Of course one hopes for Happily Ever After

'Of course one hopes for Happily Ever After' referenced the launch of bulk ore carrier Lake Illawarra in 1950s Whyalla, juxtaposing the pomp and circumstance with the eventual wreck of the ship on the floor of the Derwent River. The poem, not least in its title, draws implicit comparisons between the launch (complete with vows, music, telegrams, a banquet, the 'launching lady') and a wedding.