Bowie in Kilmarnock: Starman Visits the Provinces

Ayrshire is a bit of backwater in rock n' roll terms, so very big names are unlikely to play here when they are big. However, nobody starts big, so there is always a chance of a future showbiz legend performing in our humble venues when he or she is on their way up. This is what happened on the 8th of November 1969 when perhaps the greatest rock star ever, David Bowie, played Kilmarnock's Grand Hall.

The venue is still in business and probably could hold around 500 to a 1000 people in those days. Not much is known of Bowie's visit to Killie and there seem to be no photos of the historical event, but interestingly it took place just as the singer-songwriter was finally breaking big, with his first hit song "Space Oddity" at number 7 in the charts. 

It was also part of a Scottish tour, which had probably been planned months before. The tour included a punishing 10 gigs in 9 days, however four of them ended up being cancelled. Luckily Kilmarnock was not one of the shows axed.

The backing musicians were Hull-based band Junior's Eyes, an outfit that included Mick Wayne and Tim Renwick on guitars, John Lodge on bass, and John Cambridge on drums.

According to some memories of the gig collected by the local paper, and then republished by another paper, Mhairi Gouck said her uncle was in the old Tam O’ Shanter pub in Waterloo Street close to the venue when Bowie and his entourage entered the bar before the show. She said: “My uncle offered to buy Bowie a drink, but he had to leave for the gig.”

It seems that audiences were not exactly blown away by Bowie, with his one hit "Space Oddity" standing out in recollections, while the more hippy-like music, typical of his set in those days, failed to strike a chord.

A Stewarton pensioner who was 17 at the time admitted she was more interested in her date on the night than the colourful character onstage. Isabel Dunsmuir met her husband-to-be at the Bowie show. Her daughter Kirsten Duncan said: “It was my mum’s first date with Hugh Dunsmuir, but they went on to marry in 1972.

Kirsten says her mum remembers going along to the Grand Hall most Saturday nights as there was a band on every week. At that time, tickets weren’t needed, you just paid at the door. Fans think it cost about 10/- (50p) to get in. (Note: the shows in Kirkcaldy on the same tour were £1)

Said Kirsten: “Mum recalls David Bowie wasn’t really that famous at the time. She was more interested in seeing my dad. They watched from the balcony and she vaguely remembers Bowie was dressed as a clown. The only song she remembers is Space Oddity.”

Russell Wilson, who wasn’t even born when Bowie came to town, recalls that one of his relatives, a roadie at the time, was at the Bowie bash.

He said: “He was Duncan Clark and he lived in Onthank for a spell. A few years ago I worked at [the bar] Paris Match, and so did he. When the bar closed we’d sit down and he’d reminisce about music, particularly the time Bowie was in Kilmarnock. There was an aftershow party in one of the local hotels apparently, and Bowie was in great form because Space Oddity was still in the Top 10.”

Jacqueline Taylor, a teenager, was at her first-ever concert.

She said: “I went with two friends. I was 16. We came up from Ayr and it was amazing. I’m so proud to be able to say ‘I was there when David Bowie was in Ayrshire’.”

Ucilla Wilson, who was also at the gig, added: “I saw Bowie at the Grand Hall and remember being mesmerised by his whole act. Now I’m afraid it’s a fading memory, but one I hold dear.

Dougie Gass, 19 at the time, from Kilmarnock, said he was also in the audience and couldn’t believe how badly Bowie played the mouth organ!

The Night Liberace Was Mobbed in Irvine

Back in 1960, piano virtuoso Liberace actually visited Irvine. Yes, I know, it's pretty unbelievable, but it's true. 

The occasion was the opening of the Eglinton Arms Hotel. The owner, Joe Caldwell, had told some friends in the national press that he wanted a celebrity to perform the official opening for publicity purposes. One journalist accordingly put him in touch with Liberace's people, and the popular entertainer, who was then performing at the Glasgow Empire, surprisingly agreed to come.

