Gravesend peanut

Tommy

Signed forms in 1980 whilst still in the last year of Ian Ramsey School. Left school June 1980 and got my placement at Gravesend September 1980. Signed on Middlesbrough Pool December 1980. When Middlesbrough Pool closed moved onto South Shields Pool. When all the Pools closed I was already contract with P&O ferries. Started as a weeks relief out of the Elk joining on the Tees ended up with them for 5 years.

Ships I served on:

Reynolds 24/3/81 to 17/7/81 & 23/9/81 to 30/4/82
Nosira Lin 27/5/82 to 30/11/82 (Involved in a bad car accident in Vanacouver and was out of service for a bit)
Nosira Sharon 19/5/83 to 26/9/83 (back in hospital for second operation from previous car crash)
RFA Olwen 23/3/84 to 18/5/84
Skeldergate 22/1/85 to 1/5/85
Ravenscraig 18/6/85 to 6/11/85
Appleby 7/2/86 to 19/8/86
Buffalo 3 times 1987-88
Bison 5 trips 1987
Norsky 2 trips 1988
Elk 9/7/87 to 10/2/92

Left the sea August 1992 on medical grounds

Hi - I work at NSTC at Denton, and have been told that 'Peanuts' referred to the new trainees haircuts, which made them easily marked out from the locals. One of the 'old boys' who visited us told me this.
LW x

Hearing the last post being played on rememberance day brought another thought to my mind. Can any of you remember if the last post and reville was played at either the Vindi or Gravesend to mark the start and end of the day?

When I was at Gravesend there was a tannoy system and you were awoken with the following ditty

"Wakey, Wakey. Rise and shine, look outside the weathers fine. Get a wash and don't be dirty, breakfast is at seven thirty"

Hi Guys
I was at gravesend from Sept -December1980 Catering.
cant remember many names,Martin From Barking is one I remember, O`Lamey the "Fireman" NOT !!
Level Nevell in the canteen shaking the beans to get a level ladle!! Bromide in the margerine!!??
I rememebr the rumour about the barber, the story went, if you get the blond one , put your R/hand knuckles on the arm of the chair & she puts her crutch on them!
I tried it like a fool & she just laughed & said not another gullible one!
I remember the Mission, Remember being there listening to the juke box.... Madness, Soft cell, Gary Numan,
Queen. I remember clearly hearing the news of lennon being shot, it shocked the world!
One of our class attacked another guy with a marlin spike on the last day.
Any contact would be great.
Niz Hasham

G'day Niz and welcome to the best site in town. Some good memeories there and like the rest of us they werre in good times. If you have a list of ships wth dates and you care to list them there is a good chance you may hear from some of the guys you remember. So sit back with a cold one and enjoy the voyage.:eek:

Niz,

We were there at the smae time. Although I was Deck I was assigned to a catering dorm. Number five to be exact. Top floor above the training office. While we were there someone set fire to one of the dorms on their last night using the wax floor polish. They were arrested the following day at the train station.

Hi Everyone, my memories of Gravesend sea school stick clearly in my mind although it is over 30 years ago. We used to get woken with the tanoy shouting "Wakey Wakey, show a leg show a leg show a leg" Then down to muster in the courtyard when it was freezing cold at 6am, then clean out the dormitory buy polishing the floor by hand. Then down for breakfast. I will never forget the cook Mr Little (level level) who would be watching carefully over everyone to make sure they did not have any extra they should not have.

Then off to the classes, I remember the bloke who took us for rowing, Paddy McGoran who used to row us down stream and stop of at the pub.

Then there was a dickhead called Mr Hodgkinson who used to take us for lifeboat study. Mr Rashbrook one of the head instructors for catering. Great bloke who used to run the fishing club and another great instructor who used to run the laundry Mr Price.

Mr Plumb who was the head of catering, good bloke at times but could be a miserable sod others. Then Mr Torres who used to take classes in the instructional Galley.

Who could ever forget Penguin (Mr Newbury) and Bosun Scott. I remember shoreleave going to the mission 100 meteres down the road. Often a trip into town to see if one could pick up a local scrubber. One name I remember was Paki Pam. Then the dorm raids and shouting Dayo out of the window.

I was in M Class from January till March 1980. After I left the sea school and did my first trip, I went back to visit to be told that my headmaster from my school would like me to go up and visit the school. I went up to visit and told a class who was about to leave school about how I joined the Merchant navy. One boy in the class by the name of Steven Bowers nickname Orvil who I thought he would never get in asked me about the process.

I could not believe when I went to visit the instructors who I got on well with, Mr Johns and Mr Price, who was standing in the entrance to the training office but Orvil. I then heard he went on the Canberra. The other pupils I remember at the Sea School where John Morrison from Glasgow, Jim Lyons from Holyhead Wales, Mark Burns from South Shields, Steve Molinuex, Frank Barton, Tony McMahon, Barry McCann, Kevin Clark all scousers, Francis Pitts (Who I ended up sailing with on the Troll Park). Dave Trainor from Hull (Who I ended up sailing with on the Appleby). Tony Timmons scouser, Paddy Ferguson and Andy Lappin from Belfast, David Hulmes from Wolverhampton, Martin Wilkinson from Altringham, Tony Savage from Manchester, Brian Hepburn from Gloucester, Martin Diccico From Middlesborough who paid of the Appleby as I joined in Immingham.

I would be interested in hearing from any of the above crew if you are on this site.

hi bill i was at gravesend sea school in 1953 and the term peanut was never used while i was there.regards jim

January 72 it was definitely used, mainly for those in their first week. I was in H class but damned if I remember which room. 30 rings a bell. I was still only 15 then so never went out much at all.