Memories Of A Ben Line Man

by Stuart Edmond

All the young Stuart Edmond dreamed of was a life at sea. In the 1950s that is what he had, first as a cadet, then as an officer with the Scotlandbased Ben Line.

During his years aboard a succession of merchant ships, he served with some memorable characters and travelled the world, only to find a wife no further away than in his ancestral home of Shetland.

It was a time before satellite navigation, when letters home were the mains means of communication, and whenBritain still ruled some of the waves. This was a time now gone forever.

Apart from being at sea with Ben Line, the author worked for the London Chamber of Shipping and the Highlands and Islands Development Board.

This is an interesting story of the “golden age” of British shipping, well written by a man with a vast amount of experience both at sea and onshore. He was awarded the MBE for his commendable work in the Sea Cadet movement.