Due to his performance commitments, the time for the event was scheduled to be in the wee small hours.

But word soon got round, and a large, rowdy crowd, estimated at 2000, began to gather in the High Street on the evening of June 28th 1960.

When Liberace arrived he was surprised see such a packed High Street at such a late hour, and was also afraid of being mobbed, so that he actually turned around in his pink Cadillac and headed back to Glasgow. Luckily, a local official Angus McMillan, driving a Mini, managed to catch up with him at Torranyard (about 6 miles from Irvine). Here Liberace was persuaded to return on condition that he could be smuggled into the hotel.

This was done, with Liberace apparently being helped into the hotel via a window, as both doors were completely blocked by the crowds desperate for a glimpse of the showbiz legend.

Once in the hotel, Liberace relaxed and enjoyed a drink with around 180 invited guests. He then spoke for about 20 minutes, and performed the official opening ceremony at around 2 am on June 29th, autographing the hotel wall soon afterwards. Following the ceremony, the honorary title of "Burgess of the Royal Burgh" was bestowed on him.

Not surprisingly Liberace long remembered his unusual visit to Irvine, and every year sent a Christmas card to the Eglinton Arms from his California home.

IRVINE: A New Town in an Old Setting

Promotion film made by the now disbanded Irvine Development Corporation in 1994 to celebrate the first 28 years of Irvine New Town. The sound quality has been boosted. 

Kilmarnock, the Worst Run Prison in Scotland?

Is Kilmarnock Prison the worst run prison in Scotland? This video, which appears to come from a fly-on-the-wall TV documentary, suggest that the answer may very well be "yes." Secretly filmed, the video reveals the poor standards in the prison and staff  who are overly deferential to the whims and wishes of the patients.

THE NAZIS AT WAR WITH AYRSHIRE (3): IRVINE'S ANTI-ITALIAN RIOTS

It is a mistake to conflate the Fascist government of Mussolini's Italy with the National Socialist government of Hitler's Germany. They were quite distinct. But, when Mussolini opportunistically decided to join the war on the Nazi side on June the 10th, 1940, the good people of Irvine could be forgiven for lumping them together. 

The treacherous nature of the Italian decision to join the war, following the German breakthrough in France, created especially bad ill-feeling, something that was  unfortunately directed at Irvine's small Italian community of hard-working cafe owners and shop keepers. 

This account from the Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald tells much but not all of the story of that fateful night:

Regrettable scenes in Irvine

Nine shops wrecked

In the long history of the royal and ancient burgh of Irvine, there are very many incidents recorded of which its citizens have every reason to be proud, and for generations they could congratulate themselves on being regarded by their neighbours as a community consisting to a very large extent of kindly respectable folks. This week, however, most of them admit that their pride in this respect has received a very nasty jar, and that it will be a long time before they are able to forget the regrettable scenes of Monday night.

The only excuse that can be put forward for the happenings in the main streets of the town on that night is that the townspeople were knocked off their normal mental trim by very natural feelings of anger at the part which the powers that be in Italy have played in recent months, and especially by the culminating stab in the back which Italy's declaration of war aimed at France and Britain at the present critical stage in the war with Germany.

News of the Declaration Of War reached Irvine at an unfortunate hour -- six o'clock in the evening. It spread rapidly throughout the borough at a time when the majority of the townspeople had finished their day's work and were free to gather in groups to discuss it. It was the dominating item in the mind of practically everyone and there could be only one opinion regarding it. That opinion was expressed freely in varying forms by all classes of the community, and feelings of keen resentment became more pronounced as the matter was discussed.

Crowds in the streets increased in size as the evening wore on. The atmosphere became more tense and the tenseness was sensed by some of the less responsible elements in the crowds, who realised that the foolishness of throwing a stone through the plate-glass window off an Italian ice cream merchant's shop would have sufficient approval among the crowd to let them get away with it without detection by the two or three policeman on duty at each of the centres of congregated humanity. Stones were thrown, and when they found their mark on the plate glass the effort was greeted by encouraging laughter and occasionally by cheers.

