"Single-Handed"/"Sailor of the King" (1953) - Naval Battle

H.M.S. Amesbury engages in battle with the Essen in Roy Boulting's "Sailor of the King" (British title: "Single-Handed"), the second movie based on C.S. Forester's "Brown on Resolution" (1929). In this clip: Jeffrey Hunter, Patrick Barr, Robin Bailey, Bernard Lee, Victor Maddern, Michael Rennie, John Horsley et al.

[@paulgumbley4868]

You can't beat a good old british black and white war film, with you're Sunday roast, and the kip after. Happier days. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🇬🇧

[@roybennett6330]

Too right,my dad was ex subs,rn.. remember him stopping the gardening say 1400 for slap up feed of sardines,or spotted dick for bridge on river Kwai,Mr chips, battle of Britain.. good English fare on both fronts.

[@danielguy1963]

Absolutely 👍🇦🇺

[@StickTheGlue]

how to confuse an American in 1 sentence :P

[@jonny7491]

I was just about to (corrected, write) right the same.

[@gregtaylor6146]

@@jonny7491 - write

[@trevorgeorge5814]

My father was a serving sailor on HMS Manxman where this film was made, all shot around Malta in 1953. All the crew were dressed as German sailors as the ship was disguised as a German cruiser. Geoffrey Hunter was one of the main stars, our family still has a signed autograph of Geoffrey Hunter addressed to my late father James George.

[@peterclague3539]

I’m a Manx Man....we hold her very high in our history, even had a Airfix model of her. Thanks for fathers service. 🇮🇲

[@John-ob7dh]

Very sad end for Hunter.

[@stevenpilling5318]

HMS Manxman was one of the remarkable Abdiel class cruisers of the Royal Navy. Capable of a good forty knots, they were intended as fast minelayers. In practice, they performed in an amazing variety of roles due to their outstanding speed and rugged constitution.

[@TheRealist2022]

@@stevenpilling5318 Abdiel (or Abdab as we called her) was a welcome sight when we joined her in port. One of the last ships in the RN that had a chokey laundry!

[@Bruce-1956]

One of the great British 1950s b&w films where most if not all the actors fought in WW2 and knew what war was.

[@tomhanna8508]

I love the authenticity of the lookout using his eyes and then confirming with binoculars. Too often you see binoculars glued to the observer’s eyes which is exhausting and inefficient.

[@benwilson6145]

Well said, obviously you have kept a lookout at sea.

[@KJs581]

Part of the drill is a policy broadcast. In the policy broadcast is "lookout routine xxxxxx"; where they insert "standard" or "shadowers". The two routines take into account whether the lookouts will be there for days (not expecting much/less tiring) or "contact expected" (more active). I could rattle off a policy broadcast, but few would be interested, and ship specific; and most wouldn't be interested/raise more questions than it answers (acronyms/abbreviations), but "lookout routine" used to be the last line of a very long policy broadcast.

[@just-dl]

@@KJs581 I for one would be fascinated, and love to hear about it!

[@user-iz1of7pb1m]

В детстве я не понимал, для чего бинокль, мне было все видно и без него на любом расстоянии

[@coleparker]

I love these old British War movies. They are accurate in their portrayals

[@Bruce-1956]

Yes because most of the actors knew war.

[@lordeden2732]

Because they used advisers who had served in the Royal Navy during the war.

[@Bruce-1956]

​@@lordeden2732and men who had known war.

[@jacktattis]

Yes warts and all.

[@peterharvey1762]

Also most of the ships used where in WW2 , like HMS Exeter in the Battle river plate

[@Barouche]

I remember reading Brown On Resolution 50 years ago. It must have been good to stay in my memory all of that time.

[@michaelmixon2479]

I love the older movies! Especially in black and white!

[@pieterweatherall2826]

Surprising what a few years of movie making can do!

[@tobytaylor2154]

Theirs is the glory is a good watch, filmed just after the war on the ground it was fought over, starring the men who were there. Not good acting obviously, but a interesting watch about arnhem.

[@Laceykat66]

I am a big movie fan and have never even HEARD of this film before. Thank you for expanding my education.

