HMS OBDURATE - 1955-6
Recollections of others in the ship at the same time as I was.
Recollections of others in the ship at the same time as I was.
Rather than incorporating miscellaneous recollections within the OBDURATE 1955 and 1956 pages I have included them here with those of others who were in the ship with me during 1955-6.
I do apologise to each of them for not getting to these OBDURATE pages and therefore their much appreciated submissions sooner.
Les Burrill (Webmaster/Author)
I well remember three other seaman; Londoner 'Bizzy' Biswell known for his ample appendage by which 6ft plus 'Lofty' Hodge would seize him at any unguarded moment to drag him round the bathroom, passageways or even in extremis onto the upper deck as happened during one of our 'Hands to bathe' sessions. Also 'Cookie' Cook from Goldhanger in Essex who could produce an impish grin, beaming smile or choirboy-like 'not me Chief' innocence as required. All three maximised any chance of a skylark and thoroughly entertained (most of) us.
Gun firings were a common event in the ship as you have seen but I can only remember 'X' gun being used once. On the occasion a few shells had been fired before a somewhat dishevelled and ghostly grey/black individual began to gesticulate and verbally abuse us from the deck below. When we managed to separate his deranged screaming from the gun-fire-ring in our ears it became clear it was the Leading Cook (Officers) who was struggling to summon the right words to tell us his cooking range was as deranged as he was, It had, he was suggesting, collapsed in a cloud of soot and some other four letter word beginning with s. when the gun fired. The Gunnery Officer, sensibly, acceded to the chef's invitation to us to fall out (at least I think that's what he meant) so we put his chimney back, the tampion in the barrel and slunk off taking bets that he would never get those whites white again.
Gun firings were a common event in the ship as you have seen but I can only remember 'X' gun being used once. On the occasion a few shells had been fired before a somewhat dishevelled and ghostly grey/black individual began to gesticulate and verbally abuse us from the deck below. When we managed to separate his deranged screaming from the gun-fire-ring in our ears it became clear it was the Leading Cook (Officers) who was struggling to summon the right words to tell us his cooking range was as deranged as he was, It had, he was suggesting, collapsed in a cloud of soot and some other four letter word beginning with s. when the gun fired. The Gunnery Officer, sensibly, acceded to the chef's invitation to us to fall out (at least I think that's what he meant) so we put his chimney back, the tampion in the barrel and slunk off taking bets that he would never get those whites white again.
Our Petty Officer Gunnery Instructor 'Sid' Hack, by the funnel as we passed south in heavy weather off Dover one day, got to spinning us Boys a yarn or three. He inevitably got on to the much vaunted miseries of seasickness from which he said we would all suffer and regaled us with his mastery over such things. Moving on to his next subject he got to about his third sentence before spinning on his heels and ejecting the contents of his stomach over the Port side! Dutifully we ardent listeners took the wipe of his forearm across his mouth as the signal to wipe the smiles from our faces and look the other way as he headed for the screen door. Boy Seaman don't ever forget things like that do they!
On the subject of mal-de-mer one of my messmates endured chronic seasickness. Sitting around the funnel 'Watch on deck' as usual one day he slid down the wet deck as the ship rolled and would undoubtedly have continued under the guardrails and over the side had others been a second or two slower getting to him. Although it took some time he was eventually drafted out to, I think, an aircraft carrier.
Boys and men, as Gerry Gibbins notes in his piece, also do not forget someone going berserk in the confines of a destroyers forrard messdecks. In small ships like ours one rating, who may or may not have completed a Butchers Course, would be nominated as 'Tanky'. To him fell the task of caring for and issuing provisions etc. For whatever reason ours took a turn for the worst one day and armed with a knife (or two) ran amok. My mess was the lower forward one which had a single hatch access upward into the messes above which were on the level of and gave access to the upper deck. I can clearly remember being ushered up and out around those who were then containing and trying to calm the 'Tanky'. Disarming and arresting him safely took several people and minutes and was the talk of the ship and of Chatham naval circles for quite some time afterwards.
On the subject of mal-de-mer one of my messmates endured chronic seasickness. Sitting around the funnel 'Watch on deck' as usual one day he slid down the wet deck as the ship rolled and would undoubtedly have continued under the guardrails and over the side had others been a second or two slower getting to him. Although it took some time he was eventually drafted out to, I think, an aircraft carrier.