This was followed later by foolishness on a much more serious scale. Between 10 and 11 the crowds at more than one centre increased to four figure dimensions. The entire front of several shops were smashed and large numbers of men crushed into the interiors of the premises and wrecked and plundered them.  Goods were heaved out through the spaces where doors and windows had been a few minutes earlier and were carried off by large numbers of men, women and children.

A very big percentage of those present took no active part in the work of destruction or plundering, but most of them seemed to regard the proceedings as good fun, and those who thought otherwise at this time were evidently afraid that any expression of their opinions might be misinterpreted as showing sympathy with the enemies of their country. There were, however, quite a number who in a quiet manner expressed to their neighbours their disapproval of the proceedings.

Before midnight some three or four shops were wrecked and plundered, and matters seemed to be quieting down. Another wave of destruction, however, broke out, and at about one in the morning the total number of shops occupied by Italians or people of Italian extraction in the town which were raided was raised to nine, and only one shop in London Street, remained practically unmolested. This was the one satisfactory spot in a very unfortunate night's work. In the house attached to this shop there was an old woman whose health was in a critical state. With commendable courage a gentleman residing in the locality faced the group of men who approached this shop, explained the circumstances to them and pleaded with them to leave the place alone. Several women who were present supported him in his plea. Better instincts in the breasts of the leaders of the group of men won over their irritation, and the shop was spared.

The police, it may be noted, were not nearly in sufficient strength to deal by forceful means with the situations which had arisen at various points in the town simultaneously. For them the announcement of Italy's declaration of war was very unfortunately timed. Had news of it reached the people here at, say, sometime in the early hours of the morning, there would, in all probability, have been time for making arrangements that would have prevented disorderly scenes from developing to the extent to which they did develop on Monday night.

The sympathy of all right thinking people is with the policeman who are on duty in very small numbers at the various points of disturbance.

 

THE NAZIS AT WAR WITH AYRSHIRE (2): THE NIGHT THE LUFTWAFFE BOMBED IRVINE

It may surprise some, but when WWII started the sleepy Shire of Ayrshire was very much on Hitler's radar and figured greatly in Nazi plans for World domination.

There were three reasons for this: 

(1) the vital Clyde shipping routes that linked Britain to its Empire
(2) the vast explosives factory on the Ardeer peninsula located between the Irvine and Stevenson
(3) the Royal Ordnance Factory on the Irvine sea-front

In a German reconnaissance photo of Irvine from 1941, both the explosives and ordnance factory are clearly marked:

On the nights of 13th and 14th of March 1941, the Luftwaffe had staged highly successful raids on the shipbuilding town of Clydebank in Dumbartonshire. A total of 439 bombers had dropped over 1,000 bombs, losing only two planes in the process, and killing 1,200 people, seriously injuring a thousand more, making 35,000 people homeless, and causing enormous damage to factories and shipyards.

In May the Luftwaffe decided it was time for a repeat performance, with the shipbuilding and port town of Greenock, further down the Clyde, being selected as the main target. The munitions factories at Irvine and Ardeer were selected as secondary targets. 

On the night of May 6th, the 350  Junkers Ju 88s and Heinkel He11s took off to attack Scotland. But, following the destruction of Clydebank, Scotland's air defences had been greatly strengthened, with a squadron of night fighters being stationed at Ayr. 

When the three waves of Nazi bombers flew over East Ayrshire, the night fighters struck, disrupting the attack on Greenock and forcing many bombers to break off and seek secondary targets. Yes, the actions of the night fighters based at Ayr, actually ensured that the Germans would bomb Ayrshire that night.

Greenock was hit on this night and the following but suffered a lot less damage than Clydebank. Only 271 people were killed in two nights of bombing, and there was a lot less damage. As for the Luftwaffe, their causalities remained low, with only three planes being shot down. 

