This year marks 43 years since HMS Ardent was sunk in Falkland Sound. I was on board that day, 21 May 1982. It was chaos and fire, courage and loss. We don’t discuss it lightly, and we never forget. Not ever. The HMS Ardent Association gathered once more in Plymouth this May, as we always do. Some faces were familiar, others new. Time has done what time always does, but the bond remains unshaken.
My role today is different. I run our social media, take photos, and quietly ensure that what we do is remembered by others, not just by those who were there. But I’m not an outsider looking in. I’m still of ARDENT. Every frame I shoot is grounded in memory. Every caption carries weight.
You can read my formal reunion report on our Association site, but this space, my blog, is for something else. It’s where I reflect. Where the uniform is folded away, but the service never quite comes to an end.
We held our church service parade. We stood in silence. And as the 22 names of the fallen were read, I looked around. I saw the same thing I always do: pride, resilience, and the unspoken understanding that we’re still here for each other and for those who never came home. It’s not always easy to revisit the past. But it’s necessary. And it’s part of why I started Retired and Rewired—to give voice to this chapter of life after service.
A chapter that’s still unfolding. 43 years on, Ardent still sails with me. And always will.