Boys and men, as Gerry Gibbins notes in his piece, also do not forget someone going berserk in the confines of a destroyers forrard messdecks. In small ships like ours one rating, who may or may not have completed a Butchers Course, would be nominated as 'Tanky'. To him fell the task of caring for and issuing provisions etc. For whatever reason ours took a turn for the worst one day and armed with a knife (or two) ran amok. My mess was the lower forward one which had a single hatch access upward into the messes above which were on the level of and gave access to the upper deck. I can clearly remember being ushered up and out around those who were then containing and trying to calm the 'Tanky'. Disarming and arresting him safely took several people and minutes and was the talk of the ship and of Chatham naval circles for quite some time afterwards.
REM ANTONY BOND
On the 8th of January 1954 Antony celebrated his 18th birthday in Crosby Liverpool where he worked as a Shipping Clerk. Attaining the age of 18 then meant you were liable to call-up for National Service and two months to the day later, on the 8th March he arrived in Fareham, Hampshire. There he joined the Royal Navy at the Radio Training Establishment, HMS COLLINGWOOD where he was enrolled for training as a Radio Electricians Mate, 2nd Class (REM2) and given his Official Number, C/M 937175.
A month before, on the 9th of February, I joined HMS GANGES as a Boy Seaman and that, perchance, set both of us on a route that led to our first seagoing ship HMS OBDURATE in 1955.
Tony kindly sent me his Service Documents with his recollections of his National Service which I am pleased to include here to illustrate his part in the Royal Navy of the mid-1950's.
He wrote,
'Although 1955 was a very enjoyable year for me onboard H.M.S. OBDURATE, the years since have faded my memory but I do remember the comradeship in the Electrician's Mess Deck. The teasing of new recruits with offers of cheese, the biggest piece being made of hard soap soon gave us an insight to the newcomers.
I remember the Ships Company being mustered on the main deck to be advised that Able Seaman xxxx did strike the Hon. Michael Henry Roper-Curzon, Lt R.N. on returning from a night out, slightly sloshed!. It came as a shock that we were amongst the gentry, and (in)appropriate noises were made when the officers title was read out.'
'In Fredrickshavn, it was my only turn to be part of the Shore Patrol looking for naughty sailors of R.N.origin, a task I only had to do once! How did I manage that? It was a glorious evening and even at 3.00a.m. we could see well because of the latitude. We did not see well enough to feel any 'collars' but enjoyed the visit to the brewery the following day.'
'On the day of my departure from Obdurate I tested the radar, but it only worked for a few seconds and then stopped. I did not find out why for another 20 minutes when I was on the quayside standing at attention at 9.00 a.m. taking a last look at the ship which was home to me for almost a year moored in the river about to leave for somewhere exotic!? It would appear that someone had dressed ship with the bunting and I had wound it round the aerial dish a few times before the driving belt broke. No doubt my replacement said a few unkind words.'
'I found radio and electronics fascinating when I was 18, I felt that I went in the Navy as a boy and came out a man. I subsequently went to a Technical College to get formally certificated. I worked in the Telecoms industry for ten years and then went lecturing for the rest of my career at a technical college which I also enjoyed. I was teaching folk who were 16-75 years of age and it was very rewarding. The navy at HMS Collingwood must have given me the right shot in the arm.'
On the 8th of January 1954 Antony celebrated his 18th birthday in Crosby Liverpool where he worked as a Shipping Clerk. Attaining the age of 18 then meant you were liable to call-up for National Service and two months to the day later, on the 8th March he arrived in Fareham, Hampshire. There he joined the Royal Navy at the Radio Training Establishment, HMS COLLINGWOOD where he was enrolled for training as a Radio Electricians Mate, 2nd Class (REM2) and given his Official Number, C/M 937175.
A month before, on the 9th of February, I joined HMS GANGES as a Boy Seaman and that, perchance, set both of us on a route that led to our first seagoing ship HMS OBDURATE in 1955.
Tony kindly sent me his Service Documents with his recollections of his National Service which I am pleased to include here to illustrate his part in the Royal Navy of the mid-1950's.
He wrote,
'Although 1955 was a very enjoyable year for me onboard H.M.S. OBDURATE, the years since have faded my memory but I do remember the comradeship in the Electrician's Mess Deck. The teasing of new recruits with offers of cheese, the biggest piece being made of hard soap soon gave us an insight to the newcomers.
