Mr Hollom was an officer candidate of the Royal Navy. He was an incompetent midshipman who had reached the age where he could no longer hope for a commission. The first time Hollom served with Jack Aubrey was aboard HMS Lively, but he was taken to a hospital ship when he became ill. During the War of 1812, after being shunted from ship to ship, he was taken on the Surprise by Aubrey. During the voyage from Gibraltar to the Pacific, he was thought of as a Jonah, and generally disliked and disrespected by the crew. Later in the voyage, one of the sailors pushed past Hollom without making any notion to the officer's presence.