Belfast Harbour: Cruises, Cranes & Cargo

In Belfast harbour, a shipping accident 4,000 miles away has an impact on the container terminal. Ready to swing into action as the backlog starts to right itself are the terminal staff in the office, who are operating the brand new, state-of-the-art cranes from their desk.

Meanwhile, over at the old pumphouse – from where the Titanic was launched – engineer John McClory is hard at work, testing a 100-year-old crane. No longer needed for building ships, the pumphouse is being renovated for a new brand of local whiskey, and the ancient crane needs to be able to pull its weight.

At Belfast Harbour we meet Niall McQuillan, the man tasked with managing the unloading of a visiting ship. It's an early start, and they are watching the clock, as every minute the ship sits in the dock costs
money.

Down the coast, boat-based charity Citizen Sea sets sail from Bangor, working their way up to Belfast Harbour and collecting litter as they go. Meanwhile, there is a new addition to the Maritime Mile. We meet the architects – Matthew and Eunan – behind the SoundYard project, and the manufacturers who are bringing their vision to life.

Belfast Harbour Police's Sergeant William Hunter is overseeing the arrival of a new fully-equipped police boat. A traditional naming ceremony later, and they can start training with their colleagues at Lagan Search and Rescue, who know these waters well. The whole group are later put to the test for real at the Maritime Weekender Festival, when a boat gets into a bit of trouble.

The Belfast Giants are back on the ice for the first time in 18 months. We meet their new star player, JJ Piccinich, who hails from New Jersey in the US, and lives a stone's throw from the arena. We see him and his teammates get back to training, and prepare for the first game of the new season. Lifelong fan Joel Neill is ready in the stands to cheer them on.

Over in Sailortown – a part of the Harbour virtually obliterated by the construction of a motorway – there is a regeneration project underway to bring the once thriving community back to the area, starting with St. Joseph's church. We meet Terry who is heading up the massive undertaking. Although not yet restored to its former glory, the church can still serve as a community space, and one group availing of this is the Lagan Currachs, who are starting their own venture – building a boat. Volunteers Mary and Cathy help Niamh to make a start on the three-person currach.

In Belfast Harbour Cruise ships make a welcome return and we meet former shipping agent Gary Hall, who now works for the Harbour Commissioners, and is tasked with overseeing all cruise ship arrivals of the season. On the stunning Sky Princess are travel vloggers Rich and Helen from Norwich, who are visiting Belfast for the first time. A dry spell of weather means they have the best possible day in Belfast while the ship is docked, including a tour of the Titanic Belfast museum.
Meanwhile, would-be trucker Rhys Brady is hoping to make the step up from office support to HGV driver, taking his test with the help of his mentor Stevie. If he passes, he'll help fill a space in the estimated 100,000 UK driver shortage.
We return to the Lagan Currachs, who are finishing off their new 3-person boat. Mary and Cathy are excited to see it all come together, but the question of course is whether it will float!
Something no boat can do without is a humble rope, and putting his decades of experience to good use is Davy, who makes a mooring rope by hand.
Also helping things to run smoothly is Curtis Wilson, who we see running a simulation of an oil spill – what needs to be done in such a situation? We see Curtis and his team use 300 oranges to act as the spill, so that they can practise their manoeuvres should an oil spill happen for real. Never a dull moment in Belfast Harbour!