“January 2nd 1795. Thetis, Cleopatra and Thisbe at anchor in Lynhaven Bay at the mount of the Chesapeake.”

“January 2nd 1795. Thetis, Cleopatra and Thisbe at anchor in Lynhaven Bay at the mount of the Chesapeake.” by George Tobin. In collection of National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.

Single-Handed a.k.a. Sailor of the King (1953)

Whoever uploaded this to YouTube claims 1952, but it’s definitely a 1953 flick.

The fil-um moves CS Forester’s story from the First World War to the Second World War and we have Hollywood’s Jeffrey Hunter as a Canadian.

But it’s a cracking piece of cinema from Roy Boulting. Incredible battle sequence from 25-minutes onward. Bernard Lee, Victor Maddern and Sam Kydd play their character roles with the humour and sangfroid expected from a black-and-white British war film. Well worth watching before YouTube delete it.

Damage Control saved HMS Cleopatra “… was able to proceed under her own power.”

One of a series of damage control posters produced by the Royal Navy.

HMS Cleopatra damage control poster S 1581 (3)