Stunning pictures: Cunard's Queen Anne cruise ship arrives in Liverpool for naming ceremony - gallery

Cunard’s new Queen Anne liner arrived in Liverpool early on Monday morning ahead of a spectacular naming ceremony at Pier Head.

Her arrival attracted large numbers of spectators along the banks of the River Mersey and waterfront as the £600m ship made her maiden call to her spiritual home. Liverpool was the birthplace of Cunard with its first transatlantic crossing departing 184 years ago in July 1840, and it was the company’s headquarters for 128 years.

Cunard ships have previously attracted more than a million spectators to the banks of the Mersey. Huge crowds turned out in 1990, and in 2015 for the Three Queens ‘royal rendezvous’ in front of the Cunard Building to celebrate its 175th anniversary.

And thousands of people are expected to descend on the waterfront on Monday afternoon when the official naming ceremony of Cunard’s latest liner, Queen Anne, takes place at Pier Head.

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The free event will be headlined by iconic Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and hosted by TV presenter Emma Willis and Busted star Matt Willis. The festivities will also feature a performance by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and a funk and soul DJ set from Craig Charles.

The ship arrived in Liverpool around 7.00am and photographer Ian Fairchild was there  to capture the moment in a series of stunning images.