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Post by Forum Moderator on Apr 28, 2010 21:04:15 GMT
Please use this thread to introduce youself to other members. If you worked at CCP it'll probably be best to say roughly when and mention a few names of your contemporaries!
If you worked for Marine then do mention which ships you worked on, who you worked with and, if you can remember, when!
Most MPS members of this forum worked at sea only for shortish periods - maybe just a year or two - and MPS was on the go for over 40 years. You never know, you may bump into someone you recognise!
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Post by kit on Apr 28, 2010 21:22:23 GMT
OK - I'll kick this thread off.
I joined MPS in 1973, having successfully completed an intensive 2 week training course at CCP (50 Maldon Road). I sailed on Gripsholm, Kungsholm, Britanis, Ellinis, Oriana, Monte Granada, Felix Dzerjinsky, Michail Lermontov and maybe a couple of others too? I tried to resign in 1975 but failed and rejoined 3 months later. I finally finished as a ships photog in 1978 (3rd of May, in fact, in Tilbury). That's when I joined the office staff as chief paperclip bender or similar at 173 Maldon Road..... I stayed with MPS in the office at 173 and St. Helen's Lane until the company folded sometime during the '80's I then formed FotoMarine and carried on providing shipboard photo services for a further 6 years - but that's a different story! This forum is designed to help abandoned MPS and CCP employees to reunite and celebrate the old days.
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Post by jant on Apr 29, 2010 7:12:02 GMT
Hello John Carr here, I joined Marine in 1972 as chief office & tea boy, my first day in the old sheds at 173 Maldon Road was to meet KE Morris RIP who demanded in a loud & drug infused temperament who the hell i was and who had employed me, i blamed his Nephew, Tony Morris!! After some years of shoving Kodak stores up the little hill i was allowed to go to sea for a couple of weeks. Queen Fred was my first ship Hugh Rayner being the number 2, me being shop & trim wallah. I managed to catch the dreaded Chandris chunders on the Queen Fred, but not my virginity, that happened on the Britanis in 1973 with a very nice Nurse who must be 80 years old now!!
After a few more years at 173 i was allowed to go to sea properly, ships that i soght of remember working on; Queen Fred, Brit, Ellinis, Shota ( 1975 with CTC) azerbaydzhan class, Turkmenia, Romanza, Victoria, Galaxy, Monte Toledo, Antonia Nezdonovinia (sic) Oriana...... the started to brochure work with Tony Morris so managed a few more ships! started a commercial photog company when MPS went through the break up, another story, now photog at the royal college of surgeons in England, which is great - like being back at sea.
thats me,
oh married jane in 1995 and managed to get a new nickname..... Jant ( my middle name is Ant)
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Post by keithwinterbourne on May 2, 2010 13:34:01 GMT
Hello I'm Keith Winterbourne, I joined Marine in 1966 doing a season with P.&.O. Orcades and Himalaya before going on a 14 month season on Swedish America Line's Gripsholm on my break after that I was asked to go on an Aussie season on Oriana. Not being a P.&.O. man I was glad to get back with S.A.L. on Kungsholm as usual during my break after this season I was persuaded to do an English season of cruises on Orsova.Back again to Kungsholm for 11 months, on my return this time it was Australis to Sydney and back ( Greek ships were an eye opener!!!). A further two sessions on Kungsholm (the best) at the end of which I was going to give it up, but Tony then offered me a job in the office. So I moved to Colchester in 1972 and married Sue Best who worked in the office, 38 years later we are still together and are still in Colchester. I worked with CCP for the last 20 years or so before I retired but I am still in contact with the M.P.S. "boys" and we regularly meet up including the CCP "boys" and spin an odd yarn and try an odd pint in fact we are an odd bunch but if you fancy joining us check out the website for our next gathering you would be very welcome. Let's hear from you
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nick
Passenger
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Post by nick on May 5, 2010 18:12:16 GMT
Hi there everyone,I am Nick walker and i joined ccp back in 1989,it was the best thing that i ever done,i admit that i was nervous at first being quite young at the time but I came to learn what a very friendly happy family of guys that you at ccp were.I was a delivery driver and being quite a shy guy this job was ideal for me and infact I stayed with ccp for 22yrs including the changes to redwood photographic.I have never forgot you Keith,chris Mark all of you and I think of you lot quite often. Quite a few things have happend in my life over the last few years with losing both mum and dad within 7yrs which i don't think that i will ever get over being that we were a very loving close family. I will send you an email sometime Keith to tell you a little more don't really want to bore everyone else on here but just to say that since losing dad I haven't really worked again except for a very helpfull Mark at redwoods who gave me a little work which was very nice of him. I still cannot believe where I have ended up in my life now with basically nothing, I now live on nothing and never buy myself anything but at least I still have my car,guitar my two doggies and my brother. I just spend my life now just selling and trying to make money on ebay which is only pennies but I am still smiling which is good and i try to keep fit,hope i haven't bored you all but i have been keeping an eye on this site and thought that its about time I joined it,gota go but i will post more soon,OH NO I hear you cry not more lol chat soon cya nick