[@Exciteduser]

This reminds me of "The Cruel Sea," made about the same time. Excellent film.

[@overlycreative1]

I hope the sound editor got a proper award for this great work.

[@Sid1035]

I remember exercising with Indian Navy Ship DELHI in 50's off Ceylon. Dehli was originally HMS Achillies and later HMNZ Achillies (Battle of the River Plate) I was a telegraphist on HMS Newfoundland (Colony class Cruiser) at the time.

[@bobmetcalfe9640]

Hell, my dad was on Newfoundland in WW2. Small world.

[@Sid1035]

Must have been the same commission as me. We brought 'Newfy' out of a major refit in Gus sailed for Trinco to become Flagship East Indies. Happiest ship i ever had.

[@Sid1035]

Sorry i missed the WW2 part, she came out of major refit in 1952.

[@bobmetcalfe9640]

"Happiest ship i ever had."That's what my dad said too. He was at the Japanese surrender. I've got some photos somewhere :).

[@philipg52]

One of my patients was there too.

[@paulcrober3249]

Very good points about older British war movies. Usually pretty accurate. Having worked with British Army in war zones, I can vouch for this.

[@tedjinla]

This movie was filmed in the Mediterranean using HMS Cleopatra as Amesbury, Cambridge and Stratford, and the fast minelayer HMS Manxman as Essen. They fitted fake turrets and funnels to try and make a convincing German light cruiser out of her. The lagoon where most of the "shooting" took place (yuk yuk) was Gozo the northern-most island of the Maltese archipelago to stand in for Resolution Island in the Galapagos. Thanks for uploading this wonderful sequence. TEDJ in LA

[@stevewright2444]

My dad was serving on the manxman when they used her in this film

[@KJs581]

Good info mate. These ships were of the time of the AA evolution of these ships. Originally light cruisers were the "sort out raiders/run away if get in trouble" ships, as in the 30's surface ships were the major threat. Cleo had the 5.25 guns here (down from 6 inch previously) which were an interim AA (dual purpose) solution, but as aircraft emerged as the major threat to convoys, (and aircraft got faster) even that was found wanting, as the traverse rate, elevation capability and rate of fire was too limited. Later cruisers had multilple 4.5 and more capable HACS (and early radar). The faster traverse/more rounds carried/higher ROF - AND the VT fuse made for the first (and very capable) true AA cruisers. The Americans did the same with the "Atlanta" class (5 inch guns) and they were capable AA ships; but had to be careful, two were caught in surface battles and outgunned by 6 inch cruisers and sunk. Mountbatten (who the producer knew) liked the internals of guns to be in these movies, and he allowed them to use the ships for movies like this - and the internals of "Vanguard" to be used in "Sink the Bismarck!" where they use Vanguard's 15 inch mounts to portray all loading sequences.

[@Bruce-1956]

Thanks for the information.

[@tedjinla]

"In the Royal Navy, we never strike an ensign, see?" Best line in the movie...by "M' of James Bond fame.

[@halnywiatr]

Bernard Lee

[@allenjenkins7947]

Hence "nailing our colours (ensign) to the mast". Sometimes, a large battle ensign would also be unfurled on each side of the hull, just to make it really clear. That was also the symbolism of the giant U.S. flag draped down the side of the Pentagon following the "9-11" attacks - "No surrender!".

[@archangel2143]

Actually, the British struck their flag on September 23rd, 1779 during the American Revolution when John Paul Jones in the USS Bonhomme Richard defeated HMS Serapis off of Flamborough Head; however all is forgiven now! 🇺🇸🇬🇧

[@chrismc410]

@JZ's Best Friend adapt to situations as they happen and act as logic demands?

[@lordeden2732]

Three colours One each side and one in the middle

[@mikebrown1926]

This is based on "Brown on Resolution" by C. S. Forester, which is an excellent book to read. Also if you have seen the clips from "Greyhound" with Tom Hanks, that film is also based on a C. S. Forester novel, "The Good Shepherd'. In fact, if you like great sea stories, I recommend that you read everything that Forester wrote.

