HMS Duncan affiliation with Scarborough

Three is company, not a crowd for HMS Duncan as the destroyer bonded with the North Yorkshire seaside resort of Scarborough… her third affiliate, joining Dundee (birthplace of the ship’s namesake admiral) and Belfast.

A formal affiliation between the Portsmouth-based Type 45 destroyer and the borough was agreed over the Christmas period by civic leaders and Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, who hails from the town.

He announced the new link-up (Duncan’s Belfast affiliation will be taking over by the Northern Ireland city’s namesake Type 26 frigate when she joins the Fleet in the middle of the next decade) during a visit to Scarborough’s RNLI station, where he met local Sea Cadets.

Scarborough is gearing up to host next year’s national Armed Forces Day event and council leader Councillor Derek Bastiman said locals were keen to see the distinctive outline of the destroyer – star of the recent Channel 5 documentary Warship: Life at Sea – off the coast.

The affiliation couldn’t be a more fitting match as Leading Seaman Tim Phillips – the son of one of our Cabinet members, Cllr Heather Phillips – has joined the ship’s crew,” he continued.

“The direct connection to our council and borough communities gives us immense pride.”