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H.M.S. Ulster

Memories of Ulster

Ulster crew of 1958-60 can record their memories here for others to see and remember what was a great commission.

SA (V) Jess Owens  Leading Seaman John Rowe Ordinary Seaman Norrie Millen Lieutenant Commander Bill Higgins Obituary  Able Seaman Edward [Eddie] Abbass

PERSONAL MEMORIES OF THE ‘ULSTER’
Jess Owens [SA (V)]

During the Fishery Protection leg of the commission the Trawler man who’s hands got caught up in the trawl recovery winch and came on board for treatment. The hours that Doc Stancliffe stayed awake with him, I relieved him on a couple of occasions when he just crashed out in the chair from sheer exhaustion.

The laughs we used to have in the Tiller Flat all huddled together (because of the cold) when we closed up for Action Stations because Gunboat Thor used to be a threat to the Trawlers we were protecting in one of the sectors.
Also the Rubber Dinghy returning to the ship after bumming all the fish from the Trawlers, we ate well without any cost to the ships victualling allowance.

You must remember the day when Henry Higgins the Supply Officer decided to change the Naval tradition of issuing the Rum by using an optic, what a mess we were in, more tots short than when I or Butch Hutchin did the issue.

Playing Uckers in the Stewards Mess (the railway carriage) they always fancied their chances especially Pete Twyman and the Sprog of the mess Godbert who always fancied his chances as well.

Going ashore with Pricky Price (LME) in Key West, we were hitchhiking up the keys when we took a break for a beer at one of the local bars. The barman refused to serve Pricky because he was black, needless to say we gave him some stick, the police was called and with guns drawn we were thrown out of the bar bodily and had to return to the ship because our whites were in such a state.

A Canadian ship visiting Bermuda, two of the crew stole a bus and crashed into the Power Grid blacking out half of the islands electricity.

The same crew gave us a hard time at the club and a punch up started, we held our end up but Searl (SA(S)) and Ted Longhurst (AB) was grounded by a couple of well placed right hooks.

Remember the Zandap bikes we used to hire in Bermuda, we all have good memories of them. I can remember racing Topsy Topping the Officers Cook back from Hamilton to Island Island when on a bend he went straight through a hedge. The owners were having afternoon drinks on the lawn when he zoomed passed them lifting his bonnet and said good afternoon all before zooming out of the hedge again.

The memories of this commission is so long that it would take a book to tell them all, the grippo’s, silver dollars being thrown on the decks at A Thousand Islands, Dories Bar in Jamaica, clewing up at a funeral, and the Crib match with the mayor of Port Alfred to name but a few.

What made this particular commission of the Ulster different was it that we just moulded as one or that we were out on a limb or was it that we had good leadership. There just didn’t seem to be any demarcation between branches or rank we were all in the same boat. I went on to serve on the Brighton and Galatea also a short stint on Submarines but alas either the navy or comradeship had changed.
Being a true Jack Dusty I went out when the Rum did.

This site is great and I am certain that I will be meeting up or hearing from a few oppo’s from the good old days, take care and thanks for the memories.

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Pride before the fall
by John Rowe

An amusing incident that occurred on the jetty at Ireland Island will be of interest to our “Ulstermen”.  Amusing that is to the watchers! For those of you that have served in Bermuda, you know the majority of us used to ride around on mopeds, Zundapps mostly.  No licence was required, they were cheap to hire and were great fun.

But Arnie Hurst [L/Sea] looked down on mopeds. You see Arnie had an international driving licence, no less. We know that, for he was forever telling anyone he could get trapped in a corner about it, ad nauseam. So for Arnie it had to be a motorbike! It wasn't a big bike but it was Arnie’s pride and joy.

One Sunday afternoon there were quite a few lads on deck and some on the jetty, when Arnie rode up on his motorbike. Observing the lads on the jetty he made a beeline for them and skidded to a halt with an impressive cloud of dust. He then regaled the group with the intricacies of his motorbike and the skill required to ride it. After a while some lads obviously getting bored started drifting away, so Arnie set about his departure.

Kick starting his bike he sat for a minute or so revving it up, making an impressive noise and attracting the attention of everyone on deck. Giving an extra boost to the throttle he let the clutch in for a grand departure. Arnie did not realize that the jetty had a surface of loose gravel and dust where he had parked, so what with high revs and quick release of the clutch Arnie went one way and his motor bike went another, in fact nearly making it into the harbour. Arnie then received the biggest cheer that he is ever likely to get from the watching audience.

A red faced not so grand departure.

---

The following is an excerpt from the book "Pings & Things" written by webmaster on his Royal Naval career.  He makes no apologies for any inaccuracies in dates or place  and has relied on a very dodgy memory to record the facts of his career.

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Memories of Ulster
Norrie Millen

Pre-joining

We were one of the last UC courses to pass through 'Osprey'.  Shortly afterwards all TAS training was centralised at Portsmouth in HMS Vernon as part of defence cuts and the small TAS schools in various commands were all shut.

The day our course finished; we were fallen in outside the regulating office to be awarded our UC badges and given sea drafts [postings]. The way we were 'selected' for the two available ships was very scientific.  The Drafting RPO strolled along and counted off about two-thirds of the platoon and said:

"From here to the left - HMS Blackpool, the remainder HMS Ulster"

We knew that the 'Blackpool' was a brand new Type 12 A/S frigate and the 'Ulster' an old wartime "U" Class destroyer converted into a Type 15 A/S frigate.  Those of us in the 'Ulster' party were a little envious of those detailed for 'Blackpool'.   However looking back, I am glad I was 'selected' for the older ship for reasons that will become apparent later in this account.

We still had a few weeks before our drafts, so once again we were employed around the camp and the dockyard on a variety of tasks.  One bit of excitement about this time was watching the world’s first nuclear powered submarine 'USS Nautilus' race into the harbour at high speed on her first overseas visit.  It was soon time for Summer Leave and on to join my first ship.  I had found out that she was to be stationed in Bermuda and during the next eighteen months would be conducting cruises to the West Indies, South America and the United States.  This was really exciting information as in those days it seemed to be everybody's ambition to visit America.

After my leave; I did not have too far to travel to join my ship.  She was currently Plymouth based, about forty miles from my parents home at Teignmouth.  I had been issued instructions to join Royal Naval Barracks at Devonport by 1600 hours the day my leave expired.  I soon found the 'Ulster' liaison officer, carried out a temporary joining routine and was allocated a billet in the barracks for the night.

HMS Ulster 1958-60

The next morning we were called fairly early and marched down to the ship.  A final clean up before the commissioning ceremony that was to take place in the afternoon had been ordered by the Captain.  Most of the ships company had been onboard for several weeks so it was just finishing touches.  This was completed by 1100; after which we were all briefed on the procedure for the afternoon's ceremony.  Guests had been permitted; therefore I had invited my mother along to attend.   On completion of the brief we were marched back to barracks to get lunch and clean into our No.1 uniforms.  During the lunch break we were detailed off to go down to the drill shed and put our name labels on the hammocks that were made up waiting for us there. (We had to return our personal blanket and hammocks at St Vincent as they had been transferred from personal kit issue to loan clothing items.)

After the lunch break; we were fell in by divisions and were inspected by our new divisional officers prior to the Captain looking us over.  On completion of the Captains Inspection (Commander Cameron Rusby) we marched as a ships company to the ship; led by the barrack Royal Marine Band.  On arrival at the ship; a distance of about two miles; we were marched single file onto the foc'sle of the ship. This being the only area large enough onboard to accommodate the entire ships company for the commissioning service. I quickly realised to my horror that my mother was the only guest bedside the captain’s wife and therefore came in for some cruel ribbing from my chums.  The commissioning ceremony proceeded without hitch until shortly before the end when the Captain asked of the company:

"What do you fear?" the crew responding;

"We fear nothing"

The heavens suddenly burst open and torrential rain poured down.  The ships company were quickly dispersed and rushed below to shelter in their individual messes.  I was obviously not allowed to take my mother below in those days; so had to make do with the Quartermaster's lobby at the ships brow.   The QM asked if my mother would care for a cup of tea; which she was delighted to accept.  It was a real serviceman's brew; so thick you could have stood the spoon up in it; laced with canned evaporated milk and an estimated two tablespoons full of sugar.  Putting on a brave face my mother drank it down which was quite a feat as she was accustomed to taking her tea rather weak with no sugar and fresh milk.  We never had the luxury of fresh milk in the RN until many years later.

After my mother had departed for home; I went below to my mess to unpack, stow my kit and change out of my best uniform.   As I was part of the Foc'sle division, I was accommodated right for'ard in the lower mess deck.  Later in the commission a decision was made to form a Juniors Division and I would be moved back aft away from the older and more experienced seaman.  The rest of the evening was spent sorting my kit out and getting it stowed away plus getting a lot of ribbing from the older hands.

It was soon bed time or "Pipe down" as it is known in the navy.  This meant getting our hammocks out of the stowage and getting them slung between two bars or hooks depending on billet allocated.  The older hands sat back and watched us struggle with obvious amusement at our antics.  It was one thing to do it in training in a large room with no distractions; quite another in a small mess deck with fifty or so other matelot’s trying to sling at the same time.  A couple of the more experienced and helpful able seaman; showed us the knack of getting the hammock slung with the minimum of effort and how to get oneself into it once rigged.  One unfortunate lad let one of the hands sling his hammock for him; completely unaware that the man had placed a slip knot in one end of the clews.  As soon as the poor lad was settled in his 'mick' and nice and comfortable; the man tugged on the end of the clews; down came the hammock resulting in a pile of mattress, hammock and very unhappy junior seaman all entangled.

The next morning after breakfast we were fell in on the upper deck for 'Both Watches"  This is the twice daily muster of the seaman department and in fact the only department in the navy who seemed to have a formal muster.  At this muster; we were grouped by parts of ship - in my case foc'sle.  After our divisional petty officers and captains of tops were satisfied that we were all present they reported to the Chief Bosun's Mate who in turn reported to the 1st Lieutenant.  On completion of this we proceeded to our own parts of ship and were employed chipping, scraping and painting.  Our petty officer would explain very carefully what and how he wanted a task tackled.  God help anyone who didn't carry out these instructions to the letter.  When some lad thought he knew better - the first warning he received was the rush of wind seconds before his ears was clipped.   Corporal punishment both official and unofficial such as this was banned a few years later.  In hindsight I think a quick clip was more preferable that fourteen days punishment and stoppage of pay.