[@edl617]

I read almost everything written by C.S. Forester. Including The one the movie Greyhound was based on, which I found the movie lacking

[@freebeerfordworkers]

In my youth which is a long time ago I read just about every CS Forrester sea story including Brown on Resolution but in the book the ending is far more poignant. CS Forrester was like that

[@tag427]

Thanks for posting!

[@beagle7622]

I remember watching this in the 80’s on TV . It was a great film, different for the time.

[@teresaponziani7983]

God bless the greatest generation!!!!!

[@simul8guy75]

The ship is supposed too be making 10 knots but is clearly dead in the water as the German shells are finding the range... Gotta love old movies...

[@andrewstackpool4911]

AMESBURY's movements are the major weaknesses of the footage. And noting the CO's comments I think Essen is meant to be a heavy cruiser which outranges Amesbury. Of well, never let the facts get in the way of a good dit, but perhaps they could have looked at Sink The Bismarck for authenticity. Oh and 10 knots? At Action Stations. Not in any war canoe in which I served.

[@andywhysall6744]

Needs Noel Coward on the bridge. He'd get the steam up.

[@Aethelwolf]

Great movie. I remember watching this as a kid.

[@alexanderwaterman7480]

Me too, and just about every other naval film out there.

[@enochpowelghost]

yes thanks for uploading such a good film clip well done

[@carrickrichards2457]

I found this by far the saddest of all Forester's books. The film sought to hide that, even filming two endings (both endings were shown at the premier for the audience to choose).

[@joeavent5554]

"Take your hand out of your pocket"...discipline at all times.

[@gregwalsh5880]

50 black stitches to the inch and every 50th a white stitch. This stopped you pretty quick putting your hands in your pockets. Pockets were for putting items in, not your hands. Discipline never hurt at all.

[@joeavent5554]

@@gregwalsh5880 In just about all military forces throughout the world it is forbidden to keep hands in pockets unless retrieving an object. Notice all the thumbs up? Prior service members get it. The director added this very tiny tidbit not just for nostalgia but to prove a point about attention to detail.

[@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684]

Hands in pockets? "Manchester gloves".

[@joeavent5554]

@@walterkronkitesleftshoe6684 Lol

[@teecee1567]

@@gregwalsh5880 What's the deal with the stitches?

[@michaelgibson4705]

Fortunately Geoffrey Hunter had that old cockney stalwart Victor Maddern helping out,B&W British war films gave him a career a great character actor

[@lisabrooks8092]

Jeffrey Hunter is the absolute bomb! One British sailor holding off an entire German cruiser. Of course, that feat was accomplished by the original Captain Kirk!

[@deborahparker-mcgee8600]

Lisa Brooks His name was Captain Pike on the original STAR TREK.

[@deborahparker-mcgee8600]

His character’s name on STAR TREK was Captain Pike.

[@sirsydneycamm1883]

There are a few Kirks to choose. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Goodrich_Kirk@@deborahparker-mcgee8600

[@DragoonEnNoir]

HMS Amesbury is 'played' by the Dido-class light cruiser HMS Cleopatra

[@jacktattis]

The DIDO class had a very busy war 33% were lost.

[@RobertClolery]

One of my father's favorite movies.

[@williamc.1198]

I served aboard two former Royal Navy ships while attached to the Chilean Navy. British compartmentation is quite a bit different from ours. Far fewer openings for fore and aft passageways.

[@eyemstillhear]

I served on HMS NORFOLK County class destroyer in '79, sold onto the Chilean navy early eighties, who subsequently sank it. 🤣🤣🤣

[@nemo6686]

To better maintain watertight and smoke integrity in the event of being hit. One of the lessons of the Falklands campaign was that they'd been putting holes in lateral bulkhead to run cables, vents, etc and this allowed smoke to spread and seriously hamper damage control and fighting the ship. It was one of many things that had been forgotten and had to be relearned, and the RN subsequently put a lot more effort into Operational Sea Training to try and minimize this backsliding.

[@SvenTviking]

Learned that off the Germans when we took the High seas fleet.

[@Weesel71]

Great flick. Well worth watching.

