A British yachtsman rescued by the luxury cruise liner Queen Mary 2 has praised the crew and said he has been treated "like a prince".

Former Royal Marine Mervyn Wheatley, 73, was picked up by the ship after getting caught up in a tempest taking part in a transatlantic race.

The experienced sailor thanked those involved as he admitted that he had dropped his former prejudices about cruise travel after swapping his austere conditions for a luxury state room.

"I may be a little less snooty about cruise ships now," he told The Times.

Mr Wheatley was one of several yachtsman caught up in the "extreme" storm while undertaking a solo crossing of the North Atlantic for the Original Singlehanded Transatlantic Race (Ostar).

Tossed around in 15m waves and lashed by winds reaching 80mph, his boat Tamarind, was knocked on its side off Canada and started taking on water through a broken window.

Mr Wheatley, of Devon, initially attempted to bail out the ship and rescue himself using a garden hose, but gradually realised it was time to call for help.

"It would have put a lot of strain on my family. I also realised things were getting pretty marginal," he told The Times.

A cargo ship tried to pick him up after his distress call at 4am on Friday, but they were not properly equipped to bring him on deck.

Coastguards then announced that the QM2 was in the area and would be taking him onboard.

Passengers greeted him with applause as he and the rescue boat were hoisted on to the 10th deck.

"I deliberately didn't acknowledge it because I didn't deserve it. The people who deserved it were the boat crew," he said.

He was then invited to attend dinner with the captain in a borrowed jacket

"I think I did incomparably better being rescued by the QM2, certainly as far as the aftercare is concerned," he said.

"I have been treated like a prince."