Brunel’s ss Great Britain, the world’s first iron hulled, propeller driven, and steam-powered passenger liner rests in the Listed dry dock in Bristol from where she was launched in 1843. Following a successful initial Heritage Lottery bid – for both essential preservation work to the historic ship and dockyard and for enhancement of the site’s attraction and amenities – Alec French Architects was selected, in competition, as architect for the project. The project has won numerous awards including the Gulbenkian Prize for Best Museum of 2006 and the 2007 Crown Estate Conservation Award. Preservation work was centred around the insertion of a glass plate at water-line level as a horizontal glass ‘sea’; allowing beneath it the dehumidification essential to the ship’s preservation. Extensive new interpretation has also been completed to the ship’s interior, which also discretely absorbs new services and access. A new museum/educational interpretation centre was located within an extensively refurbished and remodelled existing dockside shed. In addition Alec French have designed a new timber cafe on the harboursided completed in 2007 and are currently involved in the design of a new Brunel Archive building due on site in 2010.