FOR many, reading about the sinking of the Titanic can be quite a fascinating pastime, writes Helen Pusey.

In 2012, this was heightened when the centenary of the disaster was remembered and I learnt of a relative who survived the tragedy.

He was William Robert Holland Pusey, born in Hythe, Southampton on March 1, 1890. He married Edith-Kate Prince from Shrivenham, Berkshire. The couple had four children — Eric Prince, Florence Edith, Olive Ellen and Marjorie.

Robert was a fireman aboard the Osceola in 1911, docked off Southwick, Sussex, when he signed onto the Titanic on April 6, 1912. At this point, he gave his boarding address as 18 Briton Street, Southampton. The last ship he had worked on was the St Paul. His wages were £6 a month.

He was one of a dozen occupants rescued in emergency lifeboat1. At the British inquiry, Robert said a conversation regarding money had occurred around 3am, almost an hour after the sinking. He added that the discussion took place after Lucy Duff-Gordon said to Mabel Francatelli: “There is your beautiful nightdress gone.”

Hearing this, Robert replied: “Never mind, you have saved your lives.”

Afterwards he complained that other crew members, himself included, had lost everything and pay had stopped from the time the Titanic went down.

Cosmo Duff Gordon, first class passenger, responded by saying: “I will give you a fiver each to start a new kit.”

Each crew member on lifeboat1 received a five pound cheque on April 16, once they had been rescued by the ship, Carpathia.

Having read what happened after the Titanic sank, I learned not only were wages stopped as soon as the ship went down, but two weeks later relatives such as Andrew Hume allegedly received a bill for the White Star Line brass buttons and epaulettes on his son’s uniform.

His son, Jock, had been one of the band members, who continued to play as the ship plunged further into the abyss. He had managed to complete all five verses of ‘Nearer My God to Thee’, without missing a single note.

The band remained even though most of their audience had left. They only stopped when the ship reached its tipping point and they could no longer hear themselves due to the noise the Titanic was making.

Colonel Archibald Grave, another survivor, was believed to have said: “It was a noise no one had heard before and no one wishes to hear again.”

As the ship went down and he found himself in the water, he said: “It was stupefying, stupendous.”

Ironically for Robert Pusey, he would not have had time for such thoughts on May 28 1918, as he worked once more as a fireman with the Mercantile Marine Reserve on the trawler, HMS Dirk, a patrol boat. He was torpedoed by the UC 75 off Flamborough Head, Yorkshire.

Although his body was not recovered, he is remembered on the Plymouth Naval memorial. He was 28 years old.

Robert’s story finished there, but the Titanic story continues. In 2018, there will be a Titanic II, an exacting replica costing $43million, funded by the Australian billionaire, Clive Palmer.

It is believed that the ship will be four metres wider to meet current maritime safety regulations. The hull will be riveted and not welded like before.

Tickets will be available for 1st, 2nd and 3rd class passengers. There are expected to be nine floors, 840 cabins for 2,400 passengers and a crew of 900. It will include a swimming pool, gyms, Turkish baths, and, of course, the grand staircase. Her maiden voyage will be from China to Dubai.