Interior of the passenger liner 'Himalaya' (1892) showing the Music Room.

The main public rooms on the 'Himalaya' were designed by Thomas Edward Collcutt (1840-1924). Collcutt had been apprentice to G. E. Street before establishing his own practice in 1873. His commissions included the Palace Theatre and the Savoy Hotel. He was elected a president of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1906. Collcutt started working for P&O in 1891. As well as being responsible for the upgrading of ship interiors, he designed the company’s headquarters in Leadenhall Street, London, and the P&O pavilions for the Royal Naval Exhibition in 1891, and the Paris International Exhibition in 1900.