We were allowed only one hour for our lunch - from 1200 to 1300.  At the same time "Up Spirits" [The daily issue of rum either piped on bosuns call or by bugle call ]was piped.  This was when the men entitled to a daily issue of rum [All men over twenty years "G" men, provided they had not had it stopped as a punishment; medically or had elected  "T" or temperance ] were issued with their tots.  This was miserable time for us juniors and men under age; because the ship was broadside messing; [Small ships did not have dining areas fitted until much later, a mod cafeteria system was introduced in mid 60's where individual meal was chosen and collected from the galley servery and eaten in mess] that is all the meals were collected from the galley in tin trays, carried to the mess deck where they were dished out and eaten in whatever corner one could find.  However when rum issue was taking place and the older hands were drinking their tots; they would not allow Juniors and Men Under Age (MUA) into the mess and we had to consume our meals in the main passageway above the mess.

The first week aboard was spent entirely in getting the ship clean and tiddley before our workup at Portland.  In addition we had to store and ammunition ship. This entailed carting tons of potatoes, vegetables, dry and frozen provisions onboard.  It was back breaking work, worst was to follow when we ammunitioned ship.  At last we were ready to proceed to sea.  Everything was stowed, shipshape and Bristol Fashion.

We sailed for Portland on the Saturday morning; the trip only taking a few hours.  We were secured to a buoy in Portland harbour by late afternoon and ready to commence the shakedown on the Monday morning.

I cannot remember much detail of the actual workup, apart from the fact it was very hard work for everybody concerned.  Every department of the ship, every man had to thoroughly tried and tested before the harbour and sea inspection to ensure we were ready to function as a close knit team and fighting unit.

Two things that do come to mind happened about the mid point of the workup.  I was carrying out my turn as the Anti Submarine lookout on the bridge wings and had been instructed to keep a sharp lookout for submarine masts; periscopes and smoke signals.  I had been day dreaming when a periscope suddenly broke surface less than a 1,000 yards away, quickly followed by two torpedoes streaking toward the ship.  I was so dumb struck I did not report the sighting and in a few seconds they struck the ship side with a resounding and expensive thud.  According to exercise instructions they were dummy's and were set to run under the ship.  Within seconds the watch of stokers from the engine and boiler rooms were mustered on the upper deck complete with lifejackets - I didn't realise that the Marine Engineering branch could move so fast!   Needless to say I was 'invited' by the Captain to remain onboard for a few weeks and carry out some overtime without pay!

The other thing I remember fairly clearly was that the ship made a visit to Portsmouth sometime during the workup and berthed alongside HMS Kenya - an old colony class cruiser, just paid off - for the weekend.  This delighted the older hands and Captains of Tops, who proceeded to 'rabbit' everything and anything they could lay their grubby hands on.  A short weekend was granted to my watch, I therefore took advantage of getting off the ship for two days.

I could not get of the ship fast enough, especially as this was my first weekend from a seagoing ship.  I eventually found my way out of the large dockyard and to the Portsmouth Town railway station completely unaware that there was a station at the harbour - Portsmouth & Southsea.  I only just caught the train by the skin of my teeth.  It was not the best of journeys as the Southern Region that run the line between Hampshire and Devon was not an officially recognised through route.  Therefore I had to change several times - Fareham, Eastleigh and Salisbury - and the trains seemed to stop at every station on route.  The 147 mile journey taking nearly six hours.  Arriving at my parents house late on the Saturday evening I was not looking forward to repeating the journey the following day, when I returned to my ship.

The following morning, I rang the railway station at Exeter Central to establish when the last train left for Portsmouth that day.  I was informed by a female voice that it departed at 1950 hours.  I remember thinking that wasn't to bad as I would get back to my ship in time to grab a few hours in my 'mick' before proceeding to sea on the Monday morning.

That evening I caught the local train to Exeter St David's and walked the mile or so [Very few trains ran between the two stations as the former was Great Western Railways the latter Southern Rail a different company] to Exeter Central to catch the Portsmouth train.  I arrived at the station at about 1900 in plenty of time for the train - I thought!  At the ticket barrier the inspector on checking my ticket enquired:

"Where do you think you are going Jack?'

"Portsmouth" I replied

"Yeah, at 6-30 tomorrow morning" he retorted

"What about the 1950" I hopefully enquired.

"Only runs weekdays" says he.

I explained to the inspector that I had only rang the station that morning to check the trains and had been given the wrong information  Because of this I would not only be late and miss my ship, I would be severely punished through no fault of my own.   He asked who I had spoken to and I informed him a woman.  The only female on the staff was the telephonist and she was just about to leave if she had not already done so.  I followed his directions and found her office and blurted out my story to her.  She had realised her mistake after I hung up the phone but had no way of knowing who I was or where I could be contacted, that is why she had stayed a little late in case she could help make amends.  I explained that I stood to lose several days pay and be punished as missing the ship and being late was considered to be very serious.  She offered to call the ship and get a hold of the Officer of the Day and explain my predicament and that she was the cause; if it would help.  After several unsuccessful attempts she promised to keep trying until she got through.  I told her that I was returning home as I could not get anywhere that night and that I would call her later to she if she had managed to get a message through to the ship.

When I arrived back home my Father and Mother were really worried however there was little they could do.  I called the station later that night and was informed by the telephonist to return to my ship at Portsmouth in the morning as she was not sailing as scheduled.  I then found out I could not get to Exeter in the morning in time to catch the 6-30, so decided to get back to Exeter and sleep in the station till morning

By the time I arrived back at the station there was yet another message for me.  This instructed me to proceed to Portland and rejoin the ship there.  This put me in an awkward situation as nearly broke I did not have enough money for another ticket.  I went to the nearest Police station, explained my story and asked if they could issue me with a travel warrant which they did.  I returned to the station to find all the waiting rooms and toilets locked for the night; so had to make do with a non- interior sprung hard wooden bench.  Apart from the discomfort of the bench it was a freezing cold night.

Awaking to the sounds of shunting and steam whistle, I found that the 6-30 was just arriving in the station.  Stiff as a board I got into the train and tried to get comfortable.  After several changes I reached Weymouth and managed to obtain a lift in the RN Transport from HMS Osprey.  Reporting to the regulating office I found that they were expecting me.  I was told that my ship was due in at 1930 for mail and I was ordered to catch the mail boat and return to my ship.  The only snag was the ship came in earlier than planned, I missed the boat and my ship yet again.  To cut a long story short I eventually was able to rejoin my ship the following Saturday morning.  Promptly marched in front of the Officer-of-Days table, I was expecting the worst.  However he had obviously been briefed, because he gave me case dismissed instead of the normal procedure of putting me on Captains Defaulters.

On the completion of our workup we returned to Plymouth for a short self-maintenance period and to give some leave.  On completion of this we were dispatched to Fishery Protection duties off the coast of Iceland for six very long weeks. It was permanently freezing cold and damp.  The weather really bad the majority of the time, many times that bad and rough the cooks could not prepare hot meals in the galley as it was to dangerous.  We had to make do with tinned corn beef and fruit.  We had to look after the trawler men’s interest and provide any medical or other assistance as required, protecting them from harassment by the Icelandic gunboats.

A couple of items worthy of note during this period was that junior rates started to receive a beer ration of two cans per night.  This issue was collected from the NAAFI, where the cans were all pierced to ensure that nobody tried to save any.  On a more serious note we had to transfer onboard a poor trawler man who had caught his hands in a winch.  He was transferred for treatment in our sickbay but unfortunately he lost all his fingers.  The entire ships company adopted him, showered him with gifts and managed to collect over £300-00 for him; no mean feat in the days of very low wages.  On a lighter note the padre and some amateur hams put together a radio play which was broadcast as a daily serial over the ships SRE system.  It was quite excellent - a gripping mystery murder type story  - often accompanied by the strains of the padres portable organ lending a really eerie background sound effect.  It was about some dockyard matey who had been trapped in the dummy bulkheads and had gone quite insane and was killing of the ships company in mysterious circumstances.

On completion of our six week patrol we returned to Plymouth to store and make final preparation for our departure for Bermuda and the West Indies.  The day we sailed the weather was really bad once again, howling gales blowing up to Force 8.  I was really looking forward to reaching warmer climes and some better weather.

On the third day out the weather underwent a dramatic change.  The skies and sea took on a much deeper and clearer blue.  The wind had dropped to almost zero and the temperature was climbing rapidly.   Daily orders announced that we would be changing into the tropical uniform the following morning, a clear indication that even better and hotter weather was expected.

The fifth day we arrived at Ponta Del Gada in the Azores to embark fuel and some fresh provisions.  It did not take long for the local 'bum boats' to arrive with their cheap trinkets, souvenirs and postcards for sale or barter.  They were more of a nuisance than anything else and after a little while we were ordered to turn the fire hoses on to disperse them.  I went ashore in the afternoon, however was not very impressed with my first foreign port.  It was dirty, dusty and infested with flies and nothing to offer a visiting warship apart from the usual thing on offer to sailors world-wide!

The remainder of our passage to Bermuda was almost uneventful.  The weather grew steadily warmer and the seas bluer.  One day the Officer of the Watch spotted what he thought to be a large piece of tree trunk drifting close by and which he considered to be a hazard to smaller craft.  After consulting with the Captain it was decided to give the demolition team some practical experience and blow the tree up.  When the team led by the ships TASI arrived alongside the 'tree' in the ships whaler; they discovered that the tree was in fact an old W.W.II German submarine torpedo that had drifting around ever since on its lonely journey.  It was decided to go ahead with the demolition training; nobody suspecting for a minute that the torpedo was still active.  Once the charges were placed, the whaler retired to a respectful distance and the charge was detonated electrically.    The ensuing explosion shook the whole ship and was quite spectacular, as the contents of the torpedo, air compartment and explosive were obviously very much intact until our charge had disturbed it.  The whalers crew and demolition team immediately lost their tan and I think would have had to scrub out the whaler when they returned to the ship!

