大象传媒

I Joined up in 1943 and was discharged after VJ day. I joined the Royal Navy and I still can鈥檛 swim! I was posted to what was known as a Destroyer, 908 tones, we spent most of our time out in the Mediterranean and the Adriatic chasing German E Boats which were faster than ours; there 60 to our 40. I was 18 陆 at the time. My brother had to stay at home in important service.
We used to go fishing, our ship carried depth charges which you fire into the water 100/200 yards away and they explode under the service. And that鈥檚 how we went fishing. They had an expiry date on, so we had to dispose of them. We鈥檇 throw them into the water and then caught all of the fish.
The Navy is a little bit different to the Air-Force or the army because you keep changing friends, changing routines all of the time, going from one place to another. We used to wear bell bottom trousers with seven creases inside, rather than outside; this represented the seven oceans of the world.
I did my training in Douglas; the Isle of Mann as a telegraphist or radio operator and I then became a trained operator; we did everything in Morse Code, using earphones. We had to pass out 22 words a minute, you never forget it, it鈥檚 like riding a bicycle.
During VE day, I was based in Malta: Valetta, in the caves. I volunteered to take a boat back to America, but they wouldn鈥檛 let me as it was VE Day. I was just something we had to do in those days. I couldn鈥檛 swim, but they threw me in anyway. I used to keep an eye out for wood, so if we got hit I鈥檇 have something to keep hold of. I would love to go back into the Navy; you remember all of the good things. My original intention was to go into the Air-Force, but when I registered, I got a letter saying that there were no vacancies. Where I joined up was at a Butlins.

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