I remember the Ships Company being mustered on the main deck to be advised that Able Seaman xxxx did strike the Hon. Michael Henry Roper-Curzon, Lt R.N. on returning from a night out, slightly sloshed!. It came as a shock that we were amongst the gentry, and (in)appropriate noises were made when the officers title was read out.'
'In Fredrickshavn, it was my only turn to be part of the Shore Patrol looking for naughty sailors of R.N.origin, a task I only had to do once! How did I manage that? It was a glorious evening and even at 3.00a.m. we could see well because of the latitude. We did not see well enough to feel any 'collars' but enjoyed the visit to the brewery the following day.'
'On the day of my departure from Obdurate I tested the radar, but it only worked for a few seconds and then stopped. I did not find out why for another 20 minutes when I was on the quayside standing at attention at 9.00 a.m. taking a last look at the ship which was home to me for almost a year moored in the river about to leave for somewhere exotic!? It would appear that someone had dressed ship with the bunting and I had wound it round the aerial dish a few times before the driving belt broke. No doubt my replacement said a few unkind words.'
'I found radio and electronics fascinating when I was 18, I felt that I went in the Navy as a boy and came out a man. I subsequently went to a Technical College to get formally certificated. I worked in the Telecoms industry for ten years and then went lecturing for the rest of my career at a technical college which I also enjoyed. I was teaching folk who were 16-75 years of age and it was very rewarding. The navy at HMS Collingwood must have given me the right shot in the arm.'
AB GERRY GIBBINS
Gerry Gibbins Able Seaman, C/J 942953 was in OBDURATE at the same time as I was and got in touch with his memories of his RN service and of the ship. He first explained that '...the dates have to be from memory alone as my navy memorabilia was stolen when we were burgled.
''History: September 1954 HMS VICTORY (RNB Portsmouth - 6 weeks Basic Training)
Then THESEUS (Carrier), GLORY (Carrier - Paid her off at Rosyth)
OBDURATE (for about 18 months)
PEMBROKE (RNH) and Demobbed September 1956
'I remember doing about six months buoy jumper with a chap Giles (surname)' and goes on to chastise me for referring to OBDURATE as 'Chatham Local Unit' saying 'I beg your pardon! We were Flagship Nore Command - the only bloody ship in it!' He went on to ask me if I remembered 'one day in summer when we were moored at the buoy ('H' Berth) we were allowed to go swimming. I was the prat who walked out on the spar on the main mast to jump in over the side. Those were the days!'. he said. It wasn't often that we had hands to bathe but when we did it was always entertaining as Gerry demonstrated. What's the point of being a ship's diver without giving it your best shot!
Gerry continues 'One more tale which will remain with me to my dying day. I had my 21st birthday on board THESEUS in Gibraltar in 1954. My Mother sent me a large fruit cake 'c/o GPO London' which was manna from heaven for us starving matelots and included a £5 note to treat the boys on our next run ashore. The Customs had opened it and included a note which said that the £5 note had been confiscated as you weren't allowed to send more than £2 sterling out of the country in those days. And us serving our country and on four bob (20p) a day! B-----d's!!'
He too remembers the mad 'Tanky' (Provisions Storekeeper) 'who ran amok one day with a knife and proved extremely difficult and dangerous to contain' and also 'that miserable old B------d Bob the NAAFI Canteen Manager and 'Wagonwheel' biscuits'. On the brighter side (perhaps) he remembers 'weeks and weeks of (the films) 'The Glen Miller Story' and 'Shane'. To this day I could tell you what's on the screen if I hear the sound tracks.'
'I remember Watch on Deck and making toast in front of a two-bar electric fire in the middle of the night just inside the Port messdecks'.
Gerry listed where we went on the back of a picture of OBDURATE which shows: Chatham, Gillingham, Pool of London, Cambeltown, Rothesay, Greenock, Southend on Sea, Dover(2), Cowes (Regatta Guardship), Zeebrugge (2), Ghent (Flower Festival), Blankenburg (2), Cherbourg (2), Den Helder (5), Aabenraa, Frederickshaven, Aalborg, Kiel Canal, Amsterdam (2), Rotterdam, Flushing, Bruges, Ostend, Brest, Alkmaar and Flensberg.