[@matthewgray469]

I first saw it over 50 years ago and I still remember it vividly -a courageous sailor with a rifle pinning down the nazi sailors

[@Crackdennumber1]

The 3rd Marine [0:47] is my dad Ron Crabb...

[@garethfairclough8715]

And Jeff Hunt is my grandmother!

[@brentmiller7714]

God bless him and you

[@paulmoffat9306]

Shows the craftsmanship of movie makers in the days before CGI became prevalent. Today's Academy Award for 'Special Effects' should be discarded, as it has become 'Animation' instead, and no longer has relevance.

[@RobertClolery]

Those German range finders will get you every time

[@fixento]

You have to love the open bridges when men were men.

[@s.sestric9929]

And sheep were scared.

[@hhoward14]

In steam ships it made sense, because of the extra heat, from the boilers, and the window fogging moisture in an enclosed wheel house, or bridge. Also, the need for 360 deg visual communications.

[@rollosnook3031]

Pleasant on the arctic convoy escort with a 30 knot speed and stormy headwind I'm sure...

[@Bisexual_Sovereign]

@@rollosnook3031 I mean they had some form of improvised cover but the front was still exposed

[@mwnciboo]

@@hhoward14 What? Thats not the reason at all, we didn't use piped steam like some kind of pseudo air conditioner through the ship, causing condensation or otherwise.

[@RaymondFunnell-bs1wl]

With that great actor Victor Maddern

[@Richard500]

These older movies are all so much better acted, many of the actors were already War Veterans and knew the drill so to speak. Soldiers looked like soldiers and so did airmen and sailors. These days it makes you cringe when actors THINK they are looking very "military, and they're not. The Dido class cruiser HMS Cleopatra plays both the fictional Royal Navy ships "HMS Amesbury" and "HMS Stratford". Presumably with REAL sailors as extras.

[@robsaunders9521]

And the blanket stackers always tops 👍. Sua Tela Tonanti.

[@jackjacko8706]

This looks more like a training film compared to “The Cruel Sea” a far superior film

[@ieatoutoften872]

This scene features a Dido class destroyer (small ship, with relatively short range gns) attacking a German heavy cruiser (a medium sized ship, with longer range gns). About three times, various British sailors mention [His Majesty's Ship] Cambridge (fictitious as to being a W.W.2 era heavy cruiser), and an even match for the German ship), hoping it would join this battle. This fictitious (imagined) scene on fictional destroyer H.M.S. Amesbury has several parallels (honorary references) to The Battle of the River Plate [or rather the estuary of said river; or more so the southwest Atlantic Ocean] (December 1939). The outcome of that December 1939 battle was probably on the front page of every newspaper in the U.K., and New Zealand, and many other places by the time the month of January 1940 passed. There were newsreel films shown at movie theaters of those three ships' triumphant return to respective home ports. And the respective crews were filmed marching in parade formation in front of ecstatic, welcoming civilians. The ships in the December 1939 battle were heavy cruiser H.M.S. Exeter, destroyer H.M.S. Achilles (home port New Zealand), destroyer H.M.S. Ajax, and the German "pocket battleship" (super heavy cruiser) Admiral Graf Spee. In that battle, enemy shrapnel cut a rope holding H.M.S. Achilles' battle ensign (flag). Great grandparents in New Zealand are still talking about the news story about how a replacement flag was raised in the midst of the battle. It was like the U.S.A.'s national anthem: "Oh say can you see that our flag was still there?" That emotional moment is also referenced in this short video when the master chief is showing and teaching the enlisted men why a rolled up flag is made ready, and why there are two extra ropes ready to hoist it up.

[@ericadams3428]

The Dido class light cruiser HMS Cleopatra (10 x 5.25" played both Amesbury and Stratford. HMS Glasgow was also in the film and the Essen was played by the minelayer HMS Manxman.

[@gerarddelmonte8776]

Ajax and Achilles were light cruisers, not destroyers.

[@ieatoutoften872]

@@gerarddelmonte8776 I sincerely thank you for correcting my mistakes because my ambition is to be accurate, and I realize you are correct.

