Description
Object description
British stoker served aboard HMS Repulse in Far East, 1941 including sinking off Malaya, 10/12/1941; prisoner of war aboard SS Tapo in Johore Strait and Changi Prison Camp, Singapore, Malaya, 2/1942-8/1945
Content description
REEL 1 Recollections of operations as stoker aboard HMS Repulse in Far East, 1941 including sinking off Malaya, 10/12/1941: enlistment and pattern of training prior to joining battlecruiser; Japanese air attacks on ship; aiding sick bay attendants; abandoning ship; sight of ship sinking; period in sea; sight of HMS Prince of Wales sinking; rescue by HMAS Vampire; survivor's muster in Singapore, Malaya; duties in Singapore, Malaya after sinking; move to Dutch East Indies then back to Singapore, Malaya; attitude to orders to sail to Singapore in company with HMS Prince of Wales; reasons why ship was a happy ship; reception on arrival in Singapore, Malaya.
REEL 2 Continues: ashore in Singapore, Malaya; abortive voyage to Australia; reaction to Japanese bombing of Singapore, Malaya and start of war in Far East, 8/12/1941; orders to intercept Imperial Japanese Navy convoy in South China Sea; sighting of ships by Japanese reconnaissance aircraft; duties as stoker; battening down of hatches; aiding wounded in sick bay; abandoning ship; in state of first degree of readiness; question of duration of action and period in sea, 10/12/1941; reaction to being in action; awareness of lack of air cover; question of suitability of ship for action; lack of discussion about sinking.
REEL 3 Continues: recreational activities ashore. Recollections of shore duties in Malaya, 12/1941-2/1942: duties with coastal artillery in Singapore; voyage aboard Dutch ship from Singapore to Java, Dutch East Indies; relations with Dutch personnel; return to Singapore; manning small craft to evacuate troops; obtaining lift in lorry carrying Gurkhas; story of journey to Singapore; role as officer's bodyguard.
REEL 4 Continues: reaction to role searching civilians and checking cars; under Japanese fire; return to Singapore; preparing ships for civilians to be evacuated at Keppel Harbour; Japanese bombing of HMS Siang Wo and sinking in Banka Strait, 14/2/1942. Aspects of period as prisoner of war in Dutch East Indies, 2/1942: capture by Japanese; Japanese treatment of captured nurses; manning boat to Singapore, Malaya; Japanese treatment of civilians; reaction to surrender, 15/2/1942; problem of communicating with guards.
REEL 5 Continues: need to learn Japanese language; treatment by Japanese officer on board ship; accommodation on board ship. Recollections of period as prisoner of war aboard SS Tapo in Johore Strait and Changi Prison Camp, Singapore, Malaya, 2/1942-8/1945: duties on board Japanese ship SS Tapo in Johore Strait; sabotage on board; Japanese behaviour after drinking; Japanese interest in tattooed sailor and his fate; rations available; physical condition during captivity; work parties from prisoner of war camp.
REEL 6 Continues: daily routine; advice from Japanese officer not to escape; signing document not to escape under duress; payment and use of tobacco; aid received from Chinese civilians; punishment beatings after Japanese naval defeats; use of canteen in Changi Prison Camp; move into Changi Prison Camp; cooking rations.
REEL 7 Continues: sharing rations with sick; treatment received in hospital at Changi Prison Camp; sanitation in camps; water supply in camps; sleeping accommodation; problems with bed bugs in Changi Prison Camp; Japanese orders to decorate cells in Changi Prison Camp; nature of conversations amongst prisoners of war; conditions on working parties; arrival of supplies by air after Japanese surrender, 8/1945; work in tunnels.
REEL 8 Continues: contact with wife; receiving Red Cross parcels in Changi Prison Camp; shaving; arrival of clothing after Japanese surrender; arrival of British forces and interview with Lord Louis Mountbatten; obtaining passage on ship; effects of beri beri; hearing of Japanese surrender, 15/8/1945; attitude to sinking of HMS Repulse, 10/12/1941; psychological effects of sinking of HMS Repulse; attitude towards Japanese.