He finishes saying 'I remember the Skipper' (Commander J M A Wilson who had been the 17th DF Gunnery Officer during the war) 'broadcasting to the ship that she had steamed the equivalent of 6 times around the world under his command' and 'I remember a full power trial off Portland and being told we were the second fastest ship in the navy at the time - something like 40 knots' There must have been some truth in that as Doug Hern, as you will see, also thought the ship had achieved 38 knots.
Unfortunately Gerry's role as a ship's diver and his navy career came to an abrupt end in 'September 1956 following a diving accident in which I swallowed some salt water and soda/lime'.
Gerry Gibbins Able Seaman, C/J 942953 was in OBDURATE at the same time as I was and got in touch with his memories of his RN service and of the ship. He first explained that '...the dates have to be from memory alone as my navy memorabilia was stolen when we were burgled.
''History: September 1954 HMS VICTORY (RNB Portsmouth - 6 weeks Basic Training)
Then THESEUS (Carrier), GLORY (Carrier - Paid her off at Rosyth)
OBDURATE (for about 18 months)
PEMBROKE (RNH) and Demobbed September 1956
'I remember doing about six months buoy jumper with a chap Giles (surname)' and goes on to chastise me for referring to OBDURATE as 'Chatham Local Unit' saying 'I beg your pardon! We were Flagship Nore Command - the only bloody ship in it!' He went on to ask me if I remembered 'one day in summer when we were moored at the buoy ('H' Berth) we were allowed to go swimming. I was the prat who walked out on the spar on the main mast to jump in over the side. Those were the days!'. he said. It wasn't often that we had hands to bathe but when we did it was always entertaining as Gerry demonstrated. What's the point of being a ship's diver without giving it your best shot!
Gerry continues 'One more tale which will remain with me to my dying day. I had my 21st birthday on board THESEUS in Gibraltar in 1954. My Mother sent me a large fruit cake 'c/o GPO London' which was manna from heaven for us starving matelots and included a £5 note to treat the boys on our next run ashore. The Customs had opened it and included a note which said that the £5 note had been confiscated as you weren't allowed to send more than £2 sterling out of the country in those days. And us serving our country and on four bob (20p) a day! B-----d's!!'
He too remembers the mad 'Tanky' (Provisions Storekeeper) 'who ran amok one day with a knife and proved extremely difficult and dangerous to contain' and also 'that miserable old B------d Bob the NAAFI Canteen Manager and 'Wagonwheel' biscuits'. On the brighter side (perhaps) he remembers 'weeks and weeks of (the films) 'The Glen Miller Story' and 'Shane'. To this day I could tell you what's on the screen if I hear the sound tracks.'
'I remember Watch on Deck and making toast in front of a two-bar electric fire in the middle of the night just inside the Port messdecks'.
Gerry listed where we went on the back of a picture of OBDURATE which shows: Chatham, Gillingham, Pool of London, Cambeltown, Rothesay, Greenock, Southend on Sea, Dover(2), Cowes (Regatta Guardship), Zeebrugge (2), Ghent (Flower Festival), Blankenburg (2), Cherbourg (2), Den Helder (5), Aabenraa, Frederickshaven, Aalborg, Kiel Canal, Amsterdam (2), Rotterdam, Flushing, Bruges, Ostend, Brest, Alkmaar and Flensberg.
He finishes saying 'I remember the Skipper' (Commander J M A Wilson who had been the 17th DF Gunnery Officer during the war) 'broadcasting to the ship that she had steamed the equivalent of 6 times around the world under his command' and 'I remember a full power trial off Portland and being told we were the second fastest ship in the navy at the time - something like 40 knots' There must have been some truth in that as Doug Hern, as you will see, also thought the ship had achieved 38 knots.
Unfortunately Gerry's role as a ship's diver and his navy career came to an abrupt end in 'September 1956 following a diving accident in which I swallowed some salt water and soda/lime'.
Cook(S) DOUGLAS HERN
Douglas Hern C/M925346 was a Cook in the OBDURATE from April 1955-57. He had the unenviable task, with three or four other Chefs, of cooking for some 150 men the various foods prepared Mess-by-Mess and delivered to the Galley by defined times for cooking. Each mess had a budget per head to work to and preparation was carried out by the day's nominated 'Cook of the Mess'. Breakfast was a 'universal' meal which the chefs both prepared and cooked. This regime, called Canteen Messing, was the norm in small ships.
