[R651400]

SN members may wish to know that October issue of Shipping Today and Yesterday contains a superb supplement packed with SS&A ship photographs.
Only just received my copy via NZ or would have posted this earlier!
It's doubtful that copies will be available from newsagents but they list their circulation department as 01424 720477

[gadgee]

Thank you Malcolm. October 2005 Ships Monthly had a Shaw Savill supplement but will look out for the magazine you mention.

[gadgee]

Made a b.lls up - it was Shipping Today magazine and not SM!! Pushing 60 years of age problems!!

[holmsey]

Greetings Paul

From your postings to the forum I believe we sailed together on the Icenic on the trip from Liverpool to Oz and NZ via Capetown in 1972. I was 4/E on that trip and remember it fondly as I had the chance to meet up with family in Sydney. I also remember the relief we all felt when we finally stopped the engine in Durban, the screaming from No 1 supercharger drove us all crazy. I have posted some images on this forum and also on the Shaw Savill website run by Mike Foreman at www.shawsavillships.co.uk, he has placed some images from the Cretic on the Icenic page and vice versa, so have a look around. I keep in contact, via email, with some of the engineers and can pass on details if you wish.

Regards
Jim Holmes

PS yours truly as we approached Capetown

[gadgee]

Jim
Your face does look familiar even if 34 years have passed!. If you look in my My Photos (Gadgee) there are quite a few of our trip. I especially remember a Scottish electrician with a beard, wild hair and built like a s**t house. He was well into Black Sabbath etc??

[holmsey]

Greetings Paul

The guy you remember is Jim Henderson, AKA Tuck, he is one of the guys I email now and then. I will post some more of my images on the forum when I get a chance, I have alraedy posted a scan of a race card, from another Icenic voyage. The image below is of Tuck, John Walters (Fridge Eng) and me, I will post to the forum images from a crossing-the-line-ceremony with the junior leccy Bob Law on the receiving end, Tuck as Neptune, myself as a copper! the rest are unknown.

Regards
Jim H

[gadgee]

So what is Tuck doing now??

[gadgee]

Me as 3/0 on Icenic with Phil Green, Deck Cadet. Pic Taken I think by Nick Goodwin, Deck Cadet, who is an SN member.

[sailor63]

hi Paul, My name is Colin Knight, no connection other than the Icenic, I did two trips as deck boy from 19 06 63 to 07 03 64. cheers, C.K.

[gadgee]

Colin

Thanks for your post to Shaw Savill here.........

[stan mayes]

I have just received the sad news that Captain Clive Downes retired Master of Shaw Savill passed away this morning in our local Lion's Hospice after a long illness...
Captain Downes was until recently,ourChairman of Gravesend Branch of the Merchant Navy Association and a member of Merchant Mariners...

[stan mayes]

SS&A's Bay boats.
I can remember there being much trouble involving LARGS BAY in an Australian port during the 1950s. The crew were on strike and the Aussie port workers supported them..I believe it took some weeks to resolve the trouble..Can any member give some information on this ?
I made an eventful trip in LARGS BAY during the war which may interest members..
I joined her in Birkenhead on 10th June 1943 and we embarked nearly 2000 troops for the 8th Army in North Africa.. They disembarked in Algiers..
From here we sailed for Freetown in convoy with two other troopships HIGHLAND CHIEFTAIN and NEA HELLAS Greek...we were escorted by frigate HMS NESS..From Freetown we went on to Lagos and here we embarked 2000 Nigerian troops and took them to Freetown where they transferred to large troopships..We returned to Lagos,embarked another 2000 Nigerian troops and later rendezvoused with a convoy - all troopships ..WS 32..Our destination was Bombay where the troops would fight against the Japanese in Burma..
The daily menu of the Nigerians was their national food - Pepper soup - yams and dried fish...and although tasty,laxatives were not wanted as we soon found out.
The troop deck toilets could not cope so we rigged painting stages around the poop outside the rails [ thunder boxes ]...All the way to Cape Town we had a following wind so not much of the stomach discharge went into the sea..On arrival in Capetown we found it was a few inches thick all around the counter stern and rudder stock ...It was removed by pressure hoses ..
At Capetown we bunkered and stored ship and the convoy sailed again on 19th August 1943..
The troopships in convoy WS 32 were LARGS BAY - ESPERANCE BAY - MORETON BAY - BRITANNIC - NEA HELLAS - HIGHLAND CHIEFTAIN - MALOJA - TAMAROA - RANGITATA and ROCHESTER CASTLE...
We were escorted by four destrroyers and three frigates..
A few days later we received a message that a Japanese naval force was in the Indian Ocean so the convoy was diverted into Durban .
We were moored at Maydon Wharf for a week and during this time the Nigerian troops became rebellious as they were not allowed ashore so they were then allowed a few hundred each time to exercice or play football on the wharf..With the all clear in the Indian Ocean we sailed ..Many of the troops had deserted..
We arrived in Bombay on 10th September 1943.A few days in drydock and we then sailed for Port Said and here 2000 British troops embarked for Augusta Sicily .From here to Algiers and returned to Augusta with troops then embarked about 400 walking wounded and returned to UK where we arrived at Cardiff on 5th November1943..I paid off..
On her next voyage LARGS BAY hit a mine in Bay of Naples and there were some casualties among the crew.

[Frank Holleran]

Hello Stan...sad to hear about Captain Downes, sailed under him for 3 years..a good and fair skipper R.I.P
Regards
Frank.

[emcey]

Hello
I emmigrated from Leicester, England to Melbourne, Australia on board 'Esperance Bay' in 1948. I was aged 10. I still remember the voyage and recently traced a fellow passenger aged 8, who was able to supply me with a copy of a diary of the voyage kept by his mother. Are there any other fellow passengers out there?

[windows290]

Hey all
just trying to track some information on RMS TAMAROA i know she left Liverpool in 1940 as a troop carrying ship. She had on board my Grandad Alfred Samuel Sills, i have a copy of his cert of crossing the equator on 11 jan 1941. i believe they had quite an interesting sail when the Admiral Hipper attacked the convoy.

My question is does anybody know of a Units Aboard list or even better a passenger list???

All help would be greatly appreciated

[kiwi-kid]

hi guys does anyone know where i can get my hands on the crew list for the icenic that birthed in nelson ,new zealand in feb 1964.

[Bob Murdoch]

Originally Posted by windows290

Hey all
just trying to track some information on RMS TAMAROA i know she left Liverpool in 1940 as a troop carrying ship. She had on board my Grandad Alfred Samuel Sills, i have a copy of his cert of crossing the equator on 11 jan 1941. i believe they had quite an interesting sail when the Admiral Hipper attacked the convoy.

My question is does anybody know of a Units Aboard list or even better a passenger list???

All help would be greatly appreciated

From Archie Munro's Winston Specials. ISBN 1 904459 20 X
Tamaroa sailed from Liverpool in convoy WS5A at 1600 on 17th December 1940. She had two battalions of the 27th Searchlight Regiment. She was also carrying the Convoy Commodore, Rear Admiral Reyne.
The troops were embarked on Tamaroa in Brunswick
Dock,commencing 15th December 1940.
Yes, on Christmas Day, the Admiral Hipper made an atack on the convoy. The escort ships, Clematis, corvette and the cruisers, Berwick and Bonaventure turnmed towards her and hits were scored on either side, none serious although the damage made Hipper return to Brest. Hits were also received on Empire Trooper and Aribistan.
Tamaroa arrived at Suez on 16th February after a 61 day run from the UK. Here she disembarked her troops.
Hope this helps
Cheers Bob