We arrived off of Bermuda the tenth day after leaving the United Kingdom and met up with HMS Troubridge, our sister ship on station.  We would be relieving her on the station in independent command.  She was flying the flag of SNOWI, which made her senior ship, therefore we had to follow her into Ireland Isle our base at Bermuda.  There was a lot of cheering, jeering and much chucking of toilet rolls (Government Issue!) as they would be sailing for home as soon as officially relieved by us.

The view of Bermuda as we transited the carefully buoyed channel was absolutely fantastic.  It is a really beautiful place and although I have visited it many times I have never ceased to be in awe of it special beauty.  Once we had berthed alongside the dockyard, there was much coming and going between the two ships.  Officers turning over about the station and official duties; ratings involved in the more important aspect of swopping yarns, addresses of 'grippos [Sailors term for someone who was a good and lavish entertainer usually with lots of spare cash] and the best runs ashore.   This lasted for three days before "Troubridge" set sail for the United Kingdom and some well earned leave.   It had been over twelve months since they had last seen their families and twelve months before we would see her again when she returned to relieve us.

We spent two weeks in Bermuda alongside at Ireland Isle, getting the ship spruced up after our Atlantic crossing and in preparation for an up coming visit to the United States of America.  During our stay I toured the island from end to end, which is in fact not one island but hundreds of small ones joined by bridges and stretching about 23 miles from tip to tip. At night we had the choice of going ashore which was very expensive or watching a film show on the jetty.  During the film and indeed at stand easy, one of the local retailers would arrive with fresh ice cream and chilled chocolate and strawberry milk in square quart bottles for sale.  Yet another new experience for me; being used to pints of past-yer-eyes!  After the film we could walk up to the canteen run by our own ships canteen manager about five minutes walk from the ship and completely duty free.  Needless to say some of the ships company got into some awful states.

The best mode of transport on the island was the one-geared Zundap motorbikes.  They were very cheap to hire and burnt very little gas.  The trouble started when everybody went ashore on them, got topped up with duty free rum and then attempted to ride back to the ship, often forgetting to stop at the jetty and parked their bikes about 30 feet under the water.  It kept the ships divers and free swimmers in practice if nothing else.

The Canadian aircraft carrier HMCS Bonaventure visited Bermuda during our second week.  This resulted in a lot of fights as the 'Canucks' never seemed to get on with us 'Kippers'.  They did go one better than us when it came to driving bikes off the end of the jetty.  One night two drunken Canadians stole a bus to drive back to their ship.  When they reached the jetty they either could not figure out how to bring the bus to a halt or just didn't care, the bus making a very expensive plop as it hit the water.  Drunk as the two Canadians were they managed to jump clear before it hit the water and sank.  There was hell to play between the local authorities and the ships Commanding Officer, who insisted the bus be recovered before "Bonaventure" be allowed to sail.

On completion of our spruce up, we sailed for Baltimore in Maryland our first port of call in the US.  It was only a two day passage, steaming North West and out of the gulf stream we experienced a rapid change in the climate.  The change in the weather was quite remarkable, becoming bitterly cold and after just becoming accustomed to warmer climes we had to readjust to colder ones again.  We also shifted back into our blue winter uniform.

The first thing that struck me about the majority of cities on the United States eastern seaboard was their uniformity.  Quite different from the lazy meandering road system in Great Britain at the time.  The streets all running parallel in one direction, and avenues running across them at 90° right angles.

We berthed on the waterfront in the next billet to the oldest ship in the United States Navy in commission - "USS Constitution".  It was only a hulk then with masts and rigging all removed, but still proving a great tourist attraction to the every history hungry Americans.  I believe that the full rigging and masts were restored in later years.  We were greeted by huge crowds of Americans lining the jetty and offering hundreds of invitations to dinner, trips and tours.

I was duty watch the first night, so there was no point in my accepting any of the invitations.  There were so many though that only the bare duty watch were left on the ship.  Still people were clamouring to take sailors out, I had never experienced anything like it.  After a hurried consultation with the Captain it was decided to reduce the size of the duty watch and let a few more ashore.  I had been sat down the mess when I was summoned by the duty Petty Officer, who ordered me to change into my No.1 uniform along with four other ratings.  We were sent to help out at a cocktail party being held in the British Consulate not to distant from the ship.  It was a good duty, with as much to eat and drink as we wanted and we were paid the princely sum of $5-00 [Almost £3-00 in those days - our pay being £5-00 per fortnight] each for our help, we were well satisfied.

The next day I ventured ashore to see the sights.  The drinking laws in the majority of the United States were very strict, normally requiring an age of 21 before being allowed into a bar and permitted to drink.  Therefore after wandering around for a few hours, all we could do was go into a coffee shop or diner for a hamburger and a coke or visit the air conditioned cinemas, another new experience and completely unnecessary at that time of the year as the temperature was below freezing.   Our stay in Baltimore lasted for four days and I think we were all relieved to sail for our next port of call - Washington DC.

Once again we turned north the temperature dropping even lower, on arrival in Washington it was 25° below freezing and stayed there for the duration of our call.  The first day in I was detailed as part of the temporary side party to paint the ships side.  As we neared the bottom of one of the fleets we were painting, my stage partner dropped his rubber gloves into the freezing water.  As I tried to lean down to retrieve then, I slipped and fell into the murky icy water.  I consider myself a fairly strong swimmer, however the water was so bitterly cold I sank like a stone, the temperature taking my breath right away.  Luckily for me the leading seaman in charge happened to see the incident and immediately tied a running bowline noose, throwing over my head and shoulders as I bobbed to the surface and hauled me out.  Apart from being frozen cold and unable to stop shivering for the rest of the day, I was non the worse for my chilling experience, although extremely lucky.

The first night in Washington my luck true to form, I was duty watch once again so had to remain onboard.  The duty watch thought it would be a good idea to organise something to eat from shore so collected the money together and drew straws to see who would go for it.  I lost, or was it won? I proceeded ashore with the duty PO's permission.  There was a seafood diner not far from the ship therefore I did not have far to walk.  When I reached the end of the jetty a car pulled up and offered me a lift.  I declined explaining my mission to the driver.  Upon hearing this he said there was a much better seafood diner further away and offered to drive me there and back.  Imagine my horror when we arrived at a real classy joint as I was only dressed in my old No.3 uniform with no blue collar - night clothing - however nobody seemed to notice.  I placed the order for fish chips that I had been given by the duty watch and sat back to wait whilst it was prepared and wrapped.  When the order arrived I got the money out to pay the bill, but my driver insisted treating the entire duty watch and settled the account despite my protests about it being to much.  He drove me back to the ship and invited me to bring a friend to his house and join his family for Thanksgiving the following day.

He picked us up the following day and drove us to his house to meet with his family and share the Thanksgiving dinner celebrated all over the United States on the 24th November.  The only thing I remember about that day is the size of the huge turkey.  It was saturated in cranberry sauce, which at that time I had never heard of.  I thought it was jam.  It was all over my meat and potatoes and completely ruined my dinner.

The following day there was a luncheon invitation for fifty of the ships company, to the home of a wealthy retired Captain Royal Navy.  He was obviously very well heeled as he sent his own private buses to collect us and transport us to his house.  The house which was very large was sited on a large estate at Mount Vernon.  We were regally entertained to an excellent lunch with plenty of beer to wash it down.  After the meal we were each given two hundred cigarettes as a gift.  I recall being very impressed by the fact that the captain, his wife and middle aged spinster daughter, each had their own private bathrooms in different colours.  This at a time when many houses in the UK did not have a bathroom at all.

After relaxing for a short while to let the lunch settle, we boarded the buses again and were taken on a tour of Springfield Village, which included George Washington's house preserved exactly as it was when he resided there.  The whole village was a period piece of colonial history, with the inhabitants all dressed in 18th century garb.  We also had the chance to visit Washington's tomb where his coffin lies permanently in state.

The next day I ventured ashore to take in the Capitol, Lincoln Memorial and the sights down town with a pal.  After wandering around for hours we dropped in to a diner to grab a coffee and burger and rest our feet.  An American came over to us an welcomed us to his city; asking us if we had seen all the sights. We explained with little money and no transport we had taken in what we could.  He then offered to take us on a tour in his gleaming Cadillac. All three of us sat comfortably on the front seat, my friend in the middle.  We had been driving around for a while and unnoticed by me staring out of the window; this guy had his hand on my friend’s leg getting bolder and bolder.  He pulled over in a lane near the city centre and said:

"I love sailors, they have the cleanest bodies and the filthiest minds"

My head shot around and saw what was happening, as I opened the door to jump out, my friend sick with fright vomited all over the American.  We ran for our lives, thanking our lucky stars that the car was stationary when he made his move.  When I look back I have a bit of a chuckle and realise how lucky I was, although it was not funny at the time.  The person with me I have not named, because several years later he came out of the closet as they say, emerging as an homosexual and its something the American possibly detected.

Our next port of call was Philadelphia in Pennsylvania.  We berthed in the US Navy Yard which was several miles from the city.  The American navy; always good hosts laid on special transport to enable to get down town at no cost.  I remember going on one of the guided tours that had been organised for us and one of the stops was to view the famous Liberty Bell, of which the local people are very proud,  I took advantage of a trip to New York City during our stay in Philadelphia, a trip I would not have missed for the world.  We took a fast highway bus along the freeways and New Jersey Turnpike; at that time there were no motorways in Britain and we were all very impressed by the multiple lanes and excellent road surfaces or pavement as it is called in North America.

The first thing I did upon reaching New York was to make a bee-line for the Empire State Building; at the time the world’s tallest building.  I will always remember the thrill of seeing the huge building for the first time.  There was a charge to get to the top with a special rate for serviceman in uniform.  As I recall including tax it was 63¢.  There were banks and banks of elevators, some of which only stopped at odd numbered floors, and some even numbered floors.  There was express elevators to skip many floors and an express elevator which whisked us to the 82nd floor in minutes where the main site-seeing area, gift shop and restaurants are sited. Travelling at such rapid speed was both frightening and exhilarating.  After looking down at Broadway from this level we caught another elevator which took us up to the observation platform at the 102nd floor level which is 1,275 above ground level.  The only thing above us being huge television and radio antenna.  This area was manned by security guards and had thick plate bullet proof glass.  Looking down from this height made the cars and people seem like thousands of ants scampering around.  I decided I had to capture this unique shot on film, however I only had an old Brownie Box camera so held little hope of any decent results.  There was quite a deep ledge under the plate glass window and as it the shot would require about a two minute exposure I had to prop the camera on top of a packet of ships "Woodbines'.  Surprisingly when the picture was developed it turned out to be a really excellent photograph which I still possess, although slightly crumpled.