One of the Luftwaffe planes from the second wave, possibly confused by the night fighters or by a large fire purposely lit on the moors above Greenock to confuse the bombers, lost its way and used the Clyde estuary to find its position. 

Realising it was closer to the  secondary targets it decided to make a run at the munitions factories from the sea. But instead of finding either factory, it instead flew between then and dropped its bombs much less effectively on the town of Irvine.

Approximate locations of where the three bombs fell.

The ThreeTowner's web forum includes an account of where the bombs fell:

"One landed in the shipyard and another in the grounds of Heathfield in Kilwinning Rd. These two bombs caused little damage, but unfortunately the third landed in Winton Rd. (Old Caley Rd.) with tragic consequences. Several houses were damaged and four unsung heroes paid the ultimate sacrifice. Whilst performing their duties as Air Raid Wardens, Annie Scott, Mary Sim, David Shaw and Tom Currie were fatally injured, leaving four families devastated and a town in mourning for these four courageous men and women who were patrolling the streets while the general public were seeking shelter in the comfort of their own home or air–raid shelter as the case may be. A land mine landed on the beach creating a large deep crater, this became Irvine’s first swimming pool as the kids used to swim in it as the water was warmer than the tidal water. Incendiary bombs also landed on the beach but these were quickly smothered with sand by the harbour folk taking refuge among the sand dunes.

Three days later another German plane was sighted near Irvine, carrying one of the top Nazis:

The Luftwaffe was again visiting Irvine three days later, but this was allegedly on a peace keeping mission. The Irvine branch of the Royal Observer Corps were on duty on a clear, pleasant evening in their observation-post that had been specially built on top of the ‘Blue Billy’ (now the grassy mound opposite the Pilot House). At approximately 10.30pm they spotted a single aeroplane that they identified as German. The authorities apparently ignored their sighting, despite a fighter squadron of Spitfires being stationed at the wartime airfield at Dundonald. It was not till the following day the significance of the previous night’s episode was revealed. It was reported on the radio that Rudolph Hess, one of Adolph Hitler’s’ top henchmen had crash-landed in a field near Eaglesham (in Renfrewshire), and had been captured by the Home Guard. In reality he had parachuted from the plane and landed adjacent to a farm, the farmer assisted him to the farm-house as he had injured his leg, where his elderly mother made him a cup of tea. That was the scene when the Home Guard arrived to arrest him.

It seems that Hess, having flown all the way over to the West coast, was also using the shape of the Ayrshire coast to help him navigate his way to the Duke of Hamilton's estate. 

THE NAZIS AT WAR WITH AYRSHIRE (1): THE CASE OF U-33

Very few British counties contributed as much to defeating the evils of Naziism as Ayrshire. Despite its remote location, far from London, it was a strategically vital part of the United Kingdom, situated next to Britain's Atlantic backdoor -- the Clyde estuary. 

Hitler himself recognized this strategic value when he personally ordered one of his dreaded U-boats, U-33, to the Clyde to lay mines in order to sink ships bringing vital supplies and reinforcements to Britain from her colonies. 

Uboat.net takes up the story with the tale of the submarine's ill-fated chief, Kapitänleutnant Hans-Wilhelm von Dresky:

Hans-Wilhelm von Dresky joined the Kriegsmarine in 1929. He served as a Watch Officer (WO) on U-20 Feb 1936 - Sept 1937, when he took command of the small type IIA U-boat U-4 on 30 Sept 1937.

Von Dresky left U-4 on 28 Oct 1938, and the following day took command of the larger type VIIA U-boat U-33. On his first two patrols he sank ten small ships (19,261 tons) and destroyed another of 3,670 tons.