The only thing I remember about the galley was that it was very small and though there was access in the cross-passage inside the ship the galley extended out onto the Upper Deck beneath the mast and you sometimes had to protect the food from sea water and weather when delivering and collecting it. You also had to hang on to it as the ship pitched and tossed. When safely delivered to the mess-deck table there was often an additional need to protect it from anyone in a hammock above - three if not four in range - who might be feeling sea-sick. Other than that it was very tasty - most of the time! Mind you most of us would have eaten a scab.......... no, lets say instead, a small camel! Here's what Doug recalled about his time in the ship:
'The only things I have left to remind me of HMS Obdurate are my service certificate, a Christmas Card from 1955 with a photograph of the ship on it and the fact that I was presented with the ship's paying-off pennant, being the youngest member of the crew. I was drafted to Obdurate on 01 04 55 from HMS Ganges ship's company via HMS Pembroke K lounge and served on her until 29 06 57. I came aboard at H Berth (Short Reach) by trot boat from Bulls Nose Chatham Dockyard. My Messdeck was in the forward Focsle, the trunnion of A Gun being the most prominent feature along with the door to the chain and paint locker, this being the exclusive domain of the Tanky.' (Butcher & caretaker of fresh provisions).'Some of the other personnel I remember on board at that time were Chief Petty Officer Cook Harry Ash, Assistant Cook Martin McClusky, Leading Stores Assistant Peter Bateman, Seaman Salenger (of South African extraction), Freddie Fox the Electrician and a signals rating although I cannot recall his name but he had a very distinctive jet black spade beard'. * For the record Doug mistook the fact that The Earl Cairns was Captain of HMS GANGES whilst he was there rather than of OBDURATE.
'We had mixed ratings in our Mess, the leading hand of the mess was a guy named Streeter and we had a complement of National Service men, mostly Coders. Our continental visits to various ports included Zeebrugge for the Vindictive VC awards Remembrance Ceremonies with HRH Prince Philip on board. The Captain at the time was the Earl Cairns* and Commander Chapman later replaced him. We visited Brest, Calais, Cookshaven, Keil Canal, Gent, Fredrickshaven, Rotterdam and Den Helder. I met and made a lasting friendship with a Dutchman known as Aad Sinka who retired from the Royal Dutch Navy (in 2001) in the position of Senior Weapons Officer (Computerised & Submarine Weaponry)'
'Our general function in those days was to test various gun barrels along with, at times, taking HMS Ganges Boys on Sea Training. We also visited most of the Admiralty Ports in the British Isles and spent quite a lot of time on anti-submarine exercises off the West Coast of Scotland and in the Irish Sea'. My Action Station during submarine attack was the After Depth Charge Magazine and during anti-aircraft action was the 4" Magazine'.
'I spent time on the submarine HMS Tireless (and) experienced a dive that almost ended my career when the submarine went down backwards during a standard diving procedure and it took hours to recover. Most of the Senior crew were from continental navies. Whilst on the Clyde I witnessed the Hydrogen Peroxide Engine Test Bed (submarine) HMS Excalibur.'
He also recalled OBDURATE going to Immingham on the Humber and 'being on the starboard Bridge Wing during a Full Power Trial' and 'if the buzz was correct she was capable of sustaining 38 knots for a substantial time. The ships wake looked to be at least 15 to 18 feet high and the angle of the deck about 12 degrees and she would also 'roll on a wet lawn'.
'After leaving Obdurate I was one of the unfortunate personnel drafted to Christmas Island and am now (2003), at 67 years old, the National Standard Bearer for the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association'.
Invalided out of the RN in 1960, Doug later went on to Skipper a Survey Vessel on the East Coast for 10 years working with HMS Juno (Fishery Protection), HMS Echo (Survey) and HMS Reclaim (Recovery) before 'going ashore' and into engineering and pollution control until he retired in 2001'. He finishes by saying 'I hope this little reminiscence will jog someone else's memory because I remember her as a very happy ship'.
Douglas Hern C/M925346 was a Cook in the OBDURATE from April 1955-57. He had the unenviable task, with three or four other Chefs, of cooking for some 150 men the various foods prepared Mess-by-Mess and delivered to the Galley by defined times for cooking. Each mess had a budget per head to work to and preparation was carried out by the day's nominated 'Cook of the Mess'. Breakfast was a 'universal' meal which the chefs both prepared and cooked. This regime, called Canteen Messing, was the norm in small ships.
