| Entry Text: | MEARS, Charles. The Other Side of the Record: A True Story of Royal Marine Bands at Sea during 1939–1945. [iv], 104p. London: Excalibur, 1995. ISBN: 185634522X.
Mears joined up as a Bandboy in 1936. In 1940 he joined Illustrious and gives a vivid account of her career and action damage in the Mediterranean. She reached Brooklyn for repair in 1941 and the Marine band returned to the UK but he was sent to Canada to join Warspite, staying with her in the Eastern Fleet and Mediterranean until late 1943 when he went ashore at HMS Daedalus. In mid-1945 he joined Orion. A desultory account apart from the Illustrious material. |
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