F. S. Bell Falkland Islands. The captain, eight officers and 79 members of the crew were given the Freedom of the City of Exeter on 29 February 1940, and were welcomed by a crowd of 50,000 cheering residents. The crew marched through the streets with fixed bayonets, carrying HMS "Exeter's" shell-torn White Ensign through the streets. Bell also commanded in 1945. He retired from the Navy owing to ill health on 8 January 1948. In the 1956 film "The Battle of the River Plate", Bell was played by John Gregson. During the film, Bell's nickname of 'Hookie', because of his distinctive nose, is
HMS Active (1799) HMS Active (1799) HMS "Active" was a Royal Navy fifth-rate frigate launched on 14 December 1799 at Chatham Dockyard. Sir John Henslow designed her as an improvement on the "Artois"-class frigates. She served during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars, capturing numerous enemy vessels. Her crews participated in one campaign and three actions that would later qualify them for the Naval General Service Medal. She returned to service after the wars and finally was broken up in 1860. "Active" was commissioned under Captain Charles Davers in December 1799 and convoyed East Indiamen in 1800. She sailed from Portsmouth