23 Apr, 2010 @ 17:53
1 min read

Marooned Britons hitch luxury ride home from Spain

TWO thousand British tourists who were trapped in Spain will soon be docking in Southampton.

Due to arrive between 1700 BST and 1900 BST, some 2,200 holidaymakers will shortly arrive back in the UK after being rescued from Bilbao by a luxury cruise ship.

The sight of the 500-million euro Celebrity Eclipse was a dream come true to Britons stuck in Spain after the Icelandic volcano eruption grounded their flights.

“What better way to bless a new ship than by doing a small bit of good in a very big problem.”

After days of uncertainty and camping out on airport floors, they were finally able to relax and enjoy five-star service served up by the lavish ferry.

Tourists were offered champagne as they enjoyed the free ride home – paid for by travel companies Thomson, First Choice, Thomas Cook and Cooperative Group.

Many Britons had endured epic coach journeys to reach Bilbao from all over Spain.

The brand-new liner had been scheduled to complete a promotional mini-cruise, but instead made its first journey from Southampton to rescue the marooned tourists.

Richard Fain, chairman of Celebrity Cruises, said: “What better way to bless a new ship than by doing a small bit of good in a very big problem.”

Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)

Jon Clarke is a Londoner who worked at the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday as an investigative journalist before moving to Spain in 2003 where he helped set up the Olive Press.

After studying Geography at Manchester University he fell in love with Spain during a two-year stint teaching English in Madrid.

On returning to London, he studied journalism and landed his first job at the weekly Informer newspaper in Teddington, covering hundreds of stories in areas including Hounslow, Richmond and Harrow.

This led on to work at the Sunday Telegraph, Sunday Mirror, Standard and even the Sun, before he landed his first full time job at the Daily Mail.

After a year on the Newsdesk he worked as a Showbiz correspondent covering mostly music, including the rise of the Spice Girls, the rivalry between Oasis and Blur and interviewed many famous musicians such as Joe Strummer and Ray Manzarak, as well as Peter Gabriel and Bjorn from Abba on his own private island.

After a year as the News Editor at the UK’s largest-selling magazine Now, he returned to work as an investigative journalist in Features at the Mail on Sunday.

As well as tracking down Jimi Hendrix’ sole living heir in Sweden, while there he also helped lead the initial investigation into Prince Andrew’s seedy links to Jeffrey Epstein during three trips to America.

He had dozens of exclusive stories, while his travel writing took him to Jamaica, Brazil and Belarus.

He is the author of three books; Costa Killer, Dining Secrets of Andalucia and My Search for Madeleine.

Contact jon@theolivepress.es

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