For his third patrol he was sent to the Firth of Clyde lay eight TMC mines close to the British naval base there - a highly dangerous task. When he nosed his boat into the Firth she was detected by the British minesweeper HMS Gleaner, but von Dresky mistook her for a cruiser and thought she would pass him and head for open waters. He thus dived, and after Gleaner dropped six depth charges on the boat, surprising the Germans, and causing severe damage and several leaks, the boat bottomed at only 36m (119 ft). Over the next hour, two more batches of depth charges followed, which caused further damage. Von Dresky ordered the boat to surface and then scuttle, distributing the Enigma cipher machine wheels to three of his men to throw into the sea away from the boat.

The freezing cold water temperatures meant only 17 men survived the sinking, and 25 died from the shock of immersion and hypothermia, including Kapitänleutnant von Dresky (Blair, 1996, Sebag-Montefiore, 2001). One of the survivors had failed to dispose of his cipher wheels, and they were discovered by the British. They played a crucial part in the British breaking of the German navy Enigma codes (Sebag-Montefiore, 2001).

The entry for HMS Gleaner provides additional details, including detailed times of events:

On 12 February 1940 HMS Gleaner was on patrol off the Firth of Clyde. At 0250 hours a hydrophone contact was picked up and traced until at about 0316 hours a U-boat, U-33, was seen on the surface. U-33 dived and lay on the bottom. Gleaner carried out a depth charge attack at 0353 hours but little damage was done. A second attack was carried out at 0412 hours which caused more serious damage to gauge glasses, lights etc. and caused several leaks. The German Commanding officer, Kptlt. Hans-Wilhelm von Dresky, decided to bring U-33 to the surface which she broke at 0522 hours. HMS Gleaner opened fire on the U-boat and turned to ram her, firing as she approached, but before she could do so the crew started to abandon ship. U-33 finally sank taking 25 of her crew with her, leaving 17 survivors.

The U-boat sank about 6 miles south of Pladda, the small island at the tip of Arran.

Victim of the Clyde, Von Dresky

As the attack happened on a cold February night, Captain von Dreseky froze to death in the icy waters of the Clyde. He was just 32 years old.

I assume that the freezing cold water played a part in the German sailor forgetting to dispose of the Enigma machine rotors, as he would have been numbed to the bone.

The capture of these vital components greatly harmed the German war effort by giving vital clues to British code breakers and are part of the reason why we are not all speaking German today. 

WTF ARE THEY GOING TO DO WITH THE ARDEER PENINSULA?

One of the big, unanswered question in Ayrshire is: What the f*** are they planning to do with the Ardeer Peninsula?

Situated between Irvine, Kilwinning, and Stevenston, the peninsula sits between the sea and the estuary of the Garnock River and has one of the longest beaches in Scotland. This should be prime real estate. 

However, it was also once the site of a large explosives factory owned by the same guy who came up with the Nobel Prize. That facility was spread out over a very wide area for obvious safety reasons. Since then it has been something of a post-industrial wasteland.

There is supposed to be a plan to develop the site and realise its full potential. The Daily Record reported on it back in 2016:

Ambitious plans to transform Irvine harbour and Ardeer peninsula were revealed today. Another leisure centre called the ‘Aqua Dome’ could be built alongside plans to build Scotland’s tallest climbing wall and thousands of homes.

"Could be built"....hmmm, that doesn't sound too precise. Is this really a plan or is it just a council seance? Anyway, let's read on:

North Ayrshire Council and the NPL Group outlined the multi-million pound plans to transform the area at Irvine’s abandoned Big Idea facility this morning. Plans would also include a new 'iconic' bascule road bridge uniting Irvine harbourside and Ardeer peninsula. The exciting proposals form a key component of the Ayrshire Growth Deal (AGD).

Described as aspirational by Council Leader Joe Cullinane, the vision is to connect the two areas, build world-class cultural and leisure facilities. This should unlock the potential of Scotland’s longest most accessible beach and will be one of the largest regeneration projects in Scotland.