After leaving the Empire State Building we headed for Times Square, Broadway and Radio City.  The rest of the details of the visit are very vague.  It was bitterly cold and the smell in all the drug stores and diners was a very predominant green Havana cigars smell.  I recall that the 'Chipmunks' records were very popular at that time and the 'Platters' with "Smoke gets in your eyes" which seemed to be played on every jukebox.  We left the Big Apple around midnight for the return trip to Philadelphia with many memories to muse over.

Departing from Philadelphia, we returned to our base in Bermuda for Christmas.  Instead of berthing in the dockyard at Ireland Isle we went alongside the main street in the capital of Hamilton.  This proved to be very popular with the ships company as it was nice and handy to several good clubs and bars and right next to the berth where all the big cruise liners arrived from the United States.

The first night in Hamilton a ships company dance was held in the large liner immigration and transit building a few yards from the ship.  I met one of the local bankers and spent the evening with him and his wife.  They very kindly invited me and a friend to their home for Christmas.

The next day; Christmas Eve; we were invited to their house for a party which also happened to be the wife's birthday celebration.  We managed to obtain all night leave; a rare privilege in this days for a man under age.  The following morning we had to return onboard for an hours week, despite the fact it was Christmas Day - life goes on in the RN.  When we had completed the hours clean-up of the ship my oppo and I had been granted a short weekend to spend Christmas with our new found friends.   My oppo - Junior Seaman Prince - or 'Pringle' as he was more commonly known was also the youngest rating aboard the ship and RN tradition is that on Christmas Day he assumes the role of honorary Captain for an hour or two.  Dressed in the Captains best - which fitted where it touched - he had to tour the various mess decks; therefore I went on ahead to explain to our host where he was and reason for delay.  I had been at their house for about two hours when the Captains official car drew up complete with official driver (a leading seaman) and 'Pringle' sat in the back like a lord still dressed in the Captains best uniform and fairly tipsy to boot!

We had a marvellous 'hooli' that night with everybody having a little too much to drink. "Pringle' much the worse for wear after visiting all the messes on the ship and the vast quantifies of Rum & Pep he had consumed became quite 'green' and the inevitable happened; he was sick all down the captains uniform  Needless to say he seemed to sober up quite rapidly when he realised what he had done.

The following day we were taken to our friends country club for a swim and boxing day luncheon and drink.  It was very exclusive and I recollect it had a heated kidney shaped pool.   After the first Boxing Day swim of my life, we went inside the club for a drink.  We were all rather chilly so it was suggested we partake of one of the club specialities - hot buttered rum - to put some warmth back into us.  This was brought to us on individual copper trays, on which sat a small copper kettle filled with boiling water, two glasses one containing a large measure of rum; the other a knob of butter covered in nutmeg and other freshly ground spices.  One had to slowly and carefully pour the boiling water into the glass containing the butter, once the butter and completely melted then the rum was added and combined.  It was quite delicious and certainly took the chill away.

After a two week spell in Bermuda we sailed for a cruise of the West Indies.  Our first port of call was Key West, a large US Navy base at the southern most tip of Florida.  It was particularly interesting visit for me as I won a lottery to fly with the US Navy Anti Submarine helicopter squadron; or big dippers as they were fondly known.  The ship had proceeded to sea on an anti submarine exercise (CASEX), whilst we were touring the US Base.  There were four of us in the party and after being carefully briefed and kitted out with life jackets, flying suit and crash helmets; we took off for a flight over the ship.  They hung me out of the door on a special safety harness as we did several passes over and around the ship, before returning to the base.  On landing we noticed a small crowd milling around another helicopter which had also just landed and being the nosy sort I joined the small throng to establish what the attraction was.  It proved to be Tony Curtis, Janet Leigh and Cary Grant who were on location making a movie entitled "Operation Petticoat".  I managed to obtain all their autographs on a Senior Service cigarette packet which I carelessly lost shortly afterwards.  We were invited to a bar to have a drink with Cary Grant but due to the very strict drinking laws in the states we were unable to get in to the bar.

I recall walking through the large base one evening with a friend when all of a sudden bugles and whistles sounded off all over the place.  Everybody in sight including civilians sprung to attention.  We looked back at our own ship where nothing seemed to be happening so we carried on walking despite shouts by several very irate Americans.  It was the ceremony of Sunset when the flags are lowered for the night; for some obscure reason our own ship was not following their lead.  Within seconds a jeep sped up filled with US Marines screamed to a halt alongside us forced us into the jeep and took us to their guardroom  They were very irate because we had not stopped, however not much came of it.

Another of my recollections of our stay in Key West was when a friend and I decided we would to pay a visit to Miami; which was a couple of hundred miles from Key West.  We found that we could not afford the return bus fare so decided to hitch-hike one way. We had walked quite a few miles in the blazing sun, dressed in full No.6's without getting an offer of a single ride when a car drew up with three coloured men in it.  They offered a lift which we were very pleased to accept especially as the car was air conditioned.  It was either against state laws or severely frowned upon I cannot remember which to associate with different ethnic groups.  Therefore it was not long before a highway patrol car siren wailing pulled us over and made us get out of the car.  When they saw the British naval uniform they just gave us a ticking off and let us go.  We started walking again; muttering under our breaths about police with suspect parentage.  We soon came upon a small town and decided to seek out some refreshment.  There appeared to be only one store with dining facilities in it and it had two entrances one for whites only the other for blacks.  Once inside the door the store was completely sub-divided by a strong wire mesh fence to stop people crossing over.

After refreshing ourselves and quenching our thirst, we left the store and commenced to hitch-hike again.  We had better luck and soon got a ride in a beautiful air-conditioned Chevrolet.  Shear luxury after riding in England in Standard 8's and Morris 10's.   The driver took us almost to Miami having to drop us at a small suburb on the outskirts.  There was a small rodeo taking place and as we had never seen one we decided to stay.   Real Cowboys and Indians in the flesh, another first to add to our experiences.  It was certainly something to write home about.  After a very interesting and tiring day, we made our way back to the local Greyhound Bus company terminal and caught the bus back to Key West.

The next day we sailed to commence our Caribbean cruise, our first port of call scheduled was Nassau in the Bahamas.  Whilst on passage job changes took place for the seaman and I found myself being moved from the sunshine of the upper deck down below to messdeck party.  I was not very happy about this at all.

Whilst in Nassau I spent most of my days on the beautiful beaches.  Outside of the main post office stood two small beautiful brass cannons.  The first night in port a crowd of drunken stokers decided to play field-gun crew with the cannon.  The run went quite well until they reached the jetty where the ship was berthed.  It was constructed from wood and was quite rotten in places.  The would be guns crews managing to find a rotten section and through and into the water went the cannon.  The very irate local authorities were down the ship in the morning ensuring that the cannon were recovered by the ships divers before we left port.   Also on that first morning a small palm tree in a bucket appeared on the bridge wings.  The Captain went mad when he spotted it and ordered its removal forthwith.  Next morning another palm appeared in the same position only this time the bucket and tree were padlocked to the bulkhead!

Our next scheduled port of call should have been Kingston in Jamaica however during our last night in Nassau orders were received to sail immediately and proceed with all haste to the island of Grenada.  The local populace were rioting and had the British High Commissioner under siege in his official residence.   The ships company remaining on shore were immediately recalled and the ship proceeded to lay a course for St Johns the capital of Grenada.  It was not to be a direct passage as our fuel reserves would not last if an extended stay at Grenada was required.  Therefore we had to go via Trinidad where there were refuelling facilities at Pointre Perre.  Having stopped to refuel, we rushed out again and sped to our destination at full speed.  We arrived in the dead of night, the ship completely darkened and men at action stations.  The anchor muffled with rags and grease was lowered instead of being slipped.   Landing parties and key personnel were briefed and prepared to proceed ashore at first light.

The following morning arrangements were soon underway to land platoons and key personnel to man the local power station and other essential services if required.  However as soon as the dissenters spotted the ship lying off shore; they thought better of it and all went home.  We landed some personnel just in case and had them stood by on the jetty.  The Captain called on the British High Commissioner to establish what role the ship should play.  To everyone's surprise a game of football was arranged with the local team, much drinking of rum taking place on completion and everybody seemed happy with the results.

A few days later we sailed for Kingston to carry on with our original cruise.   Once alongside in Kingston, the ships company were soon ashore sampling the local delights.  For a capital city it is really rather shabby and seedy and still remains to this day.  The second day about twenty-five of the ships company were invited to one of the sugar plantations to spend the day with the owners at their private club and beach situated on the actual plantation.   I had a very pleasant day lazing around the private beach after touring the fields.  I was introduced to one of the local specialities by the members which was a locally distilled white rum mixed with fresh young coconut juice.   Although quite pleasant to drink and very refreshing it was very potent switching ones brain to TILT, whilst completely losing control of the legs.

It is so long since that cruise that I cannot recall the exact order we visited the various ports of call; or indeed very much about the individual places.  I will list them as they occur to me along with anything that I remember about them.

I believe our next port was Montego Bay, also in Jamaica.  From there we proceeded to Guantanamo Bay, which the US Naval base on the tip of Cuba.   The base provide support to US and NATO ships in the Caribbean and surrounding areas.  The personnel from the base and visiting ships were restricted to the base for obvious reasons.  However every facility imaginable was available within the base areas.  It was here I was introduced to my first pizza.  Made while you waited and absolutely delicious.   During our visit, a chance for four of the ships company arose to take a trip on a Guppy class submarine for a few days.  Names of all volunteers were placed in hat and once again I was one of the lucky four.  We were detailed off to report to the submarine by 0500 the following morning; as the boat was sailing shortly afterwards to proceed to the exercise area before the surface ships sailed.

