Steve "Fletch" Fletcher was a gallivanting gourmet and cruising cuisine consultant onboard the Mighty Manch during the period of the world cruise (1986 in case you have forgotten!) and beyond! Not surprisingly, Fletch's most memorable run ashore was far flung Sydney, Australia, where he managed to get himself an invite to a chicken farm!! The experience greatly enhanced his social skills and he is now able to detect a firm breasted bird ready for plucking by touch and smell alone! Having been a galley slave onboard Intrepid, Invincible, Southampton, Exeter, Brazen and Jupiter, Fletch was pensioned off from Pusser UK Ltd., in 2001, and sidestepping KFC, found employment at his favourite football club - West Ham United - catering for those who insist on feasting on small edible marine decapod crustaceans! Yep, he feeds the prawn sandwich brigade! Promotion was swift for Fletch if not West Ham United, and he was subsequently drafted to Tottenham Hotspur - bigger prawns there by all accounts! - before accepting a position at a large unnamed sporting venue adjacent to Wembley Park tube station! Fletch heard about the Association from Pete Burnett, and about Prawns from Iceland!!
Chris FORESHEW
Re-Joined 19th February 2024 (374)
Dave FORSHAW
Re-joined 4th June 2015 (311)
Colin FORTUNE
Joined 1st July 2008
82 - 85
Colin Fortune was the CWEM(O) on the Mighty Manch for the first commish, having maintained the cannons etc., onboard Hermes - where he admits to being a first class OD - Antrim, Insipid, Maidstone, the Gay Chi (HMS Chichester - it wasn't legal then!) Torquack and Phoebe to name but a few!! Among Colin's claims to fame on the Mighty Manch was his vast collection of really corny jokes - worse than this website by all accounts - and talking of accounts - (he was the Armament Accountant) - he once famously had one more seadart on charge in his ledger than in the seadart magazine!! - oops where did that one go?!! Long retired from Pusser UK Ltd - Colin lives in the West Country and is a Technical Services Officer at BRNC. He is naturally very proud that one of his daughters - Miss Fortune - (sorry mate) is off to join a university. He learned about the Association from browsing the web.
Barny FOSTER
Steve FOUND
Joined 15th June 2008
82 - 85
Steve Found joined the Pusser in October 74 as a greenie and auxiliary counterpane consultant, and soon found himself a member of the famous Fountain Lake Air Defence Squadron - the exclusive role of the County Class GMD - which he enjoyed whilst on Glamorgan, Antrim and Norfolk before the Mighty Manch called for him in '82. A First Commissioner (Aft 909 and RMO) he considers his most notable achievement during the Falklands deployment was to hang on to his rate while being beer bosun in the greenies mess. He attributes this to good management, good fortune and a good set of duplicate fridge keys! Interestingly, Steve's most memorable run ashore as a matelot was Shanghai... except when pressed for more detail he couldn't actually remember which ship he was on at the time!!! (anyone remembering Steve in Shanghai please contact the Association soonest!) Leaving the Pusser in '96 in a superb cost saving redundancy initiative - having just cracked his Tiffy's course - he remains entranced by red green and yellow indicator lights and is now a Traffic Signals Engineer for West Sussex CC. Steve heard about the Association from Martyn Banner.
Alan "Connie" FRANCIS
(Sue)
Kev FREESTONE
Joined 31st October 2013 (291)
Mike GARMAN
Joined 29th March 2012 (264)
Archie GEDDES
Joined 20th March 2009 (192)
89 - 92
Archie Geddes joined the Grey Funnel Line in 1988 as a baby stoker, and in the time it takes to get a pair of ovvies that don't fit from Jack Dusty, he was on the Gulf-bound Mighty Manch! In a career that is still going strong, Archie has assisted in the propulsion performances of Liverpool, Southampton, York, Grafton, St Albans and Illustrious and is currently standing by the cruiser-sized destroyer, Diamond in Glasgow. However, with such competition it is pleasing to note that Archie rates D95 as his best ship!! As for runs ashore, he nominates Penang and Singapore as the best, and as for the worst?- Jebel Ali takes some beating! Twas in the United Arab Emirates that our hero fancied doing some sightseeing and duly hired a car for the purpose. Unfortunately - and this is the sad part of the story - he failed to notice that the Arabs drive on the opposite side of the road to the UK! As a consequence, at the very first roundabout he bumped into a Mercedes driven by a local who actually arrived at the scene of the accident with his head already sporting a bandage!! (How lucky was that?!) As a result of the RTA, Archie gained additional sightseeing experience in the local jail, and "first hand" knowledge of crapping without pan or paper! However, the story does have a happy ending due to the intervention of the British Embassy. Crash, sorry Archie, was excused the summary trial and execution bit and was returned safely to the Mighty Manch. Norman Stanley Geddes heard about the 2nd HMS Manchester Association "in a roundabout way"!!
