The above photograph was kindly donated by Johann van Blerck.
During the early 1970's we painted the hull and superstructure of HMS Londonderry in Simonstown and I was given this picture of her before the extra mast additions.
At the time I working as a spray painter at my father's (Lt Cdr Vic van Blerck Retd.) Marine Maintenance business (VG van Blerck (Pty) Ltd).
Regards,
Johann van Blerck
I knew six men both skilled and keen
These six made up the diving team
They never caused me any strife
In fact they trusted me with their life
Bomber Mills and Charley Brown
Were ever eager to go down
Dave Lavender and Alfie Bass
They could substitute Hans Hass
Then there's Stoker Simpson of good repute
Sinks under the ice in a rubber suit
While up on deck in a nice warm fleece
The Diving Officer, Old Dai Rees
That just leaves me to complete the team
The youngest there and so it seems
I had the job running the store
Doing safety checks and lots, lots more
Making sure the sets were ready
Placing the shot ropes firm and steady
Stand-by diver and attendants there
A pair of fins for each to wear
Before they entered into the sea
I knew each divers buoyancy
So down the ladder without a fuss
For in me they had total trust
The team they worked as if one
We had our laughs we had our fun
We knew our job, we knew our limits
And Subby Rees clocked up our minutes
By Bob Seymour, January 2023.
Following received from Dinger (Yeoman) Alan Bell for full promulagation.
Deal RMA Club is pleased to announce a unique opportunity to holiday in Bandstand View - our newly refurbished holiday apartment for 4 people - situated on the top floor of the building. Please visit our website to view and book at https://rmadeal.co.uk/accommodation/apartment/ 20% Discount for veterans, serving HM Forces and Emergency Services (including NHS) prices from £85 per night. 10% discount for club members prices from £95 per night. Please copy and paste the link and share with friends and family.
I was sent this by a diving buddy, he picked it up at a charity fair this year and asked if I knew who drew it.
Looking at it, it's pre modification so must have been 1st commission, so I thought of old Frank Budge. Does anyone have any thoughts?
Something to ponder during Lockdown and Dave great newsletter as usual.
Best wishes Bob Seymour.
Caption reads: HMS Londonderry
Rothesay Class A/S Frigate
Photograph and information uploaded to the website Photos page.
Just found a photo online from V and A museum in London which shows what I believe to be an AB gunner posing on the bridge roof with some models sometime in the 60's or possibly early 70's. Any ideas when the Londonderry was actually in London for this and who the AB gunner might be?
Jason McPherson
(Any information to Jason via the 'Photos' page - Comments. You will need to log in to Google to comment.
Alternatively email the webmaster@hmslondonderry.org)
 NEED LONG OR SHORT TERM ACCOMMODATION IN SYDNEY? IN THE FIRST INSTANCE CONTACT: RIC email: <rictar2014@gmail.com> State: NAME/AGE/NAVY CONNECTION (Ex HMS GANGES or HMS LONDONDERRY) |
In 1741, Britain and Spain were at war. Commodore Anson and his small squadron battled round Cape Horn into the Pacific to take the war to the Spanish possessions in the South Seas. It was a notable moment in British naval history, when far-sighted men were beginning to realise the great benefits to British trade from a strong Navy with a worldwide reach. There were no accurate charts of the west coast of South America. The marine chronometer had not been invented, so longitude was largely a matter of guesswork. And before the value of lime juice had been recognised, the dreaded scurvy took a grim toll on the health of ships companies. One of the squadron, HMS Wager, a 6th rate of 28 guns, was driven onto a lee shore in vicious hurricane-force winds and wrecked on an uninhabited island off the coast of what is now Chilean Patagonia. About 140 Wager men reached the land, most of them then to be lost through starvation, exhaustion, hypothermia, drowning, and sometimes violence. Gunner Bulkeley led a party who mutinied against an unpopular captain, and set off in an open boat with no chart. No one approves of mutiny, but his 2500 nautical-mile journey from Chilean Patagonia to Brazil, through the world s worst seas, was an epic feat of navigation, and one of the greatest castaway survival voyages in the annals of the sea. Only 36 men (including Midshipman Byron, grandfather of the poet) eventually made it back to Britain, where their tales of fearful ordeals in a far country caught the imagination of the public. This book uses their accounts to piece together the story of a dramatic fight for survival under extreme conditions. The wrecking of the Wager had surprisingly lasting effects on both the history of Chile and the administration of the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, as this book tells. Anson, justly called the Father of the Navy, saw to it that the lessons of the Wager disaster were learned and some important reforms implemented. In 2006 the wreck was discovered by a British expedition, and it is now being studied by Chilean marine archaeologists. Here in the Wager s extraordinary story, is a record of human endurance and perseverance in the face of almost superhuman adversity.
Kit Layman CB, DSO, LVO joined the Royal Navy in 1956, and served for 35 years in many parts of the world, including the waters around Patagonia where the Wager was wrecked. He commanded five ships of different sizes, from a minehunter based in Hong Kong to the aircraft carrier HMS Invincible. In 1982 he was commanding HMS Argonaut and the Seventh Frigate Squadron in the Falklands war, when his ship suffered damage and casualties but came home safely. As a Rear Admiral he spent a happy time as Commander British Forces Falkland Islands when he was able to study the old settlement founded by Commodore Byron in 1765. His last appointment was at NATO Headquarters for three interesting years, during which time the Soviet Union and its empire collapsed. On retirement he worked for various companies and charities and his local Community Council, was appointed Gentleman Usher of the Green Rod (an Officer of the Order of the Thistle), and has published two other books, The Falklands And The Dwarf: The Cruise Of HMS Dwarf In The Falkland Islands 1881-1882 and Man of Letters: Early Life and Love Letters of Robert Chambers.