Once we had reported aboard, sailed and dived we were given a quick tour of the boat and then taken to the small dining area for breakfast. (Dining Halls were unheard on in British boats or indeed small surface ships at that time.)  The cook asked what we would like and how he should cook our eggs.  What luxury after the rubber eggs served daily onboard our own ship, which had been prepared at around 0430 for breakfast at 0700!  After breakfast we sat around and watched a movie until the exercise was due to start.  As soon as the CASEX commenced I was invited down to the Sound Room (Sonar Shack - under dining room floor) to try my hand at the US Sonar equipment.  I was then called up to the control room to have a look at my own ship through the periscope.  Its quite a frightening experience with the magnification of the scope to see a ship bearing down at high speed; you imagine its almost on top of you; while in fact its still a few thousands yards away.

We all got a real fright at the end of the exercise.  The American submarine service are great ones for having 'off the cuff' emergency exercises; a fact with which we were blissfully unaware.  As the boat was surfacing; there was an almighty bang from the fore ends and a terrific jolt with the boat starting to sink rapidly.  Klaxons and bells ringing the submarine crew were rushing about spinning wheels and dogging hatches in what seemed like total confusion.  At the same time the Commanding Officer was broadcasting that we had surfaced under one of the destroyers and had sustained heavy damaged for'ard.  The four of sat at the dining room table white as sheets.  I remember thinking why me, why did I pick this submarine to go to sea in.  The boat settled down to an even trim after which the Captain broadcast:

"Well done men' that was a very good practice drill!"

There followed visits to a whole host of islands.  St Kitts; where we got two tame monkeys so drunk in a local bar that they kept falling off their perch.  St Lucia; where the ships company had a dance in the local hall and the floor collapsed.  A visit to the pitch lakes in Trinidad.  Monserrate, Anguilla, Bequia, Union Island, Nevis, Carrocou and Beef Island.  Beef Island does bring back one memory.  It was a very small island and as soon as we anchored the local commissioner called on the Captain.  He requested that the Captain did not grant any leave as there was nothing for the ships company on the island.  He maintained there were no bars, night life or unaccompanied females; furthermore no sight-seeing.  However the Captain decided to grant 'banyan' leave.  That meant that everybody had to return onboard by sunset; around 1830 in the tropics and should restrict their visit to the beaches.  The majority of those who went ashore came back so drunk they did not know what week it was and several days later had formed a large queue at the sickbay and it was not for Aspirins either!

Grenada, Grand Cayman, Mattewtown, Barbuda, Great Ingua and St Vincent.  All very romantic sounding names, one expects to find in a good buccaneer story.  We did call in at Belize in British Honduras (the country is now known as Belize).  We anchored about three miles off shore and I could not go ashore as I was under stoppage of leave.  This came about as a result of joining the messdeck party; a job I detested working down below in a non-air conditioned ship.  I had been employed for some weeks cleaning the Officers Bathroom & Heads; a soul destroying task.  The time was fast approaching for SNOWI's [Senior Naval Officer West Indies] annual inspection, therefore everything had to be painted and polished.  (The old sailors maxim - If it moves ditch it, if you cannot ditch it, paint or polish it; if all else fails salute it!)  I had been detailed off to paint out the officers bathroom and heads, I therefore enquired what colour to paint it.  The normal colour in those days (pre-Formica) was white.  The PO rather snappy said any colour you like as long as its clean. I therefore painted the entire bathroom jet black, deckhead, bulkheads and deck.  Needless to say I received a very rapid job change and 14 days punishment for my trouble.

The only other thing I can recall about the Honduras visit happened minutes before we were due to sail.  The Coxswain reported to the First Lieutenant that two able seaman had failed to return from night shore leave and were therefore Absent Without Leave (AWOL).   Just then a signalman on the bridge spotted a dug-out canoe approaching the ship with what appeared to be two natives paddling it.  As it pulled alongside the two missing AB's were recognised minus any clothing.  They had overslept and missed the last boat back to the ship and as they had spent all their money they had traded their clothes for the dug-out to return to the ship.  It goes to prove what a really good sun tan will do for you, mind you they were really browned off when they saw the captain at his defaulter table.

Out next port of call was Cartagena in Spanish Columbia and was the main base for their navy.  During our visit we had to provide a large guard for the Simon Boliver [Spanish liberator of South America]celebrations and being the senior service were invited to lead the parade.  The problem was the RN marched at 114 paces to the minute, whereas their band and military march at about 80 paces to the minute.  It was not long before we were hopelessly out of step.

During the visit the shops soon revealed the major attraction was goods manufactured from the Cayman (a small alligator). From it shoes, handbags belts and other items were made.  One could even buy the whole reptile stuffed as a souvenir.  I was invited to join a party of the ships company invited to one of the local country clubs, which was some distance from the city.  It was a huge place and similar to other clubs in the tropics had no walls to allow maximum circulation of available fresh air.  There was large swimming pool surrounded by several barbecues on which huge steaks were being broiled.  We were shown to tables about six ships company and six members to each.  We were all invited to order a drink and were very surprised when a full bottle, bucket of ice and mix was placed in front of each of us.

Our visit complete we sailed for La Quira which is the seaport of Caracas in Venezuela.  We had not been at sea for more than about an hour when most of the ships company went down with food poisoning.   This had come from local fresh salad items purchased ashore and kept the ships doctor very busy for about 24 hours, luckily nobody was seriously or permanently affected.

As La Quira is approached from the sea one cannot fail but be impressed with the mountains in the background.  Apart from being the main seaport it was also the base of the Venezuelan navy.  Their ships looked so clean and tiddley, however they rarely ventured to sea.  At that time their navy consisted of two British ex-battle class destroyers and three Italian frigates.  We were invited to their flag ship (an ex battle) and received quite a shock on going down below decks.  They had hollowed out a large area by removing a lot of bulkheads to make room for a large games room.   Not much good as a warship but great for recreation.

I was employed as bosuns mate, keeping gangway watches by this time and my main memory of this port was a Pink Flamingo.  Every night the bird would come strolling along the jetty and take up position at the end of the brow like a sentry almost as if he had been trained to do so.   Like a lot of sentry's it was not long before the large bird and raised a leg and fell asleep.  Of course tipsy sailors returning from shore could not resist a target like that, and giving it a poke the bird would fall over squawking madly.  Consequently by the end of the visit it was very dirty Pink Flamingo.  I have never figured out why the bird stayed there all the time to be abused by sailors every night.

Our next port of call was San Juan in Puerto Rico, this was also home to a US Navy Base.  We only remained in port for twenty-four hours and as I was duty did not get ashore.  Reports filtering back indicated I had not missed much anyway. Sadly we lost one of our ships company there.  He had strayed off the beaten track his body being found several days after we sailed minus clothing and wallet.

We then proceeded to the Bahamas once again and anchored off Eleauthera. The sole reason for this isolated anchorage was to smarten up the ship before we returned to Nassau to carry out the role of guard ship to HMY Britannia - the Royal Yacht.  As soon as were anchored everybody from all departments that could be spared was over the side painting.  The normal routine was to start painting at the top of a fleet (section) and gradually lower the paint stage down to the waterline.  The painters would then climb up the stage lanyards, swing the stage around bring it to the top of next fleet and start again.  In tropical climes instead of a long climb up the rope, men would often swim around to the ships ladder which also gave them the chance to cool off.  However we had been warned not to indulge in this practice in this location due to the presence of some fairly hungry sharks.  Not that we needed any warning as we could see the huge predators swimming around below us.  My partner and I had just finished one fleet and he had shinned up the rope whilst I held the stage steady against the ships side.  As soon as he reached the top, he released the rope lanyards and started to drop the stage into the water.  I shot up the ships side, literally clawing my way up the rivets, I'll never know how I did it.   I must have looked like something out of a Disney cartoon as I sped up the ships side.

As soon as the painting was completed, we proceeded into Nassau, where we anchored off shore and close to our charge.  The Royal Yacht was alongside for her royal duties.  Our ships boats constantly patrolling around the "Yacht's" berth to keep sightseers from getting to close.  Nobody was allowed on the upper deck unless dressed in full No.6's and that included ditching the gash.

HM the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh were flying to Bermuda at the end of the Royal visit, so accompanied by the HMY Britannia we sailed to reach there before our royal charges.  We had to provide a royal guard at Bermuda airport when the Queen arrived.  Before sailing from Bermuda the ships GI had taken all the measurements of the airport and runways; and at every opportunity in harbour and at sea he had drilled everybody over and over again.  We drilled so much we could have almost carried out the manoeuvre with our eyes closed.  The GI had been told the prevailing winds for the time of year and which way the aircraft would land, except on rare occasions.   We were required to march in a column of three down the taxi way, turn into line on the runway coming to a halt just in front of the plane, where HM Queen and Duke of Edinburgh would inspect us.

On the actual day the wind had one of its rare wind changes.  The aircraft would be landed the opposite way from all our practice runs.  Therefore when we marched down the taxi way we would turn left instead of right.  Simple enough - well almost.  One young electrician who had originally been in front rank but was now in rear had automatically turned right instead of the ordered left turn.  Whilst the remainder of the guard marched smartly away in the right direction, the unfortunate electrician was marching smartly in the other.  Nobody would have noticed had he carried on for a while then come smartly to a halt.  However after marching twenty or thirty paces, he suddenly realised he was all alone.  He stopped, turned red followed by green before running back to rejoin the remainder of the guard.  I am sure he still remembers the event with acute embarrassment.

Upon return to the ship they were calling for volunteers to work at Government House for two days to assist with various functions and receptions connected with the royal visit.   I volunteered as it would be a change away from the ship and there was the added incentive of a few pounds for carrying out this extra duty, which was not to be sneezed at on the small pittance we currently earned.  After being carefully briefed we were transported to Government House, where we were briefed yet again by the senior butler of the household.  He informed us we were not allowed to drink or partake of any food during the reception as there would be plenty left over and we could enjoy and partake after our duties and the reception was over; we would also receive two pounds each.   Sailors being sailors a few drinks were sneaked away during the party which was just as well as it turned out.  After the party we proceeded down to the servants quarters for the promised food and drink only to find that all the drink had been locked away and all the food ditched; neither did we received the promised two pounds either.

