illness.    He will be deeply missed – and altogether is irreplaceable.  

(PS:   And, by the way and just in case you might need to know,  was there possibly any place still on Des’s bucket list?   Well, yes – the ancient ruins at Lalibela in Ethiopia;  the monasteries at Mount Athos in Greece;  the lost city of Petra in Jordan;  and the Copper Canyon in Mexico.   Well, perhaps his next lifetime!)

In kindness, Des himself tells part of his story in his Foreword for my latest book Serving on the Big Ships, published by Fonthill Media over in the UK.  And so and among other ways, he & his words & his life’s story will live on.

For me, life at sea, working on ships, has been wonderful.  Growing-up outside Manchester and surviving the dark, austere days of World War II, my very first time outside the UK was over seventy years ago,  back in 1950.   I was eighteen, in the British Army and stationed in Austria.   That posting ignited my interest in travel, to see the world, visit new places.

Before the Army, I had worked for the Manchester Ship Canal in their head offices.  When I returned, I was re-hired, but to the harbormaster’s office in the Salford Docks.   I would see all the ships, coming and going, and wondered where they had been and where they were headed.   At lunchtime, I wandered along the docks, saw the ships at berth and even visited some of them.  My curiosity about ships and travel was peaked further.

Later, I wrote to several shipping lines and Royal Mail Lines was the first to reply.  I was summoned to London, interviewed and soon hired.  I became the ship’s clerk (and later promoted to assistant purser and then full purser).  My first ship was an elderly freighter, the Gascony, which then was the second oldest in the Royal Mail fleet and managed to survive the War.   I had a little cabin just aft of the funnel.  I earned 3 or 4 pounds a week ($25-30).   The Gascony was very, very slow and made only about 10 knots at best.   She just crept, it seemed.   On one voyage I recall it took us three weeks to go from Kingston, Jamaica to London.   We carried sugar and lots of rum.

I later served on Royal Mail’s luxurious flagship Andes and then joined the Furness-Bermuda Line and served on their Ocean Monarch.  My interest in travel continued and grew steadily – and ships were the “vessels” to travel, to see the world.  And life at sea is interesting and rewarding in itself and, especially on passenger ships, where you could meet all sorts of people.   

I have been very fortunate to have had a life of travel, much of it in ships.  I am therefore happy to write this Foreword to Bill Miller’s latest book of recollections of staff and crew of so many ships.

Des Kirkpatrick

New York City

Spring 2022

Former shipmate Dave Townsend from up in Canada wrote:

It was 61 years ago this month (December) that I first met Des, when I joined Furness-Bermuda liner Ocean Monarch in New York after my first jet flight.  My BOAC 707 was hours late out of Manchester and I found the ship almost deserted, but the officer of the watch kindly led me up to what turned out to be Des’s empty cabin to wait for my new “family” to return from their evening ashore.  The glass door of his liquor cabinet framed an aerial photograph of his almost eponymous Royal Mail cargo ship Deseado.

Less than three weeks later, we assistant pursers gathered in that same cabin, somewhere at sea, and toasted the New Year with what Des had magnificently mixed in a large silver bowl borrowed from the galley: the first and finest egg nog I ever tasted.

So this time of year always reminds me of Des.  As usual, I’ll have to make do with the store-bought kind, but I’ll be toasting his memory with it this year.

After time on the New York-Bermuda cruise circuit (1966), Des went on to plan extensive tours & shore excursions for the mighty American Express Company in their Lower Manhattan headquarters, then did the same but uptown for the impeccable Swedish American Line and finally  dabbled in exotic adventures & tours for select Lindblad Travel (including countless jaunts to Antarctica, stays in Indian palaces, a ride on the Trans-Siberian Express and even a lengthy stint in a guest house in the still-restricted Forbidden City in Beijing).  He also hosted Lady Bird Johnson on a Nile River cruise, looked after Mr & Mrs Howard Johnson on a 125-night circumnavigation of the globe and charmed more than a few bejeweled dowagers.  He rode in the cockpit of a small plane over soaring, roaring South American waterfalls, helped a navigating office to, well, navigate, off Venezuela and assisted the captain while getting the liner Kungsholm off a sandbar in the Caribbean.  Yes, all in a day’s work – and Des had his many adventures! 

