In pictures: Queen unveils the newly restored Cutty Sark

AFTER surviving the roughest seas and a devastating fire, a “spectacular” Cutty Sark was unveiled by the Queen today after a £50 million restoration project.

The world’s last remaining tea clipper has been restored to her heyday when she carried goods from around the globe back to England.

It has been 55 years since the Queen first opened the maritime attraction to the public, and today she returned to repeat the ceremony but for a Cutty Sark now in a dramatic new setting.

Richard Doughty, director of the Cutty Sark Trust, described the vessel as “spectacular” and said: “We have a ship fit for the Queen and we’re very proud Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh have come to open the site.

“Fifty-five years on from when she first came, it’s a very different experience, offering a light environment in the Cutty Sark’s new elevated position.”

The director said the wealth of positive public feeling towards the clipper was overwhelming when residents were given a free tour of the vessel at the weekend - “people have invested love in this ship to put it back together again”, he said.

The clipper is now displayed in a stunning setting, lifted more than 11ft (3.4m) above its dry berth in Greenwich, south east London, and is once again a major landmark.