Funeral arrangements for Dorothy, wife of Lt Cdr David Bartlett MBE RN

30 May 2025 - Dorothy Bartlett, wife of MCDOA member David Bartlett for over 70 years, crossed the bar on Sunday 11 May at the age 0f 89. She had been suffering from Alzheimer’s for the past three-and-a-half years in the same care home as David.

David joined the Royal Navy in 1949 and was a sonar operator in the Submarine Service when he met Dorothy through her brother who was also serving in the Royal Navy. They were married at St Steven’s Church in Haslemere on 20 April 1955 but moved to the Portsmouth area two years after the birth of their younger son. .

Only two months later, David survived a torpedo explosion on board HMS SIDON at Portland which killed 13 of his shipmates; he last attended a memorial service on Portland in June 2023 (see article for 21 June 2023 in the MCDOA’s new website). He was hospitalised for several months but went on to be commissioned as a TAS officer in 1962 and qualified as an MCD officer at HMS VERNON in 1967.

Among his other appointments, he commanded the FCDT (Fleet Clearance Diving Team), VERNON’s diving training tender HMS LALESTON and was DTO (Diving Training Officer) at HMS VERNON.. He was appointed an MBE in the 1983 New Year Honours, the same year he left the Royal Navy after serving 34 years. He pursued a second career as a life insurance salesman (he sold Martyn Holloway and me extremely rewarding AVC (Additional Voluntary Contributions) pension schemes funded by our diving pay) and worked for several years at Marconi (later BAe Underwater Systems) in Waterlooville.

Dorothy was a volunteer for the WRVS (Women’s Royal Voluntary Service) for 19 years at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Cosham.

The couple’s golden wedding anniversary was covered in the Portsmouth News in April 2005.

In April 2014, the couple attended a ceremony at the Historical Diving Society’s museum in Stokes Bay near Gosport where they presented a copy of a certificate, produced by Portsmouth Graphics Pool in HMS VERNON, which had been presented by the Royal Navy to the Ministry of Culture of the Arab Republic of Egypt to mark the successful completion of the work undertaken by the joint Royal Navy and Egyptian Navy Team in the recovery of the Philae Monuments between October 1976 and April 1978.  The monuments included the remains of the Temple of Augustus Caesar which had been submerged by the building of the two dams at Aswan (see my entry for 11 Aug 21 in News Archive 73 of the MCDOA’s old website)..

In April 2015, David and Dorothy’s married children (Dawn, Andy and Dennis) organised a party in the clubhouse at Southwick Park Golf Course to celebrate their parents’ diamond wedding anniversary (see my entry for 20 Apr 15 in News Archive 50 of the MCDOA’s old website). This time, David and Dorothy received a congratulatory card from HM the Queen.

Dorothy’s funeral will be held at 1300 on Monday 7 July at The Oaks Crematorium, Barton’s Road, Havant PO9 5NA. A wake will be held afterwards at Southwick Park Golf Club where Dorothy and David shared so many happy memories. Family flowers only but any donations to the Alzheimer's Society welcome.

Please advise me if you wish to attend so I can pass the family expected numbers for catering purposes.

In the meantime, I’m sure all members of our community will join me in extending our sincere condolences to Dorothy’s bereaved husband David, their daughter Dawn, their sons Denis and Andrew, and their many grandchildren.