The only thing I remember about the galley was that it was very small and though there was access in the cross-passage inside the ship the galley extended out onto the Upper Deck beneath the mast and you sometimes had to protect the food from sea water and weather when delivering and collecting it. You also had to hang on to it as the ship pitched and tossed. When safely delivered to the mess-deck table there was often an additional need to protect it from anyone in a hammock above - three if not four in range - who might be feeling sea-sick. Other than that it was very tasty - most of the time! Mind you most of us would have eaten a scab.......... no, lets say instead, a small camel! Here's what Doug recalled about his time in the ship:
'The only things I have left to remind me of HMS Obdurate are my service certificate, a Christmas Card from 1955 with a photograph of the ship on it and the fact that I was presented with the ship's paying-off pennant, being the youngest member of the crew. I was drafted to Obdurate on 01 04 55 from HMS Ganges ship's company via HMS Pembroke K lounge and served on her until 29 06 57. I came aboard at H Berth (Short Reach) by trot boat from Bulls Nose Chatham Dockyard. My Messdeck was in the forward Focsle, the trunnion of A Gun being the most prominent feature along with the door to the chain and paint locker, this being the exclusive domain of the Tanky.' (Butcher & caretaker of fresh provisions).'Some of the other personnel I remember on board at that time were Chief Petty Officer Cook Harry Ash, Assistant Cook Martin McClusky, Leading Stores Assistant Peter Bateman, Seaman Salenger (of South African extraction), Freddie Fox the Electrician and a signals rating although I cannot recall his name but he had a very distinctive jet black spade beard'. * For the record Doug mistook the fact that The Earl Cairns was Captain of HMS GANGES whilst he was there rather than of OBDURATE.
'We had mixed ratings in our Mess, the leading hand of the mess was a guy named Streeter and we had a complement of National Service men, mostly Coders. Our continental visits to various ports included Zeebrugge for the Vindictive VC awards Remembrance Ceremonies with HRH Prince Philip on board. The Captain at the time was the Earl Cairns* and Commander Chapman later replaced him. We visited Brest, Calais, Cookshaven, Keil Canal, Gent, Fredrickshaven, Rotterdam and Den Helder. I met and made a lasting friendship with a Dutchman known as Aad Sinka who retired from the Royal Dutch Navy (in 2001) in the position of Senior Weapons Officer (Computerised & Submarine Weaponry)'
'Our general function in those days was to test various gun barrels along with, at times, taking HMS Ganges Boys on Sea Training. We also visited most of the Admiralty Ports in the British Isles and spent quite a lot of time on anti-submarine exercises off the West Coast of Scotland and in the Irish Sea'. My Action Station during submarine attack was the After Depth Charge Magazine and during anti-aircraft action was the 4" Magazine'.
'I spent time on the submarine HMS Tireless (and) experienced a dive that almost ended my career when the submarine went down backwards during a standard diving procedure and it took hours to recover. Most of the Senior crew were from continental navies. Whilst on the Clyde I witnessed the Hydrogen Peroxide Engine Test Bed (submarine) HMS Excalibur.'
He also recalled OBDURATE going to Immingham on the Humber and 'being on the starboard Bridge Wing during a Full Power Trial' and 'if the buzz was correct she was capable of sustaining 38 knots for a substantial time. The ships wake looked to be at least 15 to 18 feet high and the angle of the deck about 12 degrees and she would also 'roll on a wet lawn'.
'After leaving Obdurate I was one of the unfortunate personnel drafted to Christmas Island and am now (2003), at 67 years old, the National Standard Bearer for the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association'.
Invalided out of the RN in 1960, Doug later went on to Skipper a Survey Vessel on the East Coast for 10 years working with HMS Juno (Fishery Protection), HMS Echo (Survey) and HMS Reclaim (Recovery) before 'going ashore' and into engineering and pollution control until he retired in 2001'. He finishes by saying 'I hope this little reminiscence will jog someone else's memory because I remember her as a very happy ship'.
PO PETER MACKNESS
I was also pleased to hear from Paul Mackness whose father was a Petty Officer during my time in the ship.
