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21 Monks Way President. The Rt Hon. The Earl of Gainsborough NEWSLETTER SPRING / SUMMER 2008 The Remembrance Service held at Westminster Abbey on Saturday 24th November was once again very moving and attended by some ninety seven persons including four survivors, Mr Arthur Bryant, Mr George Knott and Mr Jack Nealon and Mr Jim Pratt. The members of the Association assembled in the Nave and were led by the Abbey staff to their seats in the choir stalls for the Evensong service conducted by the Reverend Canon A. Robert Wright. The Remembrance service for the HMS Barham Association was held upon completion of Evensong where the wreath was laid by survivor George Knott and his daughter on behalf of those present. The standard was paraded this year by Chief Petty Officer Bob Woodgate. A minutes silence was held at this time in memory of the loss of comrades, parents, husbands and relatives who were lost in the sinking or have since been lost. At this point I should like to thank Mr and Mrs Pickett for the making and delivery of the wreath. Thank you very much. Some members afterwards made their way to the Union Jack Club where they were made welcome for a rewarding beverage and meal.. It was very pleasing for members of the committee to see so many people attending the service, and it was very nice to welcome Richard and Anne Cooke the great nephew of the late Captain Cooke.. Various members managed to take photographs of the survivors present and of their own families/friends. The secretary has been requested by the survivors if copies could be published on the web site if possible. A provisional date for the Remembrance service for 2008 will be Saturday 22nd November. Confirmation of this will be in the Autumn/Winter Newsletter.. Sadly we have received notice of the death of the following survivor, Arthur “ Ginger “Bryant . Arthur was a staunch member of the Association and we all shall miss him.. Arthur it seems had a charmed life having been torpedoed three times ,shelled, bombed and shipwrecked. A few years after the loss of HMS Barham Arthur joined HMS Excellent to qualify as a diver, in 1951 he was part of the team who dived on HMS Affray and in that year qualified as a 360ft Deep Diver. He then served in various capacities as a diver and was rated Chief Petty Officer by the Commander in Chief, possibly the last Admiralty made Chief. In 1956 he joined the Salvage vessel Kingarth for the salvage of wrecks in the wake of the Suez crisis. On leaving the Royal Navy in 1966 he became the landlord of “The Willows” public house in Cressing Essex with his wife Norma. In 1981 Charringtons Brewery sold the pub as a free house requiring Arthur to seek other employment, sadly he lost his wife in January 1992 and his own health started to deteriorate with the onset of bone necrosis, he had several operations including a knee replacement. He also suffered several bouts of cancer finally after a short hospitalisation he died on the 15th January 2008. We also lost another strong supporter of the Association, Mrs Evelyn Petherbridge who died in December 2007. Evelyn also had a charmed life working on the renowned fighter of World War 2 the Spitfire and returning home in Southampton after a night shift only to find out all her belongings were destroyed in a German Air raid leaving her with just the clothes she was wearing. On marrying Sidney they moved to Winchester where Sidney worked on the railways and Evelyn raised her family, and later in life working for the main Post Office in the High Street Winchester until retirement. It is also noted that the daughter of Commander Bradford ( commander at the time of HMS Barham sinking ) The Dowager, Marchioness of Landsdown , died in 2007. On a more pleasant subject, we the Association are still pursuing the purchase of a “Memorial Stone” to be placed at the National Memorial Arboretum. This will incur some expenditure from the Association but at the present time the committee can see no problems arising. Details will be forwarded to all when known of the dedication and costs. We have been contacted by Flashback Television Limited asking if any survivor/member can offer details of the paranormal phenomena associated with the story of Helen Duncan . Members may recollect at the reunion dinner a similar type of research was being conducted with a view of a television program. No further contact has been made with that lady or has there been any news from the television companies. If any members wishes to contact Flashback Television, the contact is Emily Sevenoaks @flashbacktelevision.co.uk. On the subject of gifts I would like to thank all persons who have forwarded gifts to the Association. Yours sincerely, Michael Stratton-Brown Chairman |
last updated: 13 July 2013 |
andrew gillespie