How much longer must this torment go on
for Sheila Doone and her family?

A personal appeal from Graham Smith

Even before the Gaul survey arrives back on Sunday evening Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott could do the honourable thing for my friend Sheila Doone. He could allow her to marry the man who has been at her side through the terrible ordeal of the past month. I invite him to do so.
In December 2000 I appealed to him to step in and do something about the bizarre situation in which she found herself. After going to her local registrar with her partner she was refused permission to marry.
It is quite clear that permission was refused because in 1978 Alan Waterworth said he saw John Doone, The Gaul’s radio operator, in a bar in Port Elizabeth South Africa. The story is told on other pages in this site entitled Married to a Ghost and The Unquiet Grave
Mr Prescott’s response, through a secretary, was to pass the matter to Sheila’s constituency MP Gordon Prentice. Months later, after prompting from me because he claimed he knew nothing of it, he replied. The matter had been passed through various governmental hands including the Attorney General and Treasury solicitors. The effect? The refusal was even more adamant and rubber stamped from on high.
Someone, somewhere was putting a lot of credence on the sighting to the extent that Sheila was told she would have to “divorce” John Doone, or go through a lengthy legal process to obtain a death certificate. She refused to divorce him on principle and could not contemplate the expense of lengthy legal proceedings.
On The Seisranger we are told there are remains indicating six individual bodies. Whether John Doone is one we will not know for a considerable time until DNA matching takes place. What we do know is that before the survey set sail families were told that if identifiable remains of six crew members were found that would be sufficient to draw the conclusion that all the crew had been on board at the time of the sinking. Using that yardstick, and a touch of humanity and common sense, why should Sheila Doone not be allowed to remarry the man who has been her tower of strength for some years now?
Other wives of the crew have remarried since 1974, so it is quite clear that for whatever reason, the alleged sighting is the block on Sheila doing the same. By the way, while you are at it Mr Prescott you might like to take a look at the fact that Sheila was 60 last October and has still not received her pension. The pensions office says they have to investigate John Doone’s contributions. Excuses so far have included “fire damage” “water damage” and “sewage damage”.
Perhaps the best known line of the marriage vows in this country is “Till Death Us Do Part”. At the moment Mr Prescott, Sheila Doone does not know for certain if that happened to her. The survey which you sent into The Barents Sea may tell her. The criteria which you set for satisfaction that all the crew were on board appear to have been met. I invite you, as Deputy Prime Minister, to intervene and show humanity at a time when Sheila Doone and every Gaul family member deserves it. Tell her she can remarry. End the torment. There is sufficient to come for Sheila and all the families without this ridiculous situation.
E-mail me by clicking HERE Mr Prescott, I will put you in touch with Sheila. Quite frankly I think it is the least you could do. (Story dated July 28th 2002)

The latest
It is now a week since I wrote the above article and there has been no response from John Prescott or Gordon Prentice.
On this page is a picture of Sheila Doone and her partner, Ernest Green. I would happily put pictures of all family members up on the site, for I gather they are not hearing very much either, a week after the survey returned.
This is the first time Sheila and Ernest have allowed their picture to appear anywhere in the media. I am happy they chose my site to do so.
This week their story will be told exclusively in a national newspaper, The Daily Telegraph. Here are some of Sheila’s words: “Despite all efforts I have still never been contacted by my local MP or anyone else with a proper explanation of why we cannot marry. There has been enough stress and upset over the last 28 years without this. I have been given a different excuse every time I have asked about my pension since last October. They say they are checking John’s records, there has been water damage, fire damage, even sewage damage and it is obviously all an excuse.
“Why am I being treated differently to others? Someone attaches a lot of significance to the alleged sighting of John in 1978. Why don’t they talk to me about it?”
So you see, Messrs Prescott and Prentice, the invitation still stands.
Graham Smith