Paul wrote,
'Lt.(SD) (G) Peter W. Mackness (passed away on 3/6/03 aged 71).
He volunteered as a Boy in 1947 and his ships and establishments were: Ganges, Wakeful, Pembroke, Jutland, Neptune, Cossack (Korean War), Obdurate (PO), Diamond (commissioned June 1959), Excellent, Salisbury, Ganges (2nd D.O., Keppel Divn.1962-63), Cassandra (Malayan emergency), Fearless, Antrim, 25 JSTU at Woomera, and Penelope.
The ships he remembered most fondly, as I recall him mentioning, were Cossack and, after his commission, Fearless which he said was a happy ship although his mess bills were high due to the number of goofers who came to have a look round such an interesting ship on her first commission! Also the PM, Harold Wilson and Ian Smith of Rhodesia held talks aboard when he was in her, and I spotted him in the background of a photograph on the front of the Daily Telegraph at the time.
All his service reports and Captains' flimsy reports were very good, but my mother tells me that some unpleasant captains wrote something different on the Admiralty copy to what went on his copy, which might explain why he never got his recommended half-stripe.
His medals were: Korean War, United Nations, Malayan Emergency, and the Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977.
He retired from the RN in 1978 and worked for Marconi Radar until 1995. He suffered a serious illness in 1988 and another in early 1996 which forced him to take early retirement and ultimately led to his death.
I was also pleased to hear from Paul Mackness whose father was a Petty Officer during my time in the ship.
Paul wrote,
'Lt.(SD) (G) Peter W. Mackness (passed away on 3/6/03 aged 71).
He volunteered as a Boy in 1947 and his ships and establishments were: Ganges, Wakeful, Pembroke, Jutland, Neptune, Cossack (Korean War), Obdurate (PO), Diamond (commissioned June 1959), Excellent, Salisbury, Ganges (2nd D.O., Keppel Divn.1962-63), Cassandra (Malayan emergency), Fearless, Antrim, 25 JSTU at Woomera, and Penelope.
The ships he remembered most fondly, as I recall him mentioning, were Cossack and, after his commission, Fearless which he said was a happy ship although his mess bills were high due to the number of goofers who came to have a look round such an interesting ship on her first commission! Also the PM, Harold Wilson and Ian Smith of Rhodesia held talks aboard when he was in her, and I spotted him in the background of a photograph on the front of the Daily Telegraph at the time.
All his service reports and Captains' flimsy reports were very good, but my mother tells me that some unpleasant captains wrote something different on the Admiralty copy to what went on his copy, which might explain why he never got his recommended half-stripe.
His medals were: Korean War, United Nations, Malayan Emergency, and the Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977.
He retired from the RN in 1978 and worked for Marconi Radar until 1995. He suffered a serious illness in 1988 and another in early 1996 which forced him to take early retirement and ultimately led to his death.
BOY RATINGS UNDER TRAINING - PAY, ALLOWANCES and CHARGES - 1955
Boy (1st Class)
Pay (per day) 3 shillings and 6 pence (3/6d)
Kit Upkeep Allowance (KUA) (Per Quarter) £4/6/0
Less Deductions (excl: Income Tax)
National Insurance (per week) 1/9d
Standing charges (per month) 6/0d (Library, Cinema, Laundry etc.)
Quarterly Summary:
Income £ s d
Pay 16 2 0
KUA 4 6 0
TOTAL 20 8 0 (Per Annum = £81/12/0) [2005 value = £1421.47]
Less 2 0 9 (Per Annum = £8/3/0) [2005 value = £141.97]
(See other Pay Rates in HMS OBDURATE 1955 section)
Boy (1st Class)
Pay (per day) 3 shillings and 6 pence (3/6d)
Kit Upkeep Allowance (KUA) (Per Quarter) £4/6/0
Less Deductions (excl: Income Tax)
National Insurance (per week) 1/9d
Standing charges (per month) 6/0d (Library, Cinema, Laundry etc.)
Quarterly Summary:
Income £ s d
Pay 16 2 0
KUA 4 6 0
TOTAL 20 8 0 (Per Annum = £81/12/0) [2005 value = £1421.47]
Less 2 0 9 (Per Annum = £8/3/0) [2005 value = £141.97]
(See other Pay Rates in HMS OBDURATE 1955 section)
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This HMS OBDURATE 1955-6 Recollections section first published online 2012 and since revised.