George Kirman was born in Sunderland on 5 August 1883, one of seven surviving children of George Kirman, a coppersmith originally from Caistor, and his wife Sarah Jane (née Moncarr). The family moved South soon after he was born, and his father was employed in HM Dockyard Chatham.

George Kirman followed his father’s trade and completed an apprenticeship as a coppersmith before joining the Royal Navy in October 1905 as an Acting Engine Room Artificer 4th Class. He served in the armoured cruiser HMS BEDFORD on the China Station during 1907-9, and in the scout cruisers ADVENTURE, FORWARD and BOADICEA before being drafted to the submarine depot ship HMS THAMES in February 1912. He was advanced to Engine Room Artificer 2nd Class in October 1912.  Subsequent drafts were to the depot ship HMS BONAVENTURE and then, in September 1913, to HMS CORMORANT, the Gibraltar receiving ship, ‘for HMS B6, B7, B8’. It seems likely that he stayed with B6 throughout as his service record shows subsequent depot ships HMS BLENHEIM and HMS ADAMANT, consistent with her employment.  As an ERA 2nd Class, Kirman was likely to have been the senior engineer of the submarine.

In August 1915, HMS B6 (Lieut E E C Tufnell) and HMS B11 (Lieut N D Holbrook VC) were despatched to the Egyptian coast in an attempt to prevent gun-running. Near the border with Libya, a party of Arabs under officers in European uniforms were observed showing a flag of truce.  The submarines anchored 700 yards from the shore, and Holbrook as senior officer pulled towards the shore in a ‘Berthon boat’ (a folding canvas-skinned boat) to investigate.  After initial contact with one of the officers ashore, the circumstances aroused Holbrook’s suspicion and he began to return to the submarine, when fire was opened from the beach.  Kirman, who was one of the boat party, was killed and lost overboard, and Holbrook and two others were wounded. The incident is concluded in the official history as a misunderstanding of boundaries and identities, but underlying tensions were to lead to the Senussi Campaign.

George Kirman had married Ada May Channon in 1905, and they had a son, Ernest George born in 1906.  Ada died in 1907, and in April 1912 George had married Esther Elizabeth Selina Browning.  

He is commemorated on the Chatham Naval Memorial.