But Des’s story doesn’t stop with travel and ships & the sea.   He was also a remarkable, most learned and all but madly enthusiastic collector – mostly of very vintage, usually 17^th & 18^th century English porcelain   And let’s throw in some select Chinese & Japanese pieces as well. And while collecting, thousands of pieces in all, he also amassed a vast knowledge of the same subject.  Just days ago, he spouted off the lineage of some ornate English bowl, a gold-trimmed butter dish and a well crafted little jam pot.  He also learned to spot, say, a 17^th century Worcester teapot at a 1,000 feet – say in some Manhattan antique shop, Connecticut country flea  market or even a roadside garage sale.  His apartment, in Lower Manhattan’s East Village, was absolutely museum standard.   Cups and saucers and plates were mounted, in glass-shielded display cabinets, like soldiers at rigid attention.   But there was more – no, much more – crystal, glassware, paintings, unique “souvenirs & keepsakes & little treasures” from the likes of Afghanistan, Ghana, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Upper as well as Lower Mongolia, and add some pinhead island in the South Pacific.   And then there were shelves & cabinets of other diverse collectibles and of course books, 1000s of books.   Saturday & Sunday afternoons in Manhattan were happy times for “Des the Collector”. His eyes & senses & intuitions were very keen.    Other items made their way home from journeys, from the likes of Hong Kong, Sydney, London and Tokyo in carefully packed cases, aircraft overheads and under the beds in the staterooms of ships.   Yes, Des also became a master at packing, safe & secure packing, at that.    

From down in Bermuda, another Furness-Bermuda Line shipmate Allan Davidson wrote:

We shared our sea-going days without realizing that they were not repeatable. When Judi and I got married, Des took a voyage off, in Bermuda and he was the only Furness representative present! He also came to our 50th Anniversary!

After I went into the retail trade, I was the Smith’s [dept store] China Buyer and discovered that both Des and I shared a great appreciation for the artistry and beauty of the product. He certainly had some very interesting pieces in his collection!

From Shropshire over in England, Howard Franklin wrote:

I remember when he was staying with me here in Shropshire, I took him to the Coalport Museum. Coalport is a small village in the Ironbridge Gorge, and originates in Shropshire. He was like a child in a sweet shop! And so very knowledgeable on the exquisite pieces we were viewing, I can vividly picture his excitement at seeing such spectacular exhibits.

Des emigrated to the USA (to join a ship and for a future career in shipping) in the late ‘50s on the grand old Queen Mary and went on to sail the seas on dozens of great ocean liners:   the United States, France, Michelangelo, Bergensfjord, Rotterdam, Kungsholm, Argentina, QE2 and Queen Mary 2.   Years later, we took dozens of trips together as well – Australia, Siberia, South Africa, the Amazon, New Zealand, Alaska, the Norwegian fjords.  As recently as this last month, he was thinking of yet another jaunt (next spring was the plan and “his final trip!”) over to his beloved Japan and maybe squeeze in a cruise to another favorite spot, Bermuda.  

Des had many other useful skills & interests.   He all but memorized the immense bus & subway system of New York City (it seemed he could get anywhere & all on a senior ticket), followed the City’s exhibition circuit (from themes such as Sudanese vases to antique Italian jewelry) and, in his otherwise small kitchen,  whipped-up  some of the very best deviled eggs this side of Cleveland.   He was also always a fine, caring host – drinks & what he called “nibbles”.   He also had some favorite neckties, always had his little camera in hand and was rarely seen without his blue Lindblad carry-on bag.  He also much enjoyed documentaries on nature, classic old films, steam locomotives, the morning news and, rather expectedly, was totally loyal to weekly episodes of Antiques Road Show.