The following day we received the same instructions but once bitten twice shy.  We were a little wiser and managed to obtain some food and bottles during the reception and secret them away for later, in addition to which we took turns following the butler to ensure he did not repeat his disappearing act with our money again. Even cornered it was like trying to get blood out of a stone, but we got our money in the end.

A few days later another opportunity arose to obtain some extra money.   Alongside the navy yard there was a large merchant vessel attempting to embark a cargo of scrap metal.   Due to local disputes they were not making much progress.  The Master of the vessel approached our commanding officer to see if we could help out.  The captain agreed as long as suitable recompense was made to all volunteers.  When the pipe was made over the ships tannoy there was a mad rush of volunteers especially as it was announced we were to be paid £1-00 per hour; a kings ransom.

I was among the first batch, I found I could earn more in one afternoon than I normally drew over the pay table once a fortnight.  I only stuck if for six hours as it was back breaking work.  Some of the bigger and stronger of the volunteers lasted the two full days.

The Captain decided after the royal visit to get most of the ships company away off the ship for a few days.   The crew were divided into two; one section leaving the ship and occupying an empty militia camp for seven days marvellous days.  There was no routine, one could lay in bed all day; or swim on the beach across from the camp.  It was a marvellous and much needed tonic enjoyed by all.   Of course everyone hired the usual Zundap bikes to get around which almost proved fatal for one of the seaman PO's.  For some obscure reason he had decided to visit a local bar in uniform, although we were out of routine.  Well oiled when he left the camp; he was travelling at about 30 mph when his cap (naturally) blew off his head.  He decided to hop off his bike and retrieve it in his drunken state; pity he forget to stop his bike first.  Sliding along the road on ones face makes the eyes water a little!

After a varied six week stay at our Bermuda base, it was time to sail once again on what was to become the highlight of our commission.  We were to proceed to Canada to rendezvous with the Royal Yacht and escort HM Queen an Duke of Edinburgh on a tour of the Great Lakes.  During the trip the Queen was to officially open the new St Lawrence Seaway.  Our rendezvous and first port of call was Sept Isles in New Brunswick.  We anchored off shore once again as it was planned to only stay a few hours to fuel and exchange courtesy calls and allow the Captain to be briefed aboard the Royal Yacht.  The scenery was really stunning.  I borrowed a pair of binoculars from the bridge for a closer look and spotted my first "Wild West" train.  It was an old American engine with a large cattle trap on the front with huge bell type chimney stacks.  I was delighted to have spotted it.

Fuelling and briefing completed; we weighed anchor and proceeded up the St Lawrence, close behind the Yacht, three Canadian frigates in line behind us.  Our next port of call was Quebec city the province of Quebec; the French speaking part of Canada.  The views were truly spectacular, with the most amazing huge statue of the Virgin Mary mounted high on a cliff overlooking the river.  The entire flotilla berthed in the town centre to allow the public to get a good look at us and we at them.  We personally found the French Canadians very unfriendly and definitely very anti-British; often going out of their way to stir up trouble.  I was on duty on the ships brow when some of these trouble makers strolled past, beckoning me over they demanded to know why we were flying the Canadian Navy flag (At the time Canadian navy still flew White Ensign)  I explained it was the flag flown by all navies of the British Commonwealth, they did not like my answer and went away muttering in French.

Our next port of call was Montreal in the same province.  The people here seemed a lot friendlier than Quebec City.  We were joined here by ships of the US Navy who were joining the escort as part of the Seaway passes through US territory.  HMY Britannia and ourselves were berthed at a new jetty especially constructed for the visit.  This jetty was surrounded by high wire fences which were patrolled by Metro and Mounted Police who constantly patrolled the area.  One of the Mountie’s posted to man the end of our ships brow spent more hours posing for souvenir snaps with members of the ships company than actually manning the brow.

I had been ashore with a chum the first afternoon and was returning to the ship because we had not found much to interest us and to have supper when we were stopped.  A man with a good English accent enquired if we were enjoying our visit.   Not speaking French we answered not much. He took us to his private club for a meal and a drink, explaining he had migrated to Canada, married a local girl from Montreal had a family and made it his home.  He invited us to his house the following evening to meet his family and join them for dinner.  We returned to our ship shortly before midnight to find the jetty area still crowded with sight seeing tourists.  They were all trying to get photographs of the Royal Yacht and a glimpse of the royal family.  It was a struggle trying to get to the gate, with many people offering large sums of money for our uniforms to enable them to sneak into the compound.  Tempted we decided against it as we felt sure the Officer of the Day would be very unsympathetic if we wandered passed the Royal Yacht in our underwear.

The following evening we were collected by our host as arranged.  It turned out to be quite a baffling evening for the pair of us.  Most people in the city are completely bi-lingual, switching from French to English and back at the drop of a hat and without realising that they are doing it.  Sat around our hosts dining table along with his wife and two teenage children we gave up trying to follow such a conversation; one would ask a question in English and receive an answer French.  It was almost like being deaf in one ear as we were only getting half the conversation.

The next morning we slipped from our berth and proceeded to the entrance of the newly constructed St Lawrence Seaway [Little did I know then that I would enter this great waterway  30 years later as a civilian guest on HMS Cumberland] We were quickly and efficiently hauled into the first lock behind the Royal Yacht, the first warship and the second ship ever to pass through this great waterway system.  It was quite a humbling experience; there were five great locks to transit all around 80 feet high.  Once inside; the locks were very quickly flooded, elevating the ships rapidly upwards as though on an express lift.  In between the locks there were roads crossing the canal in several places, these whole sections of the road were also lifted to allow us to pass underneath.  On completion of our transit we entered the first of the Great Lakes - Lake Ontario and proceeded toward our next port, Toronto.

We berthed in downtown Toronto, right underneath a large grain elevator.  It was some distance from the night life of the city, however that did not deter the majority of the ships company from proceeding ashore at the first opportunity.  We were the first warship (that was not land locked and built on the lakes) to visit this fair city and we were assured of a very warm reception.  After the normal postcard run and to see the local sights I returned onboard early as I had put my name down for a trip to Niagara Falls and it was to be an early start.

The following day we boarded our bus and were greeted by a professional tour guide who pointed out places of interest along the way.  We arrived at the falls in the late morning and after a brief from our guide went to lunch prior to touring the various attractions.  Its truly an amazing experience looking down over the falls.  There was a little tour boat which came right up to the falls aptly named "Maid of the Mist"; as there is a permanent haze caused by the thousands of tons of water crashing down.  As it was then possible to go under the falls I took the opportunity and was the only one to do so.   We were wearing tropical uniform at the time, full No.6's and the rest were afraid of getting wet.  I paid the fee and took the elevator that descends below the falls to a change area where we were kitted out with Sou'westers and oilskins.  Then onto another elevator which dropped us to the bottom of the falls.  The roar of the falls was deafening.  A guide led us through a series of tunnels which led to a variety of observation points right behind and below the falls [Most of these tunnels are now closed as due to erosion they are considered to be unsafe for the public]  I paid a visit to each point not wanting to miss any of this amazing experience.  Upon returning to the change room area I was horrified when I removed my protective oilskins and boots and quickly realised why the rest of the crew had been hesitant.   Large damp black oily type patches and smudges adorned what was until recently a crisply starched white uniform but which now hung damp and soggy.

I was to embarrassed to continue with the tour, so returned to the bus, where I remained until it was time to depart.  I came in for a lot of ribbing from the rest of the crew members on the return trip.  We stopped halfway back for a late supper at a roadside diner and as I did not want to leave the bus in my present state asked one of the others to bring me back a couple of hot dogs.  Imagine my surprise when he returned with two frankfurters measuring about 15" long with rolls to match; the whole lot covered in all the trimmings, it was struggle but I managed to eat them!

After sailing from Toronto we headed across Lake Ontario to the Welland Canal, which would enable us to transit between Lakes Ontario and Erie.  We had to proceed through a series of locks again although many years older than the section we had recently passed through.   It was a very picturesque voyage with beautiful scenery both sides of the narrow canal, so narrow in places that the wash of the ship was splashing onlookers in their back gardens.  During one of our stops whilst awaiting entry to another lock I had another amazing coincidence.  A man came walking down the jetty looking up at the ship.  When he drew abreast of where I was sat; he shouted up and asked if there was anybody aboard from Teignmouth!  The chance of this happening must be millions to one.  I was many thousands of miles from my home town and by pure chance coupled with a docking delay; a native of my home town strolls by. 

On completing the transit of the Welland Canal we steamed out into Lake Erie.  Our next port of call being Windsor; which is situated in the far south western corner of Ontario and lies right across the river from Detroit in Michigan.  There was a tunnel which linked the two cities together [On driving to Florida I passed this way years later and crossed by bridge onto the I75], I am not sure whether it still exists.  We berthed at the Hiram Walker Whisky jetty as the company had offered free berthing and a large welcoming party for the entire ships crew in the grounds.  I was duty on the gangway yet again so missed all the 'freebies' and fun.  However I took the opportunity of all free sight seeing tours over the next few days.   The last day in (and on the gangway again!) a very large semi (tractor trailer) drew up to the ships brow laden down with cases of beer.  The canteen manager was summoned to the gangway (amazing he was even onboard!) and assured the Officer of the Day that no beer had been ordered.  The driver on being questioned said that his company had been contracted to deliver the beer which was an anonymous gift to the entire ships company from a well wisher.   There was much muttering in the wardroom and a hurried consultation with the Captain to decide what to do with the beer.  It was decided that it would have to be accepted, as the donor might be someone of importance and would be offended if the gift were not accepted.  Very diplomatic of the CO which probably explains his next appointment - Royal Yacht in Command and his subsequent elevation to Vice Admiral.

Sailing from Windsor we proceeded up through Lake Huron and after a very brief visit to Penetanguishene in Georgian Bay (which is steeped in naval history and HMS Nancy fame) we reversed our course and headed down Lake Michigan for another brief visit to Chicago in Illinois.  Upon our arrival all the local tug boats were lined up and somehow managed to play the British National Anthem on their sirens, hooters and whistles.  It is not recorded if the Queen was impressed by this display of patriotism or not!