At the Harbourside, the council is keen to work in partnership with the Scottish Maritime Museum to try and bring a Maritime Mile – which will include a range of exhibitions, cafes and other attractions – to the area.

There are also plans to create Scotland’s biggest outdoor climbing wall which will be part of an iconic new structure and activity and play area.

It’s hoped this will put Irvine on the map in the same way the Kelpies have with Falkirk.

The former watchtower, called the Pilot House, will also be redeveloped, while there will be plans to have regular Water and Light events at the Beach Park.

Core to the plans is an iconic new road bridge that will connect Irvine to the Ardeer Peninsula. The Ardeer Peninsula has a 964 hectares brownfield site where there are plans to develop a new marina and create hundreds of coastal and community houses – that utilise low-cost, sustainable power supplies. The council and NPL Group – who are the area’s main landowner – are also exploring the possibility of developing an Eco Park at land that is identified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

The national-scale leisure facility is also being considered, along with the redevelopment of the Big Idea.

Really, this sounds a wee bit pie in the sky, a sort of "all or nothing" scheme. Remember, the Big Idea museum that was built on the peninsula for the Millennium cost £20 million, 85% of it taxpayer's money, and that bombed, closing after 3 years. And this sound like more of the same.

My advice is to build the road and the bridge, connecting Irvine to Ardeer and open up the peninsula to commercially driven development, like housing and maybe a caravan park or two, and a site for birdwatching. Then how about a golf course? I've got a feeling Trump would be interested.

If that starts to create positive returns, then look at other ways the area can be developed and enhanced. The thing to do, however, is to avoid big, stupid plans that threaten to eat up and waste tens of millions in government spending that merely develops our corrupt banking sector and debt economy rather than our land and people.

Anyway, that optimistic if airy Daily Record story was four years ago, and nothing at all has happened since. Things are, as usual, moving slowly in North Ayrshire with its moribund public-sector-driven economy.

The most recent update I could find on this was a piece in the Irvine Times from July 2020 which mentions objections from people in Stevenston to the plan to build merely a footbridge to the peninsula.

Representatives from Stevenston’s community council wrote to North Ayrshire Council asking that they remove the Ardeer side from their Ayrshire Growth Deal plans to develop the Irvine Harbourside area....Treasurer Don Campbell said: “A footbridge is essentially a physical and economic bypass of Stevenston. Local people want visitors to the Ardeer Peninsula, and the associated spend, to come through Stevenston rather than Irvine.”

Yes, so instead of just walking across the bridge from Irvine and being on the peninsula in seconds, the good burghers of Stevenston want you to get in your car, drive all the way to Stevenston, via the busy and often congested Morrison roundabout, park at Ardeer, and then walk the three or four miles down the coast to reach the tip of the peninsula. Really!

“These plans represent the kind of Irvine-centric thinking that has severely disadvantaged Stevenston over the years. The council’s bias towards Irvine is so entrenched and so implicit in their thinking that I’m not sure they even realise how inappropriate it is to propose making Irvine the main access point to the southern Ardeer Peninsula.”

Lol, this is rampant Nimbyism of the worst sort.

Chair Ian Winton said: “This is not regeneration. Taking a critically important asset and damaging it is the opposite of regeneration –it’ll damage the area and its prospects. The community are keen for the southern peninsula, with its forests, sand dunes and heathery heathlands, to be protected from any development and used as the basis for green tourism in Stevenston.”

In other words, the Ardeer Peninsula is set to remain a post-industrial wasteland for some time yet.

WHO OWNS AYRSHIRE'S STATELY HOMES? (3) CASSILLIS HOUSE

Ayrshire is graced by some beautiful manor houses and impressive stately homes, but more often than not few people actually know who owns them or lives there. To correct this "information blind spot," this series will endeavour to identify who the "Lords and Ladies of the Manor" are, and tell you a little bit about them.

