The Canberra in the Falklands War: A Very Strange Way to go to War

Vast and brilliant white, P&O's flagship the SS Canberra was a final salute to a bygone era of opulence even as she embarked on her maiden voyage, For a decade she carried passengers between Britain and Australia, a 90-day voyage of pampering and decadence. But in March 1982, Britain went to war to defend the Falkland Islands and the SS Canberra found herself, surreally, requisitioned as a troop ship to carry the Marines and Paratroops into battle.

Against all odds she surived, playing a vital role as a hospital ship, At the end of the war she arrived back in Southampton to a heroes welcome, where she became fondly known as the Great White Whale.

This is the extraordinary and, as yet, untold story of how the crew of a luxury ocean liner:  waiters, cooks, nurses and cleaners, found themselves suddenly thrust onto the front line. A Very Strange Way to Go to War is a candid and captivating story, drawing from first hand accounts and previously unpublished archives, of the heroic courage of ordinary British men and women in the face of great adversity, at the outpost of empire.

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The Canberra in the Falklands War: A Very Strange Way to go to War

Vast and brilliant white, P&O's flagship the SS Canberra was a final salute to a bygone era of opulence even as she embarked on her maiden voyage, For a decade she carried passengers between Britain and Australia, a 90-day voyage of pampering and decadence. But in March 1982, Britain went to war to defend the Falkland Islands and the SS Canberra found herself, surreally, requisitioned as a troop ship to carry the Marines and Paratroops into battle.

Against all odds she surived, playing a vital role as a hospital ship, At the end of the war she arrived back in Southampton to a heroes welcome, where she became fondly known as the Great White Whale.

This is the extraordinary and, as yet, untold story of how the crew of a luxury ocean liner:  waiters, cooks, nurses and cleaners, found themselves suddenly thrust onto the front line. A Very Strange Way to Go to War is a candid and captivating story, drawing from first hand accounts and previously unpublished archives, of the heroic courage of ordinary British men and women in the face of great adversity, at the outpost of empire.

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The Canberra in the Falklands War: A Very Strange Way to go to War

The Canberra in the Falklands War: A Very Strange Way to go to War

by Andrew Vine
The Canberra in the Falklands War: A Very Strange Way to go to War

The Canberra in the Falklands War: A Very Strange Way to go to War

by Andrew Vine

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Overview

Vast and brilliant white, P&O's flagship the SS Canberra was a final salute to a bygone era of opulence even as she embarked on her maiden voyage, For a decade she carried passengers between Britain and Australia, a 90-day voyage of pampering and decadence. But in March 1982, Britain went to war to defend the Falkland Islands and the SS Canberra found herself, surreally, requisitioned as a troop ship to carry the Marines and Paratroops into battle.

Against all odds she surived, playing a vital role as a hospital ship, At the end of the war she arrived back in Southampton to a heroes welcome, where she became fondly known as the Great White Whale.

This is the extraordinary and, as yet, untold story of how the crew of a luxury ocean liner:  waiters, cooks, nurses and cleaners, found themselves suddenly thrust onto the front line. A Very Strange Way to Go to War is a candid and captivating story, drawing from first hand accounts and previously unpublished archives, of the heroic courage of ordinary British men and women in the face of great adversity, at the outpost of empire.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780711276178
Publisher: Aurum
Publication date: 03/01/2022
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 336
File size: 7 MB

About the Author

Andrew Vine is an award-winning journalist and assistant editor of the Yorkshire Post. He is author of Last of the Summer Wine: The Story of the World's Longest Running Comedy Series. He lives in Leeds.

Table of Contents

1 We Don't Want to Join the Army 1

2 Ship of the Future 18

3 No Women and No Foreigners 28

4 Give the Argies Some Bargie 48

5 Four Times Round Equals a Mile 67

6 Pinkers and Clausewitz 85

7 Our Lads 101

8 Waiting and Wondering 121

9 Going All the Way 140

10 A Sea Full of Ships 158

11 Take Cover, Take Cover 178

12 Rendezvous at the End of the Earth 213

13 All-Bran and Peat 238

14 Bringing Her Children Home 270

15 Britain's Favourite Ship 292

Acknowledgements 305

Bibliography 307

Index 310

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