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Post by Forum Moderator on May 20, 2010 23:47:24 GMT
Owing to technical hitches, Lensman120m has asked me to upload this personal profile on his behalf:
Hi folks, Lensman120m here. And for those who aren't quite sure who that handle belongs to I'm Graham Hellewell, that shy and retiring young lad who one day whilst passing the doors of West End Studios in Colchester was so physically assaulted, yanked through the doors and upstairs to the 'office' where two 'gentlemen' going by the names of Tony Morris and Noel Chaffey said, with suspicious insipid smiles on their faces asked that time-honoured question "How'd you like to see the world free, son...?" whilst bestowing upon me such gifts as weak tea and plain biscuits.... And that was the beginning of one of the best periods in my life as an MPS Ships Photographer. Several Days later, the actual date I can't remember, I think it was something they put in my tea to blot out what was going to happen to me over the next 17 years or so. One sunny day in 1965 I found myself standing on the quayside at Berth 106 staring in amazement at the biggest ship I had ever seen, P&O SS Iberia as No.2 Photographer till 10 months later in 1966 when for the next seven months I returned to the civilisation of Fleet Street and the Daily Mail where I had spent the first seven years of my working life. Unfortunately every time a galeforce wind blew and it rained heavily, walking with a 5 degree list down Fleet Street and The Strand I was getting some very funny looks so I decided the only place to be was back at sea. A quick phone call to "The Offce" had them begging for me to return, assuring me of Princely accommodation and unlimited amounts of wonga, I spent the next three years going back and forth to Australia on the SS Australis, with one or two cruises thrown in for further excitement. From a ship full of 'ten-pound-poms' emigrants fleeing England for warmer climes, returning to the uk full of Aussies and Kiwis in seach of the sites of Europe things took a much quieter turn when from 1970 to mid 1974I alternated between the British India's Uganda and Nevasa where around 200 cabin class passengers shared a ship full of around 1000 students on educational cruises around the Med and the coast of West Africa. Then life took a completely different turn and from mid 1974 to 1977 the powers that be hoiked me ashore to help run two companies, Magna Colour and Colchester Photographic Wholesale, and the odd trip running darkrooms and stock to ships in various foreign outposts,during which time I married Anita, the girl I'd earlier met on the Nevasa, after spending some considerable time persuading her she really was doing the right thing by marrying me and how much dowry would she offer up if I succombed to her charms...Needless to say she did the 'done thing' and made an honest man of me. Then the inevitable happened, 'The Phone Call' from 'The Office' requesting the pleasure of our company as husband and wife team photographers on the SS Australis and from Feb. 1974 to Dec. of that year Anita and I spent nine months of what was to be the last real sea time that the Australis spent before being taken from Syndey Australia to Timaru New Zealand to be laid up. From Jan. 1978 we sailed on Bellorussyia till June when we joined the Mikhail Lermontov for North Cape cruising then in November we sailed on Azerbaydzan for a couple of Med. cruises then joined the Gruzia in December 1978 to April 1979 when we left her for the Ellinis from May to October which was to be our last trip at sea to work with CCP at their new Lab in St. Helen's Lane as their sales rep, then in Feb. 1981 joined forces with Tony Morris ( still furnishing that suspicious smile) at Marine Commercial Division, doing commercial and yacht photography till May 1981 when with the yearning to be independant and my own boss had me start up for the next few years as an Industrial Photograper leading to Graham Studios, portraits and industrial through to 1992 still keeping a close relationship with CCP as my laboratory. In all I have spent some 27 years working for, at, or in association with CCP/ Marine and I can honestly say that during that time I have had the previlage to become friends with some of the nicest and most genuine people one could wish to be associated with. In fact once one has come in contact with the likes of these friends one doesn't want to let go, and needless to say I'm one of the "odd bunch of boys" who regularly meet up. So if you feel like the odd pint and a yarn of "the good old days" check out the website, come and join us, you'll be very welcome. But watch out for surgical photographers who keep asking for your inside leg measurement........!
