Charles Sydenham Blundell was the son of Colonel Charles Wilson and Annie Kate Blundell. He attended Mount House School when it was in Plymouth, before passing the Common Entrance to Sherborne. He was a member of Abbey House from 1927-31. When war broke out in 1939, Charles was the managing director of a wine and spirit business. He lived with his wife, Joan, in Kingsbridge and was a member of the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve based on HMS Flying Fox in Bristol.

Charles was Captain of the cruiser HMS Carlisle in July 1943 when she was escorting the support force for the allied invasion of Sicily.  In the autumn of 1943, HMS Carlisle, along with HMS Panther and HMS Rockwood, made a sortie into the area south of Piraeus to intercept German convoys in the Scarpanto Strait.  On 9 October 1943, the three ships were attacked by German dive bombers off of the island of Cos. HMS Panther was sunk and HMS Carlisle seriously damaged. Charles Blundell was killed during this action and his body was never recovered. He is remembered at Panel 84, Column 1, Pymouth Naval Memorial.