After HM Queen and the Duke had completed their official calls; we sailed north yet again and passed through another series of locks at Salt-St-Marie.   These elevated us still further and up to the level of Lake Superior. Its worth mentioning that although they are known as lakes the term 'great' is a little misleading as in fact they are vast bodies of inland seas which can and do provide all the weather conditions experienced on the oceans of the world.  For example it would be possible to fit an area the size of the British Isles into Lake Ontario 2½ times.  However fresh water having less buoyancy than salt the ship sat lower in the water and tended to roll slightly more.

This was indeed the case in Lake Superior; where we were scheduled to man and cheer ship [Entire ships company line upper deck, facing outworks  hats off, and on order give  three cheers, whilst   circle hat through air ] for the Queen.  The royal couple were due to fly west after our next port of call and we would not see them again until Halifax when they rejoined the Royal Yacht.  The lower deck was cleared of every spare member of the ships company, who were mustered in full white uniforms, despite the fact it was a foggy rainy and chilly day.  Once on the upper deck, the men were spread along the guard-rails facing outwards, at arms length, arms crossing and resting on the rails.  As we drew alongside HMY Britannia the order was given:

"Off Caps"

"Three cheers for Her Majesty the Queen - Hip, Hip, Hip".

The ships company draw their caps off their heads, swing them in a large clockwise circle arm fully extended, responding:

"Hooray".

This is repeated three times after which on caps are ordered.  We were soaked to the skin by the time we were finished; whilst the Queen looked on with a smile on her face wrapped up in a large raincoat and head square and thinking 'what loyal subjects'

We parted company from the yacht immediately afterwards and proceeded to Fort William, whilst the Yacht was going to Port Arthur a short distance away [Two towns since combined and are known as Thunder Bay which I have since visited on business trip’s].   The entire area is covered by thousands of miles of forest and its all one can see.  I thought how easy it would be to wander off the beaten track and get lost in the wilderness without ever being found.  During our visit we were invited to tour one of the logging camps.  The forestry workers lived very rough and sparse but made light of their harsh environment.   We found them by far the most friendly people we had encountered thus far in Canada.  The ship made history by being in Lake Superior - our captain sent a signal to Admiralty in the United Kingdom claiming the altitude record for a British Man-O-War, as we were several hundred feet above sea level.

Sailing from Fort William we commenced the return down through the Great Lakes.  We had received permission to make an unscheduled stop to give everyone aboard a welcome break from all the ceremony of flag showing and escort duties.  We had been almost six weeks in continual escort, dressed in No.1's or No.6's depending on the weather.   It had been decided to make a one day stop and anchor off a small town in Michigan called Alpena.  [Alpena is about a six hour drive from my house and I intend to visit this year and see if anyone remember our visit] We dropped anchor during the early afternoon and before long a lot of activity was observed taking place ashore.  The ships liaison officer had already been ashore to exchange courtesy calls with local dignitaries and explain the purpose of our visit.  His return was eagerly awaited to establish what was happening ashore.   Upon his return he informed the captain that the local populace had somehow got wind of our visit and had laid on a barbecue for all that could get ashore.  Local TV and radio stations were also keen to interview members of the ships company. For a change I was not duty the first night in; therefore as a watch keeper with extra leave entitlement was one of the first ashore.  The jetty was adorned with Union Jacks and many other pieces of bunting.  I was stopped by a TV reporter who questioned me about our visit, the ship and where I came from in England.   There was a small picnic area close to the jetty which was also decorated for our visit.  The local people had rigged a huge spit upon which a whole steer was being slowly cooked for us, along with hamburgers, hot dogs and mounds of chicken with plenty of beer and soft drink to wash it down.

It was explained to us they had laid this event on as there was little to do in the town.  They only had one cinema and one bar both housed in the same building.   We decided after partaking of all the kind hospitality to visit the local cinema and take in the movie, however it was a really old one so we slipped into the bar for a cold beer instead.  Another first was awaiting me inside - Colour Television - as we only had one channel in black and white in the UK at that time it was quite something.  The colours where very bright and gaudy compared to the high standard that we enjoy today.

At about 2230 we decided to head back to the jetty and get onto an early boat before the mad rush for the last boat at midnight (leave expired for all at 2359).  As we walked in the direction of the jetty a car repeatedly passed, sounding off its horn.  Around and around it went and was occupied and driven by two girls.   The next time it approached we were abreast a pedestrian crosswalk so we punched the cross button and as the car drew up we jumped in!  We were greeted with squeals of nervous giggling which stopped after we had introduced ourselves.  They explained there was a huge girls only university just outside town which accommodated over 1,000 young ladies.  We figured that's why the local people had laid the barbecue on to keep us in town!  We had a little chuckle to ourselves when we thought of all the guys in the bar complaining there was nothing to do in the small town.  However we weren't chuckling so much when we returned to the jetty and found that we had missed the last boat.  When we returned onboard in the morning we were charged with Absent without Leave namely seven hours.  We did not go before the Captain until after our next visit so a lot of our stoppage and punishment was spent on passage.

We entered Detroit in Michigan with guns firing a courtesy salute to the city.  We berthed downtown so were close to all the places of interest.  I put my name down for a visit to Henry Fords Motor works which was a full day tour.  Starting off in the morning we witnessed the raw materials arriving at Ford's own docks.  All the manufacturing materials, components and equipment which would go toward producing a complete car.  After touring the assembly area and arriving at the end of the line we witnessed completed cars being driven off the assembly line every two minutes.  After a superb lunch we were taken on a tour of the Henry Ford Motor Museum and the experimental section of the plant.  The museum contained one of every Ford model ever produced including the old Model "T".  Once inside the experimental and new development section we were shown and had demonstrated all sorts of futuristic ideas.  Included  was a very high speed electric car in the early stages of development.  It ran on pads along a metal surface and was connected to a big arm which was controlled by the engineers.  During the demonstration the car reached speeds well in excess of 300 mph.  We were all suitably impressed and wondered if this would ever become a viable proposition.  The engineers working on the project had obviously been questioned many times and were well prepared with their answers.  Although admitting it was a very futuristic concept, they envisaged the day when the vehicle would be the major mode of travel; and would run between all major cities world-wide and even in some rural areas.

Their concept of the final design was that one would decide in advance on a destination, obtain computer punch card from an appropriate authority; which would have a pre-planned route programmed into it with scheduled stops, the card would be place in a reader slot in the vehicle, allowing the passengers to sit back and enjoy the journey.  The idea of travelling from London to Glasgow in under an hour quite mind boggling.

The climax of the Ford visit was a drive around the test track where random selected models are tested and put through their paces.  The track is about two miles long and has every type of road surface built into it, in addition there are gentle and sharp curves and bends.  Each car was driven by a very experienced tester, and I found myself riding in the old Thunderbird.  The idea was two complete two circuits of the track; the tester noting anything requiring further investigation.  The first time round I chatted with the driver and remarked what a cushy job it appeared to be.  He explained that it got a bit monotonous day after day and did it that often he could drive the track with his eyes shut.  Expressing my disbelief - which I quickly regretted - he decided to do just that!  My feet were firmly embedded in the carpet by the time we had completed the circuit.

The following day I was detailed as a guide for ship open to visitors.  During the course of the afternoon a friend and myself received an invite for Sunday dinner two days hence and arranged to meet our host on the Canadian side of the tunnel.  The following day I decided to remain onboard and catch up with some mail and work on my kit.  Finishing much earlier than expected, I decided to proceed ashore and take in a movie or go for a walk and meal.  The only set back being I had no US currency and the Supply Officer was ashore.  I thought I would not have to much problem changing some money at one of the local banks, I soon discovered different.  Whilst the ship was on the West Indies Station; which technically we still were; we were paid in Bermudan pounds, which we changed into what ever local currency we needed at the time.  Each bank I approached with my lone £5 note - worth about $15 then - politely refused to change it and sent me elsewhere.  All I had was some loose change in US currency so decided to return to the ship grabbing a burger on the way.  The short order cook who served me in the diner remarked how down in the dumps I looked.  I explained my problem to him and he offered to buy the note as a souvenir for $5, needlessly to say I refused; I was not about to part with almost two weeks pay to provide him with a souvenir.

On the Sunday morning, we caught the bus and travelled through the tunnel which connects the two countries and cities.  The man was waiting with his car when we arrived and quickly drove to the suburbs where he lived. We were made very welcome. Ironically it was the first time I had sat down to a typical Yorkshire dinner and it was in the middle of Canada.  We were served our Yorkshire Pudding as a starter floating round in a puddle of gravy.  The main course of Roast Beef followed, strange to my own West Country tastes.

Dinner complete, we were taken down into the basement to the family room and bar.  Most people in England would consider it a cellar, however most of Canada and the northern US utilise these basements as family rooms, laundry areas and bars.  There was a full size bar in this basement, very impressive when one had not seen one before.  He plied us with drink until I was feeling a little bit tipsy.  The family then decided to take us out in the car and show us some of the local attractions.  We had not gone many miles when we were asked if any of us drove.  My chum said no but explained that I was currently learning.  The man suggested I try his car, however I declined as the quiet slow road system in Bermuda was a lot different from the high speed multi-lane traffic in Canada.  Furthermore I was learning in a small Ford 3-Speed Ford Prefect and he was driving a large automatic Pontiac.  He persisted until finally I agreed to try it for a while.

We changed seats; I was now in control of a large automatic vehicle and was more than a little nervous.  I managed on the straight roads but my downfall was the corners, especially right-hand turns, I naturally drifted to the left hand side after my turn.  The drive was progressing quiet nicely when disaster struck.  I had arrived at a very busy intersection where a major road crossed the minor one we were on.  It had been raining hard and the car pedals had no rubber on them.  My foot slipped off the wet metal pedal and we shot forwards; I panicked and instead of hitting the brake I jumped on the gas pedal.  We bounced off two cars, causing them heavy damage, careering off the opposite side of the road, smashed through a large white fence which disintegrated as we passed through it the car coming to rest up against a brick wall.  I was instructed to quickly change seats with the driver before any witnesses or police arrived.  I was worried sick and shaking all over.  The man and his wife instructed me not to worry as it was only an accident and the insurance would cover it.  Amazingly the car was still able to be driven so we returned to the house after the police had taken statements and who seemed satisfied that the wet pedal had been the cause. The remainder of my time at the house was spent in being reassured by the man and his wife that it was not my fault and they should not have insisted I drove and not to worry about it.