The autobiography of Rear Admiral Gatacre, CBE, DSO, DSC and Bar. Described by the Australian Chief of Naval Staff on his retirement as "Our most widely experienced officer". The Admiral's naval service occupied a space of 43 years, from 1921 to 1964.
After graduating from the Naval College (Jervis Bay) he spent 24 years in sea-going appointments and only 15 years ashore; his service included ten years in ships and establishments of the Royal Navy and two periods (four years) in the Australian Embassy in Washington D.C., U.S.A.
Admiral Gatacre had an 'involvement' in the Spanish Civil War, 1937 to 1939. In World War Two, he was the navigator of H.M.S. RODNEY which had a major part in the sinking of the German battleship BISMARK and was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross;
he participated in the Solomons and New Guinea campaigns in the Pacific with U.S. and Australian Task Forces and was awarded a bar to his D.S.C. for his part in the Guadacanal assault in 1942.
As Captain of H.M.A.S. ANZAC in the Korean war, the Admiral received the Distinguished Service Order for gallantry in the face of the enemy.
Admiral Gatacre was the first Captain of the aircraft carrier H.M.A.S. MELBOURNE, introducing into the R.A.N. and into Australias's region at that time, the day and night operation of jet aircraft. When commanding the Australian Fleet, Admiral Gatacre organised and conducted in the China Sea, the largest SEATO maritime exercise held up to that time, and perhaps ever.
Admiral Gatacre, who was Flag Officer-in-Charge East Australian Area at the time, has offered a conjecture as to the cause of the H.M.A.S. MELBOURNE and H.M.A.S. VOYAGER collision. As the Admiral's navigation and command experience at sea is unmatched in the R.A.N. and would be matched by very few in any Navy, his conjecture is a compelling one.
The retirement message from Admiral Moorer, Commander U.S. 7th Fleet (in the Pacific) told Admiral Gatacre "You have mad a very major contribution to your Navy as well as to the many others in the Free World, and you can view this with pride and satisfaction.
Admiral Gatacre's REPORTS OF PROCEEDINGS gives a most interesting account of a varied and distinguished naval career and are a valuable contribution to Australia's naval heritage.
Admiral Gatacre was the father of our own Aussie Navigation Officer Lieutenant Rod Gatacre R.A.N. who took us around the world on such a memorable commission.
This video is historically interesting to all ex - RN personnel.
Britain, under Harold (The pipe and duffel coat) Wilson, as Prime Minister refused to join the Vietnam War. However, in this video the British RFA TIDEPOOL is seen fuelling and storing HMAS SYDNEY as she transports troops and stores to Vietnam
From: Bev.Bowden@xtra.co.nz
To: davidhwickham@btinternet.com
Sent: Tuesday, 1 July 2014, 5:22
Subject: HMS Londonderry Crew Member? I am not sure if you can assist me in my quest but here goes. My cousin a few years ago purchased an old sailors hat with the name HMS Londonderry on the band and a name Starbuck printed inside.
Do you know anyone who could find out anything about this for me - if anyone was interested my cousin would be only too happy for give it to them. I live in New Zealand so not sure if this makes things difficult. We would both be interested in its history and have always wondered why it ended up here in NZ. Look forward to your reply Ms Bev Bowden
The National Archives has kindly given permission for copies of the HMS Londonderry
deck logs covering the Bianca C incident to be displayed on the website and can be seen at:
https://www.hmslondonderry.org/bianca_c.html
They are not for reproduction or commercial use without their permission.
| A first class quality HMS Londonderry badged tie can be purchased for the incredible bargain price of £7 from Robbie Robson. robbie.fna@virgin.net Please email Robbie for further details. |  |
Dear Sirs The Legasee war veterans project is looking for volunteers who want to tell their stories.
As part of an exciting social history project, the film company Legasee is looking for war veterans who would like to have their stories filmed for posterity.
This footage will be used to launch a unique online archive of interviews for use by schools, colleges and members of the public.
To kick-start the project, we're looking for war veterans of any age who wish to recall their experiences in front of the camera for the benefit of future generations.
It doesn't matter what campaign or country they served in, or what role they played. The Legasee war veterans project is completely free of charge, with any travel expenses paid - all we need is their knowledge, enthusiasm and a small amount of their time to take part in the filming.
If you know anyone that's interested, please ask them to email me giving their name, age, daytime phone number and brief details of their wartime service so we can contact them to discuss this further.
We hope to hear from you, and please feel free to forward this email to any war veterans that you think might be interested.
Please visit our web site for more information about Legasee - https://www.Legasee.org.uk Kind regards
Dave Player
Ex-Royal Engineer
Email:- dave@legasee.org.uk Legasee - 'become a part of history'
The tankard has the engraved ships crest and beneath - Presented by J Samuel White & Co Ltd. on the occasion of commissioning HMS Londonderry on the 20th July 1960. On the other side it has the names engraved of her six captains: Cdr I.S. Primrose 1960 - 1962, Cdr D.E.P. George 1962 - 1964, Cdr W.J. Soames 1964 - 1966, Cdr N.A.B. Anson 1966 - 1967, Cdr M.T. Prest 1969 - 1971, Cdr T.D.A. Thomas 1971 - 1972.
