TWO young sea cadets have been specially selected to spend a week on board the Royal Navy's largest ship HMS Ocean to celebrate the 250th anniversary of The Marine Society and Sea Cadets.

Tom Roberts and Cathryne Bryan, members of the TS Apollo Sea Cadets in Wethered Road, Marlow, are to be two of the 250 cadets from across the country who are boarding the ship on Sunday.

They will set sail from Portsmouth and travel all the way to London where HMS Ocean which is big enough to carry 12 Navy helicopters will play host to a number of VIP receptions.

Tom, a Year Eight pupil at John Hampden Grammar School in Marlow Hill, said: "It will be my first time on a ship so it will be very exciting."

Cathryne, who has just left school and lives in Forgetts Road, Lane End, added: "I have never been on a ship like that before either and I get very sea sick."

The pair were chosen to go on board because of their talent for music they will be joining the 70-man Sea Cadet band to play the drums and the bugle.

Yet they only started learning to play the instruments in November and are already winning trophies.

Cathryne, TS Apollo's assistant band master, said: "We took part in a novice competition on June 18 and we won. We had only been formed for seven months and we beat other bands who have been formed for five years."

Petty officer Nick Brown, who trains the band, said: "We decided we would start a band and give it a go and we have done really well."

As well as playing in the band the teenagers will be undergoing stewarding duties and performing a window ladder display as part of their VIP reception duties.

Unit commanding officer Mark Unwin said: "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our cadets.

"It was a great honour for them to be selected to take part in these exciting events as cadets from all over the country were invited to apply and places were seriously over-subscribed."