[@Tourist1967]

​@@ieatoutoften872 New Zealand ships are styled HMNZS.

[@ieatoutoften872]

@@Tourist1967 There was some tricky history regarding the New Zealand Navy. In 1939, the New Zealand Navy was a subset of the Royal Navy. From 1921 to 1 October 1941 the force was known as the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy. On 1 October 1941, the New Zealand Navy was established independent of the Royal Navy. And then, also on 1 October 1941, HMS Achilles was commissioned (recommissioned / styled) HMNZ Achilles. In 1948, it was sold to India.

[@stevefisher8323]

Michael Rennie in his uniform, very dashing indeed!

[@NJPurling]

The only thing the guns of the 'Essen' could not penetrate were the stiff upper lips of the officers.

[@kevinolsen8779]

"Action stations, please." gotta love the Royal Navy

[@gregnowak5704]

"Take that hand out of that pocket there you" its little details like that that help add to the realism of the film

[@zorro456]

A Movie I did not know Before.

[@brianwinters5434]

Great movie

[@davidsirett5560]

Jeffrey Hunter Captain Christopher Pike of the space ship Enterprise from the stellar group at the other end of this galaxy.

[@randyjohnson6845]

You knew that right .Hunter was his son from the brief encounter with the British lady

[@ivorholtskog5506]

I think he also played in corvette K225.

[@zillsburyy1]

yes and i have the movie on DVD

[@willbest1547]

Good one, have not seen it.

[@raymaxwell2940]

victor maddern was in some iconic war movies served in the RN in ww2 joining at 14 these movies take me back to the 70s as a kid watching with my grandfather who was a RM in ww2 narvik dunkirk Russian convoys crete malta dieppe burma etc etc

[@davidrussell8689]

Understanding that this is only fiction but one can only wonder if the calm , collected attitude in combat actually existed ? If those officers and men were so then they are more than heroes.

[@nightjarflying]

Training & experience - it's exactly how most professional soldiers/sailors/aircrew act under fire

[@SSN515]

Been there. Done that. It's correct. At that point all you have is training and coolness, even if you are terrified. If you freak, you die.

[@CRAZYHORSE19682003]

I remember being a signalman striker in the USN in 1988, clapping the shutters on the signal lights was considered very bad form.

[@m4ch207]

That movie's quality is mich better than today's cctv

[@user-uo8px3tf5h]

Корабли 20-40-х годов самые красивые.

[@Phaaschh]

"I've got a strange feeling things are about to get a bit dodgy" So would I, sitting there, beam on, engines dead slow and hopelessly outranged. And then get bracketed by their first salvo. Ze Chermans must have been hooting with laughter.

[@nandotempo1670]

Yy

[@11Kralle]

We only laugh when ordered to do so ;)

[@sirsydneycamm1883]

The German sense of humour is no laughing matter. Spike Milligan

[@georgebuller1914]

3-12. 'I say, let's stop engines altogether and just sit here waiting for it!' LOL

[@j3lny425]

So you noticed that as well. If you noticed the torpedo aiming the German ship was not moving either.

[@zillsburyy1]

along with SAILOR OF THE KING

[@alanmusicman3385]

Never heard of or seen this film. With the DVD versions of it selling for what they do on Amazon, I probably never will either!

[@garfieldsmith332]

Great little movie. Available on DVD. Two different endings were filmed for the American release.

[@johngreen3543]

The opening comment mentions that this was the 2d adaptation of Brown On Resolution. The first was "Forever England" starring John Mills. It is available on youtube.

[@billyponsonby]

Authentic because it was soon after the war. Also, fighting from an open bridge must have required a particular type of toughness.

[@JohnSmith-zv8km]

would have been believable if the ship was actually moving

[@S250385]

@Marafox2 You can order the DVD from Amazon.com or Ebay (probably from other sites too, that I'm not aware of). The only problem is that it is a region 1 DVD and since you live in a region 2 area you need a region-free DVD player to watch it. Good luck!

