Header Photo: John Biscoe I at Horseshoe in 1955 (Photo: Jim Exley)
RRS John Biscoe I
Jim Preece – Chief Officer, 1950 to 1953
“She was cramped alright. No comfort for us. The master’s quarters were okay. Captain Bill “Kelly” Johnston seldom permitted me to cross his threshold. I think he was worried I might get a taste for the good life. He needn’t have worried, my good life was with the Fids”
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The officer’s wardroom at HMS Pembroke, Chatham, was light and airy. An equally airy, attractive young Wren asked me at breakfast if I’d like tea or coffee. She was about to change my life.
“Would you like the Telegraph, sir?”
I thought for a second or two. I’d rather have had the News of the World but realised it didn’t fit with the surroundings.
That’s where I saw the advert for FIDS. “Chief Officer required for Antarctic vessel…..” Apply to Crown Agents of the Colonies at Millbank.
HMS Burghead Bay – Naval Diplomacy with John Biscoe at Hope Bay, 1952 – Syd Philp
In October 1951 I joined the frigate HMS Burghead Bay, as a Fifth Class Ordinance Artificer. It was the start of what would be a thirteen month trip and within a week of my return I would marry my fiancee, Margaret.
Life at sea, after a shore training establishment, was refreshing. I had found conditions harsh, the navy was still brutal, bullying and downright cruel. An ordinance artificer could turn his hand to anything when it came to working metals, copper smithing and welding. We were skilled tradesmen working with the guns, large and small. We fitted somewhere between an officer and the ordinary ranks. As a result we sometimes felt their envy.
We sailed from the UK bound, initially, for a point in the mid Atlantic. Princess Elizabeth was due to visit Canada and our role was to maintain position just in case her plane should fall from the sky.