Guest Book

Ah Stevie baby, the best commission I ever had was the happy Hermes.....do I remember correctly there being Belicose Bannister and Seaweed Sid being the two forecasters, or am I getting mixed up with other ships? Also I remember you joining Hermes mid-commission, so was Colin Brenchley with us? Who else can you recall? I'll be e-mailing you soon;
Must meet up this summer.......
Ray

Ray

I remember it well. As I recall on the deck right above my head was the pump that made the liquid oxygen for the pilots. When they turned it off in harbour I couldn't sleep because of the silence!
Some of the happiest days of my life were spent on Hermes. I have very fond memories even to this day. I was one of the fortunate few who saw Hermes from the air when I flew off the cats in a Gannet off Penang and from the waterline when I fell overboard in Freemantle harbour.

I now live in Ely, Cambridgeshire with my partner Rosina. My marriage to Jean sadly ended about 16 years ago, but we remain on good terms.

I don't do the Facebook etc stuff, just too sad to my mind.

I'll dig out some photos and try and upload them to the site.

I see you've got a reunion in September. Unfortunately we flyy off to China for three weeks on Monday 10th so it may be cutting it a bit fine, I'll wait and see nearer the time.

I see from the photos that Gillet the Younger clearly didn't put a grey syrup on his wedding list (yup I'm still a cheeky sod).

Steve - been after a contact with you for ages. Remember us on the happy Hermes; first 4H2 and then 4J4 Mess, with you sleeping under that noisy asbestos-wrapped pipe???? I now live in sleepy Somerset, got all my hair and most of my teeth, One son (now 40) living in London and one daughter (now 36)in Manchester. Where are you - would love to meet up after all these years.....
Ray

I was told about your website by a colleague at work this morning who stumbled across it by accident whilst searching 'HMS Hermes'.

After leaving the Navy I managed a paper shop for 3 years (nobody needed the skills of a 'Met Man', before joining the Cambridgeshire Ambulance Service in 1976, where I spent a 31 year career. I took early retirement at the end of 1007 and had an 18 month 'gap year' during which my partner Rosina and I toured America for 6 months in our motorhome. Our exploits can be found on our website which in the throes of changing its address to http://www.britstourusa.com. After our travels I returned to the Ambulance Service on the non emergency side where I vegitate to this day.

I still enjoy good health thus managing to stay one step ahead of the embalmers, and have my own teeth and hair which I suppose is something to be grateful for.
I have two daughters Clare & Nicola, who are all grown up now, no grandchildren which helps to keep the costs down at Christmas!!

Nicola joined the Navy for about four years during which she made naval history by becoming the navy's first ever 'female button boy'. She's now in the Hampshire police whilst Clare has her own business here in Cambridgeshire.

Nice to have visited the site and seen a few valued former colleagues (some stories should remain untold!!).

AAhhhhh Ray - 'tanks for the invitation - well it so 'appens I did get a sight of the Forum and thought , maybe, I could get it back - so I went for it - ... but 'A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM' ....

Yes yes yes, very droll, I really fell for that....but exactly where IS the Forum? And will this question just elicit more p..s taking, or will I actually get any useful info?

Forum has also been spotted here in Northumberland when they (the Romans)came over here for ski-ing and snowboarding holidays along Hadrians Wall....

Re Spud and Ray...also been looking for the Forum, ours seems to be buried under Carrefour in Saintes just south of us...the coliseum is there the second largest in Europe, no Sophia, no Italians, Just a team of French with berets working as stonemasons to replace worn stone on the Roman buildings that abound....no lions and christians any more just actors doing plays and operas during the summer.....
JDDW

Ray ..... saw it in Rome at the weekend before the RUGBY - all part of being in the EEC apparently - everything GOOD and profitable has to be donated to help ITALY overcome it's 'never-overcomable' borrowing debt!

Hopefully when the FORUM returns to UK Sophia will accompany (with the help of JDD and our patron saint of the reverse of dementia - George Blu !

I know I'm getting old and senile, but where's the forum gone?