cloudobservers

Wrens Reunion at York - 30 August 2008 pictures supplied by Liz Deley - more pictures on CONTACTS page.

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UK MET OFFICE - Hourly plotted chart for the United Kingdom (for those who remember the symbols) linked from the UK Met Office Website.

UK MET OFFICE - Latest Observations from around the UK regularly updated by the Met Office

Reunion Down Under November 2008 - After 31 years, whilst on holiday in Tazmania Ashley Price made a stop over in Brisbane to meet up with Chris "Jan" Robinson. They served together at the Met School, on the Ark Royal and at AFNorth in Oslo. Ashley still works at sea and will spend this Christmas at anchor in the Black Sea on the north coast of Turkey.

The venue is the The Royal Maritime Club (formerly the Home Club) in Portsmouth. Special rates are available for those staying in the club, just mention cloudobservers when booking.

Click here for information, details and location of The Royal Maritime Club.

Friday night will be informal gatherings of old friends in the club. Up Spirits will be held at 1200 on the Saturday. Dinner will be 6.30 for 7.30 in the evening. Sunday at the last reunion was used to carry on chatting or to visit some of the local sites. For those of you who remember or may have served on her in the past, HMS VIctory is just down the road!!!

25 July 2008- Visit to MWS HMTG at Devonport

Left to Right - Jean Brenchley - Doreen Hemming - Colin Brenchley - John Notley - Peter Squibb - Arthur Charles - Monica Malpass - PO (Metoc) Kirk Davidson

HMTG Devonport on the Royal Navy site

More pictures

MEMORIES - A selection of photographs of METOC ratings and WRNS at work both ashore and afloat. This photo was taken at Burghfield in 1950

Culdrose in the 60's - We have received a selection of pictures from Tony and Jenny Key that were taken in 1965 when Jenny Stallard served in the Tower at Culdrose leaving to get married in 1965. They have recently celebrated their 43rd Anniversary. Further pictures in the WRNS Section

Following several messages in the guestbook regarding this pair - we have unearthed photographs of them both. This one, sent to us by Dave Strike from downunder shows M.J. "Blackie" Howarth at work on "Weather Monitor" in 1967 with a bathythermograph

Met Course in 1961 where Lawrence "Ginge" Howarth found himself the only rating amongst 9 Wrens!!!!!

WISH YOU WERE HERE - Travel was a major aspect of life in the RN and WRNS and so far we have mainly delved into the past. This section aims to look at what ex-METOC's are up to in the way of travel today. So please send in small articles and pictures of where you have been recently. This picture was taken in September 2007 whilst re-visiting Hong Kong. I had previously visited HK on several occasions and this was Jean's second visit. Send your items to colin@cloudobservers.co.uk

THE CARRIERS a selection of pictures depicting the largest of the Royal Navy ships that Met Ratings used to serve on. As sea-going Met Offices they had the largest staff usually consisting of 1 x Commander, 1 Lt Cdr, 1x Lt, 1 x CPO/PO then 1 x LA and 4 NA's in the old days or 5 x LA's. Most of the ratings served at some time in their careers on a Carrier and in their hayday there was always at least one carrier permanently on the Far East.

WWII Met Wrens (L to R) Dorothy Rickards (Davies), Edith Beaumont (Touzel) and Jean Atkins shown reminiscing about their wartime Met service during the reunion weekend at Portsmouth in September 2006. For the full story, sent to us by Celia Saywell follow this link to the WRNS section.

Current Satellite images of the UK - click onto this site thanks to the support of the Dundee Satellite Receiving Station. Many of the members of the Met Branch will remember the images received from this site in the 60's when they were at the forefront of monitoring images from Meteorological Satellites. www.sat.dundee.ac.uk

Cloudobservers is a site dedicated to renewing and maintaining friendship amongst ex-serving members of the Meteorological Observer (later METOC) branch who served in the Royal Navy from the 50's up to the Millenium. The idea of a web site for retired Met Observers was thought about after contact was first made through the Servicepals.com website between Arthur Charles and Colin Brenchley in early 2004. Both had served in the Met Branch for 22 years and retired as CPOA(Met) in the late 80's. Details of how CloudObservers evolved and the Team responsible are detailed in the Comms Room.

We know of around 1500 names that served in the branch from the 1940's through to the 1990's - if you know any members please pass on the site address to them.

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