Home | Veterans | Harry Allen
Screenshot

A veteran interview with

Harry Allen

Harry Allen was a boy sailor when he joined HMS Jamaica. He sailed on the Russian Convoys and recalls the battle with the Scharnhorst.

Video Coming Soon

About Harry Allen

Credits

Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker

Transcripts:
Please note that transcripts and closed captions in the video player are automatically generated by Vimeo.

Copyright:
All video content, web site design, graphics, images (including submitted content), text, the selection and arrangement thereof, underlying source code, software and all other material on this Web site are the copyright of Legasee Educational Trust, and its affiliates, or their content and technology providers. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Any use of materials on this Web site – including reproduction for purposes other than those noted above, modification, distribution, or republication – without the prior written permission of Legasee Educational Trust is strictly prohibited.

Home | Veterans | Harry Allen

A veteran interview with

Harry Allen

Screenshot

Harry Allen was a boy sailor when he joined HMS Jamaica. He sailed on the Russian Convoys and recalls the battle with the Scharnhorst.

Related topics & talking points

Veteran gallery

Photos & memories

Keep on watching

More veteran stories...

Share this interview on:

https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/harry-allen/

Cite this interview:

MLA Style:
Allen, Harry. A Veteran Interview with Harry Allen. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, 21 Feb. 2014 https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/harry-allen/. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
APA Style:
Allen, H. (2014, February 21). A Veteran Interview with Harry Allen [Interview by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee. Retrieved June 6, 2026, from https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/harry-allen/
Chicago Style:
Allen, Harry. 2014. A Veteran Interview with Harry Allen. Interview by Martin Bisiker. Legasee, February 21. Accessed June 6, 2026. https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/harry-allen/
Harvard Style:
Allen, H. (2014). A Veteran Interview with Harry Allen. [Interviewed by Martin Bisiker]. Legasee, 21 February. Available at https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/harry-allen/ (Accessed: 6 June 2026)
Vancouver Style:
Allen, H. A Veteran Interview with Harry Allen [Internet]. Interview by M. Bisiker. Legasee; 2014 Feb 21 [cited 2026 Jun 6]. Available from: https://www.legasee.org.uk/veteran/harry-allen/
An interview with

Alan Johnson

Alan Johnson provide excellent detail about his life onboard the Royal Naval Minesweeper, HMS Onyx

Alan Johnson served in the Royal Navy from 1943 to 1947. The son of a professional Manchester city footballer he was enlisted as an Able Seaman on the Minesweeper HMS Onyx. In his expansive interview he talks in detail about his life onboard and the work he was involved in. He describes the mine clearing procedure in depth and the particular threats the ship faced day and night. The Onyx operated both in the Balkan seas on the Russian convoys and in the English Channel during the Normandy invasion. Alan shares entertaining memories from them all.
An interview with

John Woodward

The critical work of a Navy minesweeper and its ingenious captain during World War II.

18-year-old John Woodward followed in the footsteps of his father, uncle and grandfather by enlisting in the Royal Navy in 1942, keen to join the fight and do his bit for the war effort. His original intention was to become a signaller but when he was found to be colour blind, he was transferred to the minesweepers and based on the Isle of Sheppey at Queenborough Pier. John shares details of his early training and his role onboard the minesweeper, and recounts a particularly inspired yet risky manoeuvre ordered by the ship’s captain when the Germans’ mine-laying tactics had become a little too predictable. As well as providing details about the types of mines deployed by the Germans and how his minesweeper dislodged them, John also recalls both the build-up to D-Day and the actual event itself, before going on to talk about VE Day and his memories of the occasion. Like his peers, John shares his story with remarkable modesty, but it is easy to find behind his words the bravery, commitment and dedication with which he served, and which will form the heart of his legacy for many years to come.
Service:
Interviewed by:
Martin Bisiker