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Post by Jezzer on May 22, 2010 8:19:15 GMT
Glad to see you kept it brief Graham!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Post by kit on May 24, 2010 10:22:06 GMT
@ Jezzer So Jezz, what's your connection with MPS & CCP then? The world is dying to learn.
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Post by blackangus on Sept 24, 2010 12:30:55 GMT
Hi all!
Ian Boydon here.
Worked as a Photog on the Victoria 1985, Shota Rustaveli Spring 1986, Leohnid Brezhnev Summer and Autumn 1986 and the Pegasus 1987. Plus 1 cruise with John Carr in October 1985 on the Odessa to take brochure pictures.
I'm glad to see Marine is still alive and well in these pages.
Would be great to hear from any Photogs I worked with all those years ago.
On a personal note, I have been living in the Netherlands for the last 15 years and have just moved back to the UK.
Still miss those days sailing through the warm waters of the Caribbean.
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Post by blackangus on Sept 24, 2010 12:32:38 GMT
By the way. My username is in homage to the infamous bar in Puerto Rico, which burnt down, I believe. It certainly opened my young eyes to a whole new world back in 1985.
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Post by kit on Oct 10, 2010 11:14:28 GMT
Welcome to the Forum Ian. As you've gathered from the rush to reply to your message this area isn't currently used too much. However, I'm hoping for a Forum revival soon - it'll no doubt pick up again as we approach reunion day in er, just over 1000 days time!
Keep an eye on here though as this is where some of the committee members sometimes thrash out their differences! Can be fun to monitor.
Cheers Kit
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Post by cc27oriana on Mar 26, 2012 17:10:29 GMT
Hi all ex ships photogs. Just a quick msg to say I am still alive ( just ) Got an e.mail last week that P and O are celebrating their 175th anniversary on July 3 2012 in Southampton where all seven ships of the fleet will be sailing in the evening . Should make a hell of a sight , anybody thinking of going leave a msg on this forum and I will post up further details . A lot of old crew will be in a certain pub all afternoon across the water at Hive for the best views. Dont think I will be going as quite a journey from here in Norwich.
All the best to you all .
Nick Shaw.
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Post by Mark on Mar 29, 2012 15:19:52 GMT
To all the multitudes of new and eager members on the CCP/ Marine forum, don't be disillusioned by what you might think is a distinct lack of usage you might think that the dates on some of the threads means we have all gone home never to return The committee does visit, we are working feverishly behind the scenes, if you want a quick response to anything just drop a line to ccp.marine@gmail .com you will always find us there and we will see you here from time to time ;D
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Post by Forum Moderator on May 6, 2012 12:12:12 GMT
Good one Mark.
I've just sent out an all bpoints bulleting to all existing members of the forum asking them to get their fingers on their keyboards and confirm they are still with us.
You are hopefully in receipt of your copy by now
Cheers Kit
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Post by Forum Moderator on May 6, 2012 12:15:12 GMT
Hi all ex ships photogs. Just a quick msg to say I am still alive ( just ) Got an e.mail last week that P and O are celebrating their 175th anniversary on July 3 2012 in Southampton where all seven ships of the fleet will be sailing in the evening . Should make a hell of a sight , anybody thinking of going leave a msg on this forum and I will post up further details . A lot of old crew will be in a certain pub all afternoon across the water at Hive for the best views. Dont think I will be going as quite a journey from here in Norwich. All the best to you all . Nick Shaw. That's sounds like it will be one hell of a spectacle. I hope the weather is good on the day. Can't make it myself but I'm sure thousands will! Cheers, Kit
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