[@gerry343]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/q3OTd2iHhNqljtE

[@fairportfan2]

Or a copy of DVDFab

[@vernedavis5856]

Torpedos had very short range. Largest guns, such as ones that were beyond range of opponents, were several miles, close to past range of site

[@freddieclark]

Totally depends on which torpedo's you are talking about. The Japanese type 93 had a massive range of over 40,000 yards (although the effective range was only around 24,000 yards), far longer than allied light Cruiser guns could effectively engage. The British 21 inch Mark IX had a range of around 15,000 yards.

[@paulmaxwell8851]

Wrong. The standard U..S Navy Mark 15 had a range of 15,000 yards or 7.4 nautical miles. The Japanese Long Lance had a range of 44,000 yards or an unbelievable 22 nautical miles.

[@photodom2000]

Spotted Jeffrey straight away. What was a Yank doing in the Royal Navy? Or was he Canadian? I used to love watching these films on a Sunday afternoon when I were a lad.

[@1chish]

He played the role of "Signalman Andrew 'Canada' Brown"

[@Fjobiden]

Those movies are still better than anything they can come up with today

[@rb1179]

What was HITLER'S nephew doing in the US Navy during WW2?

[@HootOwl513]

@@rb1179 He was a Corpsman.

[@photodom2000]

@@rb1179 You'll need to explain that one?

[@Alex_Guy1011]

A battle just about as destructive as the HMAS Sydney vs Kormoran.

[@S250385]

No, the movie was definitely B&W (I have it on DVD), but there are many colour posters of it.

[@freebeerfordworkers]

Actually the book on which this is based, CS Forester's "Brown on Resolution" has a much sadder ending. Brown is son of a greengrocers daughter and the result of a weekend fling she has with a young naval officer whom she never sees again. Nevertheless with very limited means she looks after the boy with the intention he should join the Navy like his father. Unfortunately her money is stolen by her solicitor and she cannot afford to send him to Britannia Royal Naval College. She dies when he is a teenager, but her dying wish is that he should join the Royal Navy and having been educated to do nothing else he does. The story seems to follow the book from then on, but it is Brown's harassment of the German ship that makes it possible for his father's ship to catch her. Brown dies of wounds and his father is famed throughout the Navy as the man who sank the German Raider but nobody ever knows the part his son played including him.

[@adamcarreras-neal4697]

the film had 2 endings, one with the boy dying and one surviving, dont remember him being the son

[@freebeerfordworkers]

@@adamcarreras-neal4697 I didn't see the film, so I couldn't say. I think someone told me with the "happy ending" he is picked up introduced to his father and they are unaware of the relationship. But in another change from the book Brown tells him his mother is still alive and the implication is his father will write congratulating her on her (actually their) son's action.

[@stevek8829]

The Day the Earth Stood Still

[@edwardramirez8768]

" Damn the Torpedoes, full steam ahead"!

[@Lee-70ish]

Bloody open bridges

[@randyjohnson6845]

At this range you couldn't hit a British cruiser. 32.5 knots zigzagging, straight line and making smoke.not a chance if the cruiser was trying to survive

[@ericpelote998]

The late great Michael Rennie !!!

[@tomryan914]

'The Day The Earth Stood Still'

[@jonathanstrong4812]

he was very-good in the Robert Wise production of when the earth stood still

[@bigbob1699]

Those German range finders will get you every time!

[@johnminehan1148]

Solid bracket, 2 overs and 2 shorts, drop 50 fire for effect.

[@Supergeologist]

After the Graf Spee action the brits set up a fake scrap company in Uruguay and bought the salvage rights to the Graf Spee mainly so they could get the range finder tech. I maybe wrong but I've got a feeling it was designed by a Brit many years previously but the Navy fobbed him off so he sold it to the Germans.

[@bigbob1699]

The results were the same .@@Supergeologist

[@jacktattis]

well the Warspite 1915.16 did ok hit a moving ship at 26000 yards as did the Scharnhorst 1937 ship

[@Auge2011]

rarely i seen in any war movie ships using torpedoes launchers

[@ichabodon]

Sorry James, that is not Compo from Last of the Summer Wine. It’s the great late Victor Madden

[@teecee1567]

Maddern...as opposed to Madden

[@rosewhite---]

It would be wonderful if some of those big guns were in a museum and we could open and load with blanks!