The following morning we sailed for Halifax in Nova Scotia.  It was going to be a fairly long trip as we had to transit both Welland Canal and St Lawrence Seaway and on to the coast without any more stops, which was just as well as the day we sailed I was on Captains Defaulters for my leave breaking offence and promptly had my leave stopped.  Luckily in the RN the stoppage period carries on at sea, only requiring extra musters to ensure you are still around.

My stoppage of leave was so long that I was under punishment for the duration of our stay in Halifax so never got a chance to see the city.  We rejoined the Royal Yacht with HM Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh embarked; and the royal escort was also waiting to accompany the "Britannia" back to the UK.  They were the frigates Torquay, Tenby and Scarborough.  Whilst in Halifax a Queen’s messenger arrived onboard with the news that the queen was expecting another baby who was born Prince Andrew   The order for "Splice the Mainbrace" was given which was great news for all those entitled to draw a tot.

Just outside the gate of Halifax dockyard; reached by a tunnel; was a fish & chip shop.  I had got permission each night to collect 'big eats' for the lads onboard who were either duty or under punishment.  The last night in, everybody extremely short of cash and Canadian currency we collected all the odd coins in we could to raise the price of a meal.  When I arrived at the shop for the last time, the owner said that I had been such a good customer that everything was on the house. [Many years later whilst on business in Halifax I hunted down the shop and found it still standing despite massive development in the area and it had only just changed hands from the  kindly owner of all those years ago]

The following morning we sailed and headed for our base in Bermuda where we were scheduled for an assisted maintenance period and to spruce the ship up yet again.  After a brief stay at our base and saying farewell to all our Bermudan friends we sailed for a final short cruise in the Caribbean.  We would not be seeing Bermuda again because our sister ship 'Troubridge' was to relieve us on station during our visit to Kingston in Jamaica.  The day of the actual turn over the two ships were manoeuvred so that we were outside of her to facilitate easier slipping when we sailed.

Whenever I had the morning watch either on the gangway in harbour or the bridge at sea carrying out my duty as Bosun's Mate I would compose a topical ditty to be broadcast with "Call the Hands" (It was almost a tradition for QM' & BM's to do this)  The morning we were due to sail from Kingston for the UK was no exception; my little rhyme dedicated to taking the Michael out of the "Troubridge" and her crew who had twelve months to look forward to on station.  I had just finished reciting my little story over the tannoy, replaced the microphone on the bulkhead stowage, turned around - Blat! - and was knocked down and out for a few seconds.  It seems the Quartermaster on the Troubridge did not have much of a sense of humour.

Ten days later we steamed into Plymouth - Paying Off Pennant flying - to be met by our family and friends and to proceed on leave and draft.

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Obituary From Tuesday's February 6th, 2007 Telegraph.

Rear-Admiral Bill Higgins
Supply Officer 1958-60 Commission

Secretary of the D-Notice Committee during the Zircon and Spycatcher affairs.

Rear-Admiral Bill Higgins, who has died aged 78, defied the Thatcher government as secretary of the D-Notice Committee, a post to which he had been appointed following 40 years of faultless service in the Navy.

Shortly after taking over in 1986 as steward of this discreet body, which exists to issue official guidance to the media over the disclosure of sensitive information about national security, Higgins found himself faced with what became known as "the Zircon affair". This was a row over a television film, made for the BBC by the investigative journalist Duncan Campbell, about a secret spy satellite. In the event, the corporation decided not to show the programme, and Campbell was reduced to writing an article about it in the New Statesman.

Higgins found himself between the media on one side and Margaret Thatcher on the other. The prime minister was furious, and the Speaker refused to let the film be shown in the Commons. Meanwhile, civil liberties organisations showed the film all around the country, raising the prospect of large numbers of prosecutions which might well have failed.

The prime minister had never been enamoured of the D-notice committee, and now she was inspired to an even greater dislike of its voluntary and advisory nature. The Cabinet Office was given the brief of controlling the flood of articles and books that followed the publication of Spycatcher by the former MI5 officer Peter Wright.

Higgins was told that everything he did had to be run past the Cabinet Office, and that he must follow its instructions. He resisted, recognising that this would destroy the voluntary system that had worked since 1912 and fearing that it would lead to more censorship. Supported by his chairman, Sir Clive Whitmore, Permanent Under-Secretary in the Ministry of Defence, he got his way.

Two years later Mrs Thatcher tried again, attempting to prevent the publication of a book about MI6 by the Conservative MP Rupert Allason (writing as Nigel West). While the Tory party whips applied pressure on Allason, Higgins was told to cease talking to the author and his publisher, to whom he had been giving advice.

He was ordered to communicate only in writing, having first cleared his drafts with the Attorney-General, something which he decided was both unacceptable and unworkable. The law officers were again pessimistic about whether litigation would work, and Mrs Thatcher and her press secretary conceded that the D-Notice system, under Higgins's care, was the most effective way to keep national secrets – as opposed to political embarrassments – out of the public eye.

When the Government amended the Official Secrets Act in 1989, Higgins was able to reassure the media that, whatever else might be to their detriment, it would not affect D-Notices. Subsequently, he negotiated hard with officials to ensure that his promises to the media were kept.

Throughout his six years in the job Higgins was guided by a personal rule that under the operation of the system no individual should ever be put at risk. He did much to improve public understanding of the system and dealt urbanely with editors, who rang him frequently. They usually took his advice, even erring on the side of caution, he recalled. Higgins found himself advising against publication on only about a dozen occasions a year.

Although the existence of D-Notices had been declassified only in 1981, inquirers found him disarmingly refreshing and open. When the political philosopher Moyra Grant rang Whitehall, she was immediately put through to Higgins, who began by joking that presumably none of her students were anarchists, and then surprised her with his openness. A day later her post brought a list of the D-Notices currently in force, together with an explanatory note from Higgins.

William Alleyne Higgins was born on May 18 1928, the son of Commander Henry Gray Higgins, who had won a DSO in 1917 while commanding a submarine in the Adriatic.

After Wellington, which he hated, Bill entered the Royal Naval College on September 1 1945, while it was still at its wartime location of Eaton Hall; he was therefore one of the last people to qualify for a war gratuity. In his particularly talented term of 55 Special Entry cadets were four future admirals, a commodore, nine captains and 17 commanders.

Four months later Higgins was sent to sea for the first time. He served as captain's secretary in the maintenance carrier Unicorn during the Korean War and then as secretary to the then Captain Michael le Fanu at the boys' training establishment, HMS Ganges. Le Fanu reported that he "envied anyone who is fortunate enough to have Higgins as his supply officer or secretary".

Higgins held increasingly important jobs in the Ministry of Defence. When he was deputy secretary to the Chiefs of Staff, his immediate boss — a fiercely intelligent and fiery senior Army officer — regarded him as a tower of strength. He became secretary to the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Terry Lewin, who appreciated the apparently effortless ease with which Higgins discharged his heavy responsibilities and dealt with people.

On promotion to rear-admiral, Higgins was appointed the last Flag Officer Medway, when the Kent dockyard was about to be closed after 300 years. His arrival at Chatham was greeted with the headline "John Nott's hatchet man has arrived", but he was an inspired choice for the job. Thanks to his natural courtesy and genuine concern, he quickly created an atmosphere of co-operation. In particular he tried to find alternative employment for the civilian staff and to attract new businesses to the former naval base.

Higgins was then made Director General, Naval Personnel Services, and Chief Naval Supply and Secretariat Officer, the head of a branch which had evolved from the pursers and clerks of the sailing navy and now had to develop a new strength as the Navy's logisticians.

e was appointed CBE in 1980 and CB five years later.

Bill Higgins was an accomplished handyman: painting and decorating, repairs to furniture, plumbing, mending antique clocks and restoring vintage cars were all well within his compass. He was offended by the wrongs in the world, against which he would often speak out, and he would make door-to-door collections for charities. Only illness prevented him from joining the march for peace in London to try to avert the invasion of Iraq.

With his brother Bob, a submariner, Higgins started to climb mountains in 1946. The two made their first ascent in the Cairngorms without proper boots or rucksacks and taking a tent which had no fastening door-flap. On Easter Sunday Higgins wrote in his diary that they "breakfasted on iced porridge in a snow squall"; they had modelled their rations on Scott's last expedition, forgetting that the polar party had starved to death.

Higgins was a member of the Fell and Rock Climbing Club for 60 years and one of the founder members of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Mountaineering Club. Aged 74 he climbed three Munros in a day, to bring his total to 259, and was planning to complete all 276 when he died on January 20.

Bill Higgins married, in 1963, Wiltraud Hiebaum, who survives him with their two sons and a daughter.

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Able Seaman Edward [Eddie] Abbass 1938 - 2008

Sadly another of our shipmates has " Crossed the Bar", a life long and very close friend of Able Seaman Owen 'Lofty' Carlile.  They remained very good and close friends over all these years.  I write this from the vague memories I have of Eddie, we met for the very first time after our very memorable commission at the 2001 mini reunion and hit it off right away.  Both of us to late to obtain accommodation at the reunion hotel, we found ourselves just a short 'stagger away' up the street at a Bed & Breakfast. Obviously we exchanged many happy and also sad memories, but obviously I did not know him as well, or even keep in contact with him as much as his  very special friend Owen Carlile, as Eddie was a very private person, who preferred to communicate through  his life long and very true friend 'Lofty'.  As soon as I have finished it I will place link to Eddie's Memorial Program. Rest in Peace Shipmate - you were a part of a very special and unique commission - Shipmates Forever.

Click HERE to see a copy in "Office Word" of the memorial program. Outside actual copy of original, inside a copy prepared by me from original to make it easier to read. Other versions "Rich Text Format" click HERE, for a "PDF version" click HERE

Eddie's Memorial Card
I have created reasonable facsimiles to make the card easier to read. Click on my facsimiles for a large readable version. For a very much clearer version, click HERE for a Word version.

Original	My facsimile [Click on image to enlarge]
Original	My facsimile [Click on image to enlarge]

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