Blast from the past! 1940s photo shows British performer Christina Ratcliffe near Sliema’s ‘Steam Ferry’ pier
A photograph dating back to the 1940s has resurfaced on social media, telling a story that some may not have heard. It features the British singer and dancer Christina Ratcliffe striding along the pier which acted as the landing stage for the ‘National Steam Ferry Boat Company’.
Christina Ratcliffe first visited Malta in 1937, and later changed career to become an aircraft plotter in Malta in the Second World War, working in the underground Royal Air Force operational headquarters beneath Lascaris Bastion in Valletta.
The story of Christina and other British and Maltese women employed by the RAF is told in the book ‘Ladies of Lascaris’ by Paul McDonald, and was brought to the stage through Philip Glassborow’s hit musical ‘Star of Strait Street’. The latter was staged at the Phoenicia Hotel during Valletta 2018, and even overseas at the Chichester Festival in England.
The National Steam Ferry Boat Company was set up in 1897 to carry passengers and goods between Marsamxett and Sliema and other designated points. The Sliema landing place was next to the Marine Police Station, opposite what we now know as Tower Road, travelling to and from ‘Il-Fossa’ on the Valletta side. These ferries paved the way for the ferries we know today that still carry passengers to and from Valletta on a regular basis.
Had you ever heard of Christina Ratcliffe and her role in the RAF?