[@Marafox2]

Thanks for the upload! Where did you get the pictures from? Is there a DVD buyable? I would like to get the hole film, because I love the book of C.S. Forester really a lot. Thanks for a repy.

[@gerry343]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/q3OTd2iHhNqljtE

[@frankblangeard8865]

Lots of fire but virtually no smoke 4:04.

[@flagwanker6346]

10” lamp being answered by 20” carbon arc lamp. 20” carbon arc lamp carbon rods were a bitch to change!

[@KJs581]

Yeah, ours only ever had the 10". The older RN based ships had them; saw some on some of the older Kiwi ships.

[@TheRealist2022]

FUN FACT. Jeffrey Hunter (the sailor who took the message) Became a Captain! (of USS Enterprise!)

[@grindupBaker]

If he could get GORT to assist they'd vaporize that other ship.

[@teecee1567]

I was wracking my brains to think what the acronym GORT meant. I'd been a navy man for 25 years and know that the RN uses acronyms for everything... ECR for engine control room, DC for damage control, NCS for naval control of shipping, STANAVFORLANT for standing naval force atlantic... etc etc... but was so annoyed to realise I never knew what it meant. then I bloody realised it wasn't an acronym at all..GORT is the name of the alien played by the Captain in this piece, Michael Rennie. DOHHH!!!!!

[@pracylopgonzer3176]

Gory couldn’t swim

[@agwhitaker]

Open bridge or whatever - those Dido class cruisers were hansom ships.

[@torinbrown8196]

Yes, except ships are "she" not "he." She's beautiful not handsome.

[@jonathanstrong4812]

the Dido light anti-aircraft-cruiser HMS Cleopatra a veteran warship which who fought in WW2 against the Italian-Navy to force a desperate Malta-convoy to relieved Malta in March 1942 And the Cleopatra was the flagship of the desperate situation And the Cleopatra play in the A Sailor Of The King in a double roll one was the doomed HMS Amesbury and also the victorious HMS Stratford

[@POBulkhead]

That was fun.

[@bambam144]

Ah a T6 fight :D

[@songking1144]

🎵🎵

[@markquinn3478]

One of my dads work mates served on Manxman and told him she was good for 40 knots but couldn’t sustain it cos she’d shake herself to bits

[@eeagleeric]

open bridges! they were tougher then...

[@jonsouth1545]

still use them today all warships have both an enclosed and an open bridge and its the personal preference of the CO which one to use when I was in (only left a few years ago) we always used the open bridge as although it was bloody freezing you got a better view and was generally less cramped

[@KJs581]

The open bridges (on MFU's in any case) they have now are more of a flying bridge and not much up there, (if at all) all our ships have enclosed bridges. The skippers routinely use the bridge wings if they want to "get out in the breeze; hence why a "CO's Chair" both inside and out. Any flying bridge we have now has nowhere near the access old open bridges did - at least in my Navy (RAN); However; (as said below by Jon S) smaller ships (patrol boats/minehunter etc) often have everything duplicated; so in that sense, they DO have an "open bridge". They don't have the complex "ops room" larger fleet units have; so the open bridge is a good alternative for awareness. But is different now than above. CO's on Frigate size and above NEVER "fight the war" from the bridge now, they fight it from the ops room, along with the PWO (warfare officer) The bridge during action is run by the Officer of the watch, and he virtually "just checks ship is clear of stuff" - the full picture (radar/combat awareness) is in Ops. The open bridges of the past were "open" and EVERYTHING the CO needed could be accessed from there; but they had a "sheltered section" which was like a "shelf" that ran around the outside of the bridge. Under there was usually a chart table, a radar display, clearview screens, and (on really old ships) a side room for primitive sonar, before sonar grew and got it's own control room. By the time I came along, our Darings had enclosed bridges (got updated). But we went over to Duchess (older Daring we were loaned after losing Voyager) and had a look at her open bridge. They had an old JUA valve radar display. While under cover; that would be a nightmare to maintain with the spray and humidity. JUA's where horrible to maintain in an Airconned Ops room!!!!!!!

