Lieutenant Commander WOC Roberts describing some of his early days as seen from a midshipman’s journal. He was called upon at short notice to give an address to the NHSA and decided to re-open this journal dating from World War 2, and read selected extracts. Midshipmen were required to keep a full diary of their days, and to record their reactions and analyses. There were some incidents that he readily recalled and others which he did not, but the overall interest arose from the point of view: a young 17-year-old sailor with a style not yet polished by subsequent experience, and expressing opinions as he saw them decades ago. His first few months at sea were aboard a passenger ship in a First-Class cabin, making his slow way to England via a multitude of stopovers. Then harsh reality descended as he boarded HMAS Australia (II) in the UK. The talk is filled with anecdotes resurrected from this journal and draws delighted responses from a veteran audience who remember those days, too.
It was recorded 2nd June 1978
Duration is 45 minutes.
