She was launched and named on 20 September 1967 by Queen Elizabeth II, using the same pair of gold scissors her mother and grandmother used to launch "Queen Elizabeth" and "Queen Mary", respectively. After the bottle of champagne was smashed the QE2 stayed put on the slipway for 90 seconds before being let free. On 19 November 1968, she left John Brown's fitting out berth. Several industrial disputes with the Clydebank workers, with their resultant delays and quality issues, forced Cunard to transfer the ship to Southampton, where Vosper Thorneycroft completed the installation and commissioning work, prior to the sea trials.