[@rongray6291]

Canadian hero of course

[@statewidefilms]

Ha har .... the guy on the right at 3.09 was my uncle Victor Maddern . He lives on in movies ..

[@pungarehu]

He was a fantastic actor. What was he like as your uncle?

[@statewidefilms]

@@pungarehu would you believe I never met him .. but my father spoke of him all the time .. we came to Australia and they all lived in England ..

[@cttc4132]

Those must be special homing torpedoes. They fired them where their opponent is, as opposed to where the opponent is headed.

[@sirderam1]

Ct Tc. I dont know how this torpedo system worked, but perhaps the sights were offset, by a calculated deflection angle, with respect to the tubes. If not you'd be sighting on empty ocean, which would be a bit pointless since you'd have no aiming mark.

[@flybobbie1449]

I had a customer who was in the navy, he said they would practise shooting guns at a sea target with offset, not to destroy target. But he said they often knew the offset and deliberately fired to hit the target. Reckoned he was one of the last to use cordite firing guns. A miss fire was an exciting time in the turret if you were nominated to unload the gun.

[@barthoving2053]

@@sirderam1 That's generally how sights work. Even rifle sights you adjust to range and at longer ranges wind.

[@sirderam1]

@@barthoving2053 Yes, thanks. I've a fair idea how sights work, I shot full bore target rifle for many years in my younger days. 😂😜

[@KJs581]

@@flybobbie1449 Yeah, misfires still suck. Worse with a "hot gun" if a HE round.

[@dickvarga6908]

damned smooth seas, eh?

[@rubenoteiza9261]

Klatuu barada fire!

[@ariochiv]

Heyyyy.... it's Klaatu!

[@adrianjackson2696]

Capt is Peter Finch a fine AussIe actor of the era

[@adrianjackson2696]

OOPS, Yes and I have seen "The Day The Earth Stood Still" too. I must have been watching, before writing this comment about Peter Finch, the WW2 film about the German ship scuttled by its captain off South America who was played by Peter Finch.

[@johngreen3543]

He played Captain Landsdorf in the Battle of the River Platte.

[@clinging54321]

Peter Finch was English, born in South Kensington, London. - he did play an Aussie in A Town like Alice, may have caused confusion..

[@adrianjackson2696]

@@clinging54321- Finch immigrated to Australia from UK as a teenager and was raised in Sydney. After WW2 service in Australia he moved overseas permanently according to Wikipedia.

[@clinging54321]

@@adrianjackson2696 so he was English then? He died in the US does that make him American?

[@davidlipman8093]

'tis to Glory we Steer!'

[@S250385]

Are you referring to "The Cruel Sea"? (just a guess - I haven't watched that film, though after seeing the trailer I'll definitely try to find it). I totally agree with your comment about the spirit of 'those days'.

[@Weesel71]

Also look up The Key. I believe this is based on Jan de Hartog's The Captain. Read book; watch movie; enjoy both. HAGO.

[@ariadnekorais9031]

@@Weesel71 Thank you!

[@noelnicholls1894]

Cruel Sea was on the North Atlantic run to Russia. This looks to be the Med

[@stevek8829]

"The Cruel Sea" is a hell of a book. The movie is hard to find.

[@noelnicholls1894]

Steve K - Helluva book for sure. No wonder Fleming gave Bond that Arctic Convoy as part of his background story. Tougher than I could stand.

[@S250385]

I have uploaded another excerpt as "Clip from "Single-Handed"/"Sailor of the King" (1953)", but as you understand, the entire movie is copyrighted. Fortunately, the DVD is available in 'Amazon' and it contains both ends.

[@christinewainwright1178]

S250385 1

[@FightAtTheForum]

hey i've searched amazon, cant find the copy to buy! any chance of a link?

[@tazmod7272]

I saw the whole movie. It was a gooder.

[@johnsanjuan9364]

Royal Navy! I, Aye, Sir!!

[@richardburton7960]

What a difference between men and septic tanks.

[@ffrederickskitty214]

I think the ship might have fared better if it was actually moving?

[@mwbright]

If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the Amesbury would be lost.