Featherstone, John Allen (Oral history)

1138229428
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1314987717
Order this sound recording under fair dealing

All Rights Reserved except for Fair Dealing exceptions otherwise permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

Accepted Non-commercial Use

Permitted use for these purposes:
Personal use for non-commercial research and private study and other uses under the UK’s exceptions to copyright and those exceptions to copyright in place where the user is located.
Use on websites that are primarily information-led, research-oriented and not behind a paywall.
Use on personal social media accounts, provided the individuals are not promoting themselves commercially.
Non-Commercial educational use for the purpose of teaching and instruction, including internal training.
Downloading audio-visual for non-commercial offline listening or viewing.
Free exhibitions held in venues, which do not charge an entry fee.

If you would like to use IWM collections materials in a way that is not covered above, require a commercial licence, high-resolution copies, or have manipulation requests, please contact the Image and Film Licensing Team. Digital files of films and sound recordings are available at cost depending on intended use.

Description

Object description

British seaman served as gun-layer aboard HMS King George V in North Sea and Atlantic Ocean, 1940-1942, including sinking of the Bismarck, 5/1941; served with Royal Navy Submarine Service in GB, North Atlantic and Mediterranean, 1942-1946 and with Royal Navy Submarine Service and Royal Navy in GB and Mediterranean, 1946-1978.

Content description

REEL 1: Aspects of period with Royal Navy in GB, 1939-1940: joined Navy as boy seaman aged 16, Jul/1939; drafted to HMS Ganges; evacuated to barracks in old hospital in Liverpool; drafted to HMS King George V, 1940. Aspects of operations as gun-layer aboard HMS King George V in North Sea and Atlantic Ocean, 1940-1942: joined ship in Rosyth, Scotland; story of visit by Winston Churchill; working up and sea trials; role in pursuit of Scharnhorst and Gneisenau; description of pursuit and sinking of Bismarck in Atlantic Ocean, 25-27/May/1941; reaction of crew to shelling of HMS Rodney; role in covering force for Russian convoys, 1941-1942; story of collision with destroyer HMS Punjabi in dense fog off Iceland, 1/May/1942; description of rescuing crew from HMS Punjabi; returned to Liverpool for repairs; story of volunteering for Royal Navy Submarine Service, 1942; description of training at Gosport, Blithe and Rothsay drafted to HMS Varangian. Aspects of operations with Royal Navy Submarine Service, 1942-1945: drafted to submarine HMS Varangian; location of submarine base in Keiller's marmalade factory, Dundee, Scotland; description of duties patrolling Norwegian coast at Altenfjord and night patrols on surface to report on shipping movements; returned to training flotilla at Tobermory, Scotland; opinion of Admiral Stevenson; story of volunteering to train Canadian seamen in anti-submarine warfare; description of base in Bermuda; rates of pay; opinion of food; description of HMS Varangian being depth charged; amusing story about leading stoker; story of German torpedo passing submarine. Aspects of post-war operations with Royal Navy Submarine Service, 1946-1961: paid off and returned to HMS Dolphin, Gosport, 10/1946-6/1947; drafted as gun-layer to HMS Tiptoe in Portland Flotilla; memories of Capt. Donald Cameron VC; drafted as coxswain to HMS Trump in Malta; drafted to HMS Sentinel; memories of Capt. John Cromwell Varley; story of exercise in Mediterranean, c.1953/54; amusing story about popular song 'Shrimp Boats'; story about leading seaman. REEL 2 Continues: discipline and punishments aboard submarines; memories of Capt. Tony Myers VC; duties as instructor at training school in Gosport; further period in Malta as coxswain, 3/1952- 9/1955; story of buying new Morris Minor in Malta; story of returning to GB aboard submarine classed as unfit for service; opinion of refit facilities in Portsmouth; returned to general service with Royal Navy. Aspects of period with Royal Navy in GB, 1961-1978: duties with Reserve Fleet, Portsmouth and as coxswain of HMS Wizard, 1961-1963; role as Recruiting Officer with Royal Navy Careers Service, 1963-1978; amusing story about recruiting sergeant in Welsh Guards; retired from Royal Navy aged 55, Feb/1978.

Object Details

Category: Sound
Related period: Second World War (production), Second World War (content), Second World War (association)
Creator: Grimwade, Karl (Production company)
Grimwade, Karl (recorder)
Featherstone, John Allen (interviewee/speaker)
Production date: 2013
Dimensions: whole: Duration 42, Number Of Items 2
Catalogue number: 29732

Object associations

Associated people and organisations

Featherstone, John Allen
Royal Navy, HMS KING GEORGE V
Associated places

North Sea
Atlantic
Mediterranean

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Featherstone, John Allen (Oral history)

Description

Object description

Content description

Object Details

Object associations

Associated people and organisations

Associated places

Our collections information

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