Andrew "Andy" GIBBINS
Joined 24th March 2019 (333)
Alasdair "Gilly" GILCHRIST
Joined 11th May 2008
(Sharon)
82 - 84
Alasdair "Gilly" Gilchrist was a killick golly onboard D95 between 1982 - 84, which was one of eight ships he served on during his undistinguished naval career (Falmouth, Galatea, Sheffield, Scylla, Hermione and two minor war vessels - Ark Royal and Illustrious, being the others). Like all first commissioners, Gilly has his own first...he was the first matelot to be nicked by the old bill! Evidently this travesty of justice took place in Pompey after Gilly had had a mega row with his pash. Keen not to spend the night onboard with his shipmates Gilly thought long and hard for an ideal prezzy with which to make amends. Settling for a giant teddy bear - the big softie - it was whilst travelling back to his pash's house on his bike - with teddy perched on the handlebars - that he had the misfortune to lose control of his cycle, and Gilly, teddy and pedals all went their separate ways...right in front of PC Plod who booked Gilly for being drunk in charge of his velocipede! The story does have a happy ending, Gilly got case dismissed at the Old Bailey, teddy found a home, and his pash discovered the benefits of a cuddly golly over a cuddly teddy. (they are still together!). Gilly retired from the Pusser in 2005 and Her Majesty called our hero round for tea and medals, before he embarked on a second career as a civil serpent. Gilly heard about the Association from Taff Coombs.
Lenny GOODWIN
Re-Joined 12th May 2015
Andy GREEN
(Kathy)
Andy "Griff" GRIFFIN
Lee GROSVENOR
Joined 12th March 2021 (354)
Jack GUNTRIP
Dave HADLEY
Joined 21 March 2016 (316)
Ian "Whisky" HAIGH
83 - 86
POMEM(L) / CMEM(L) - 83-86. "Whisky" joined the "Mighty Manch" just in time for the Falklands trip and hopped off in Singers and is therefore only half a Global 86 vet!! An engineer of the old school - Whisky likes to build things - his most famous creation was a large 7' tower constructed entirely of empty Cider tins - it was not recorded which toppled first - Whisky or the tower!! As star of the only performance of the Bonzo Dog Tea Boat Band, he was rather surprised when selected for his buttons (he wasn't the only one!). Whisky now lives in deepest darkest Dumbarton and he heard about the Association from Bungy Williams.
Joe "Wee Sack" HARPER
Joined 2nd March 2021 (348)
Glyn HARRIS
(Kim)
95 - 97
Glyn Harris joined the mob as a 16 year old WE faggot in 1976, and in a sleep enriched 29 year career, he served on Norfolk - the Fountain Lake guardship, Bristol, Starling - the Hong Kong Patrol Craft - and Fearless, before he ended up as the CWEM(O) on the fleet's finest (95-97)...which also tells you he had eight years shore time before his TX! Much of Glyn's service career is shrouded in sleeprcy - on account he doesn't want folk to know how little he did - although we do know that Bristol was his best ship, and Freemantle wins the prize for best visit on account our hero had to spend a whole 15 days there in 1987 whilst on Starling, while the Aussie's hosted the America's Cup. Evidently there is a limit to the amount of socialising you can do, and Glyn nearly reached it! "Chats" also holds the distinction of being a former Mess president of the Senior Rates Mess on the oldest ship in the Fleet - HMS Victory - However rumours regarding him actually giving Admiral Nelson a call round are sadly unconfirmed.
Among his leisure pursuits - and there are many - Glyn is a massive fan of Wimbledon - that's AELTC not AFC - where he has often starred on TV - whilst on Centre Court, ushering the rich and the famous into their pews dressed smartly in his Nos Ones. Indeed, after so much dedicated service he was somewhat miffed that the small hill behind the Centre Court was recently named after Henman and not Harris!! On the few days he does work, Glyn is an Operations Manager for BAE in Pompey Dockyard and is proud to be a founder member of 2MA.
