Colin Hamilton – Injured play rugby in Hong Kong

We were on ship in Hong Kong for quite a long time, which was a super place to be in the ‘60s. A wonderful run ashore. And it’s a diesel Frigate which meant you could get it to sea very quickly, whereas steam you had four hours to raise steam before you could go out. That’s why she was picked.

We sailed on Christmas Day. At 5 o’clock Christmas evening, we managed to get half the ship’s company on board sober (laughs) and we went out to rescue a tug that was allegedly in distress in a Force 9 storm. When we got out there, it was a false alarm and we limped back in three days later.

A few heads rolled and I played rugby. I was quite a good player, and I was playing rugby on Happy Valley, which is a Base Course now, and we were playing against the Australians, and I was hooking and one of the Australians pulled me out by my leg and twisted my knee so torn my cartilages.

Anyway, when I managed to limp and get back onboard and climb into my hammock, in the morning my leg was twice the size, so they were going to off load me in Hong Kong, but they decided as they were sailing back to Singapore, they’d take me there and put me in the British Military Hospital, which they did and I was in between two Ghurkhas who were jolly little chaps.

It was quite pleasant in hospital and three days I was there initially and then they moved to another Ward, and I was in there for two weeks.

Until I could put weight on my legs, and I went into HMS Terror, which is the Naval Base there. But unfortunately, my pay documents hadn’t been left with me, so I was actually going to be paid … I had to go to a casual, had to get a casual payment every week, so I used to go into the Cinema with a friend, when it finished go round and round up all the empty lemonade bottles and take them back for 10 cents (laughs).

Simon: Casual pay is less then is it?

Well yes, because they don’t have a record. They don’t know how much they should pay you.