Add Information to Record of a Person who served during the Second World War on The Wartime Memories Project Website
Add Information to Record of a Person who served during the Second World War on The Wartime Memories Project Website
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264540
Cook. John Ridley Liddle
Royal Navy HMS Exmouth
John Liddle was my father. He was born in May 1925 and died in April 2002.
He joined the Royal Navy in about 1941. He served as a cook on HMS Exmouth. In a very long letter he left me he described it as being tarred black and well run down. In the North (I think in Scappa Flow) he says "There were subs at one side of her. The other side was a few old trawlers that had been converted into Minesweepers. The ship swung around the bay attached to bouys. It never went very far. The Mess decks were through the ship. Great Open spaces with long tables and forms across both sides. There were posts every so far along and hooks to sling your hammock at night.
By day all had to be cleared away. I was lucky on that old ship. I was assigned to a leading cook and we did shift work. The galley was coal fired and we had an anthracite stove as well. A couple of jam boiling pots, Big affairs fixed to the deck. The galley was at the front of the ship and great anchor chains came down at each side of the galley. They creaked and groaned as the ship went forward with the tide. Then slapped each other as the ship pulled the other way. The sound could be frightening. The Chef in charge was an old retired cook who had served his time in the navy. He growled at everyone and drew his tot (of Rum) at noon and retired to the mess deck for the rest of the day. His main hobby was carving meat and of course being in charge he had to sample it. I was tee-total and too young to draw my rum Tot. Now and again someone would treat us. Try as he might my shipmate and I were never caught drinking. The leading cook that was in charge with me came from Rochdale and we went all over together".