204840 Chief Petty Officer Frances McFadyen Royal Navy Supply Depot Tobermory from:Barnsley, Yorks I am posting this in memory of a dear Aunt who invited me to visit her when she was serving at Tobermory, Isle of Mull in the early forties, prior to her posting to Trinconmalee in Ceylon. What follows is a my personal experience made possible by Aunty Frances.
In a moment of nostalgia I decided to relive the most memorable event of my life, a day at sea in the final work-up aboard HMS Cowslip out of Tobermory in the summer of 1942. I must thank Dave Cox for the model he built which enabled me to fully visualise my experiences over again.
It may sound odd that an eight year old schoolboy was able to experience such an incredible voyage but it was made possible by my aunt who was a CPO in Supply at Tobermory. During the exercise all the ships weaponry was tested from the 4 inch gun thro' Oerlican cannons, depth charges and the Hedgehog anti-submarine grenades, I was even invited to dine with the Captain but being so young and shy I hardly spoke a word to him and had to leave for fresh air on deck because of sea sickness.
I am now 75 so it is extremely unlikely that any of the crew are still with us, if only I could express my gratitude to them for even at that young age I realised what they would be facing from then on. In studying Dave's model I am unable to recognise the Hedgehog launcher platform which I believe was on the bow deck in front of the 4 inch gun. Was that the case of in my memory playing tricks on me? Thank you once again for recreating that fantastic experience.
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