Long Arm of Coincidence.
Chugalug,
The tale of your experiences touches mine at so many points that it is positively uncanny. For a start the Boat: In 1952 a certain G/Capt. Geoffrey (?) Jarman (O.C. RAF Middleton-St-George) was court-martialled at RAF Thornaby on charges of improperly using Service labour and materials to convert a second-hand ship's lifeboat * into a cabin cruiser.
Admittedly, this was not (like yours) a project for the common (?) good, but was for the sole benefit of the G/C, who planned with his family to cruise the waterways of Yorkshire and Durham in the completed vessel. Things ended (well, not too) badly for him - ("no names, no pack drill" does not apply here; it was a nationwide cause célèbre; via Google I have read accounts in the press of his home town in NZ).
* The lifeboat itself (as Exhibit "A") was parked in front of my HQ during the trial; I had a photo once........D.
I quote from you: "Our boss hit upon a scheme to keep ourselves occupied .....
........constantly called upon to scrounge material etc."...........
One more example of: "The trouble with the human race is that it doesn't read the Minutes of the Last Meeting". Your Boss was lucky that the Changi S.I.B. were poor readers !
(Hope you enjoyed the barbies, but wasn't it a bit of a fire risk in a small boat - said he, wearing his old part-time Fire Officer's hat !)
Like yours, the boat did sail, there was a happy ending ('fraid full tale is a very long way down the line yet, may get to it someday.....D).
R.E. City rings a bell, they made me a Mess Kit, quite decent and none too dear. Gieves put a fast one over on me once - so never dealt with them since. (Monty Burton more my style; and what was the name of that marvellous firm in Newark that sold 2/hand No.1s and greatcoats (in good nick) for half-price?). Were the offerings of Messrs J.E. (?) Bates, of Jermyn Street, still the headgear de rigueur in your time ?
Danny.
Last edited by Danny42C; 18th Nov 2012 at 15:24.