One of my great, good fortunes in life was to know Des.   He was kind, interesting, funny, so very knowledgeable & on so many subjects – and so much more.  Expectedly, I have a million memories & images of him.   But one that springs readily & happily to mind was a suddenly showery afternoon in Southampton, England.   We were walking to our hotel when the clouds opened.   Quickly, we fled to a shop & bought folding umbrellas, if merely inexpensive ones.   En route and while crossing a large park, gusts of wind formed and which soon ripped the black fabric from Des’s umbrella.   There he was standing in the pouring rain and suddenly holding upright nothing more than 5 or 6 empty umbrella spokes.  We just laughed and laughed!  

The ever-beautiful Margo Singaliese penned an added tribute:  I am so sorry for your loss of dear Des. Whenever we were in the same company, he had that rare gift of true interest in the other person. Never self-possessed, he always made me feel deliciously seen. Such a generous man!  A bright light has gone out, but I’m sure you’re thankful for the many years of your friendship. I’m happy Michael is your angel.  I am always here for you for a chat, a visit, a hug. Ahhhh, dear sweet Desmond, his spirit lives in you.

From over in northern England, Des’s niece Fiona sent this comforting selection:

Des has one sister in England, but herself struggling with dementia … the photo (above), from 2008 & seen in Alaska, is the one that she keeps by her bedside

And Below:    Des & younger sister Jean in a long ago snapshot (early 1940s) & holding a wartime soldier’s guns

Conclusion:   And from down in Florida, Sir Allan Duddle added: “I am so very sad. Memories, memories, memories!   Des was a most wonderful and special person to me in all my cherished years at sea … a dear buddy … sharing our cocktails each evening before facing the passengers. We laughed, we joked, we enjoyed each day. Now I have just the memories!” 

Breanna Sinclairé, de San Francisco, faz sua estreia sul-americana no Festival Virtuosi em Recife, Brasil, em 14 de dezembro

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(415) 676-7007

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Breanna Sinclairé, de San Francisco, faz sua estreia sul-americana no Festival Virtuosi em Recife, Brasil, em 14 de dezembro

Soprano trans pioneira destaca a diversidade e a arte da ópera americana no XXVI Festival Virtuosi Rafael Garcia

10 de dezembro de 2024 – San Francisco, CA: A aclamada soprano Breanna Sinclairé, celebrada por suas conquistas inovadoras e apresentações internacionais, fará sua tão esperada estreia sul-americana no XXVI Festival Virtuosi Rafael Garcia, que ocorre de 11 a 15 de dezembro de 2024, em Recife, Brasil.

Conhecida por sua carreira histórica, voz poderosa e capacidade de se conectar com públicos ao redor do mundo, a apresentação de Sinclairé destaca o compromisso do Festival Virtuosi com o diálogo cultural e a excelência musical.

Natural de Baltimore e graduada pelo Conservatório de Música de San Francisco, Sinclairé fez história como a primeira mulher trans a concluir o prestigiado programa de ópera da instituição. Além de seus papéis célebres em Carmen, A Flauta Mágica, L’enfant et les sortilèges e West Side Story, Sinclairé se apresentou em cidades importantes como San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Berlim, Amsterdã e Toronto, cativando audiências internacionais com sua arte. Ela também apareceu em redes nacionais de televisão nos Estados Unidos, incluindo United Shades of America da CNN com W. Kamau Bell e a transmissão nacional True Colors da PBS. Sinclairé foi a primeira cantora trans a interpretar o hino nacional dos Estados Unidos em um grande evento esportivo profissional, durante um jogo do Oakland As em 2015.

“A música transcende fronteiras, oferecendo-nos uma linguagem universal de expressão e conexão,” disse Sinclairé. “Apresentar-me no Festival Virtuosi não é apenas uma honra, mas um sonho realizado — trazer minha história, minha voz e meu coração ao Brasil. Estou emocionada em compartilhar a tradição do festival de celebrar a música como uma força que nos une.”

