9th July 2003.

Dear Valerie Martin,

It was interesting to read about the two ships, Findon and Arundel, on your website.  

In 1964, I was a radio officer on the Arundel sailing between the Tyne/Tees coal ports and power stations on the Thames.

'Sparkies' didn't work for 'Stevie Clarke' directly, but were hired out to them by Marconi - or the more grandly named Marconi International Marine Radio Company!  

I joined her at Immingham on the Humber.  My train was late arriving and the Arundel was already moving through the lock when I hurried alongside bearing my suitcase.  

'How shall I get on board?' I yelled at the skipper.

'Why, you'll just have to jump, man.'  

So I did, about ten feet onto the deck, case first.

I have never heard of the ship since I left her.  

She was a rather scruffy little thing, always covered in coal dust, but the crew were a jolly bunch of Geordies.  

I remember that whenever we got into port the 'old man' would send me off to the shop to buy his chocolate Rollos!  There wasn't much radio work to do.  Mostly I had to go trailing up on deck in all weathers to keep altering the television aerial as we steamed from one TV region to another.  

The captain and the mate were bingo addicts and always expected me to keep an eye on the 'trimmers' when they went off looking for a 'full house'.  

In the northern ports, the crew usually nipped off home while the ship was loading.  When the dockers told me that the hold was nearly full, I had to ring everyone up and tell everyone to come back to the ship!  

I liked Blyth best of the rather grimy ports we visited because it had a dance hall and some pretty girls.  

Now my 'seagoing' is confined to a little yacht on Windermere.  It seems that sailing is something you can never really give up.

Happy days.

Keep up the good work on your site.

Sincerely,

David Britton

David Britton, Scarborough.