The Duchess

The Duchess is the first ocean liner to be introduced in the series, appearing in the first episode, Sunshine.

Bio
The Star Tugs have a difficult time towing the Duchess, only to be hindered more by Zorran causing an accident. She makes numerous cameos throughout the series in the port, the most cameos of any ocean liner character in Tugs.

Basis

 * The Duchess seems to be based on the Cunard Line's RMS Queen Mary and/or Hamburg-America Line ship SS Imperator, which was given to the Cunard Line after World War One to replace the RMS Lusitania which was torpedoed of the coast of Ireland in 1915, and renamed Berengaria after the 12th Century English queen of the same name. Like the Imperator (Berengaria), she has 3 stacks, a open promenade, and is 919 feet long. When Captain Star says that she is "one of the biggest liners around", he means that she's not the largest liner in the world, a reference to how Imperator was surpassed by her younger sisters Leviathan and Majestic. Her nationality is British. Her stacks have the same colours as the Cunard livery though not the same pattern.

Behind the Scenes

 * The Duchess' model is later used in the series as Princess Alice and S.S. Vienna, albeit repainted and a modified funnel arrangement.

Television

 * Sunshine (does not speak)
 * Regatta (cameo, only appears on the TV Version)
 * High Tide (cameo)
 * High Winds (cameo)

Books and Annual Stories

 * Kidnapped (mentioned)
 * Nothing to Declare (mentioned)