Fundado em 1998, o Festival Virtuosi continua sendo uma pedra angular da cena musical clássica do Brasil, oferecendo concertos gratuitos, masterclasses e programas educacionais em todo o estado de Pernambuco. O festival tem recebido artistas renomados, promovendo intercâmbio cultural e incentivando a educação musical.

“O Festival Virtuosi sempre celebrou o talento artístico de todo o mundo,” afirmou a cofundadora do Festival e pianista Ana Lúcia Altino. “Estamos honrados em receber Breanna Sinclairé, cujo talento, história e voz inspirarão e ressoarão com o público, enriquecendo o cenário cultural do Brasil.”

Embora seja uma celebração poderosa da música e da arte, a apresentação de Sinclairé em Recife também é reconhecida por sua importância como um exemplo de diplomacia cultural.

Sobre o Festival Virtuosi Rafael Garcia:

Estabelecido em 1998, o Festival Virtuosi Rafael Garcia é um dos principais eventos de música clássica do Brasil, destacando talentos nacionais e internacionais e promovendo a educação musical e a apreciação cultural. Para mais informações sobre o Festival Virtuosi e sua programação, visite https://www.festivalvirtuosi.com.br.

media contact:

David Perry & Associates, Inc

(415) 676-7007

news@davidperry.com

San Francisco’s Breanna Sinclairé Makes South American Debut at the Virtuosi Festival in Recife, Brazil December 14

Trailblazing Transgender soprano to showcase the diversity and artistry of American opera at the XXVI Virtuosi Rafael Garcia Festival

10 December 2024 – San Francisco, CA: Acclaimed operatic soprano Breanna Sinclairé, celebrated for her groundbreaking achievements and international performances, will make her highly anticipated South American debut at the XXVI Virtuosi Rafael Garcia Festival, December 11–15, 2024, in Recife, Brazil. Known for her historic career, powerful voice, and ability to connect with audiences across the globe, Sinclairé’s performance underscores the Virtuosi Festival’s commitment to cultural dialogue and musical excellence.

A Baltimore native and graduate of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Sinclairé made history as the first transgender woman to complete the institution’s prestigious opera program. In addition to her celebrated operatic roles in Carmen, The Magic Flute, L’enfant et les sortilèges, and West Side Story, Sinclairé has performed in major cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, DC, Berlin, Amsterdam, and Toronto captivating international audiences with her artistry. She has also appeared on U.S. national television, including CNN’s United Shades of America with W. Kamau Belland PBS’s national broadcast True Colors. Sinclairé was the first transgender singer to perform the U.S. National Anthem at a major league professional sporting event, for the Oakland As in 2015.

“Music transcends boundaries, offering us a universal language of expression and connection, said Sinclairé. “To perform at the Virtuosi Festival is not just an honor, but a dream realized—to bring my story, my voice, and my heart to Brazil. I am thrilled to share in the festival’s tradition of celebrating music as a force that unites us all.”

Founded in 1998, the Virtuosi Festival remains a cornerstone of Brazil’s classical music scene, featuring free concerts, masterclasses, and educational programs across Pernambuco. The festival has hosted renowned artists while nurturing cultural exchange and fostering musical education.

“The Virtuosi Festival has always celebrated artistic talent from around the globe,” said Festival co-founder and pianist Ana Lúcia Altino. We are honored to welcome Breanna Sinclairé, whose talent, story, and voice will inspire and resonate with audiences while enriching Brazil’s cultural landscape.”

While a powerful celebration of music and artistry, Sinclairé’s performance in Recife is also being recognized for its significance as a example of cultural diplomacy.

About the Virtuosi Rafael Garcia Festival:

The Virtuosi Rafael Garcia Festival, established in 1998, is one of Brazil’s premier classical music events, showcasing national and international talent while fostering music education and cultural appreciation. For more information about the Virtuosi Festival and its programming, please visit https://www.festivalvirtuosi.com.br