Without the slightest doubt, the very day I stepped aboard my first ship moored in Portsmouth Naval Dock Yard was in reality the defining moment of my life. That day marked the actual moment, when as a young boy not yet thirteen years of age I began to follow in the family tradition of serving in His Majesties Royal Navy. From that very moment on it was my responsibility to forge out a career for myself; family connections would have no bearing on my future in fact at times it would become a hindrance leaving me open to ridicule and bullying. Rank would most certainly not come to me handed on...

Returning to Portsmouth with the explicit intention of leaving naval service I met by chance with my godfather who although failing to recognise me immediately initiated a change enabling my life to move forward in a manner that I had not considered possible. What I had believed to be ingratitude on the part of Admiralty was revealed to have been considered by senior officers to have been in the interest of the nation's security. From the very moment that I took the advice of Vice Admiral Sir Richard Wooderson my naval career moved forward at an incredible pace. I shall always be indebted to...