Cassillis House has a long and varied history, with parts of the property going back to the 15th century or earlier. The 112-room house covers 15,682 square feet and has 13 bedrooms, a ballroom, a library, and a private cinema, and stands in 85 acres of grounds, overlooking the Doon River, about seven miles South of the town of Ayr. It is also a Category A listed building.

The house was the home of the Earls of Cassillis until the title passed in 1759 to Sir Thomas Kennedy of Culzean, and Culzean Castle became their family seat. Cassillis was then the home of the Marquess of Ailsa, except for a period in 1940s and 50s when the National Trust for Scotland were in charge.

On the 8th of June, 2009, it was purchased by Australian entrepreneur Kate Armstrong. 

Kate is the founder of price comparison site Confused.com, after she had sold her stake to Admiral for £21 million in 2004. Armstrong paid £3 million then embarked on a four-year restoration project, reportedly spending another £3.5 million. The project  to give the estate a facelift was was featured in 2013 on the BBC2 programme Restoration Home.

Armstrong appears to need the money back however. In 2014 she placed the castle on the market for £5 million, and then in 2016 slashed the price to £3.9 -- effectively a loss of £2.6 million on her investment.

It looks like Mrs. Armstrong may have inherited some of the bad luck of the Earls of Cassillis who lived here. 

David Kennedy, the 1st Earl of Cassillis, was killed at the Battle of Flodden in 1513, the second Earl was murdered during an unsuccessful attempt to rescue James V and the third Earl was poisoned in France when he travelled there for the wedding of Mary, Queen of Scots.

WHO OWNS AYRSHIRE'S STATELY HOMES? (2) SKELMORLIE CASTLE

A price of £2.5m was quoted when the property came on the market in 2007

Ayrshire is graced by some beautiful manor houses and impressive stately homes, but more often than not few people actually know who owns them or lives there. To correct this "information blind spot," this series will endeavour to identify who the "Lords and Ladies of the Manor" are, and tell you a little bit about them.

Second on our list is Skelmorlie Castle, set high above the shore of the Firth of Clyde between Skelmorlie and Largs. 

The Castle has a long and distinguished history, dating from 1502 and constantly added to and refurbished ever since. From 1852 to 1886 the tenant was John Graham of Glasgow, the famous Port wine merchant (W. & J. Graham & Co. of Oporto established 1820). He rebuilt the castle in 1856, restoring the old tower at his own expense, and adding the mansion house which joined two old buildings, with the permission of the owner the Earl of Eglinton.

In the mid-1920s, the 16th Earl of Eglington moved in for a time, but in 1956 it was leased to the Wilson family, and then sold to them in the mid-1970s. The Wilsons were the owners of the meat canning factory that once operated on the grounds of the abandoned and ruined Eglinton Castle.

In 2009 Skelmorlie Castle was sold to its present owner, who is perhaps one of the most interesting people to have owned it or lived there. 

Again, a little detective work was necessary to track him down, but the story is a fascinating one. The present owner is Dr. Cameron Marshall, a successful executive and businessman, who initially owned the castle with a homosexual Civil Partner, Graham Stephen Stock (born 1964). In 2015, Stock was tragically killed in a horse-riding accident on Halloween in 2015, as reported in an obituary notice:

STOCK Graham Graham Stock, M.A., of Skelmorlie Castle and Shrewsbury, as a result of a tragic horse riding accident at Kelburn Castle on Saturday, 31st October 2015, died at Inverclyde Royal Hospital on Wednesday, 4th November 2015, donating major body organs so that others might live. Beloved Civil Partner of Doctor Cameron Marshall, only son of Brian and Doris Stock, Shrewsbury. A Memorial Service of Thanksgiving for Graham’s life will be held at Skelmorlie Parish Church, Shore Road, Skelmorlie, on Saturday, 12th December at 11.30am, to which family, friends and well-wishers are warmly invited. Donations, if desired, for Greenock Foodbank.

As for Dr. Marshall, his name is well known in various academic and business circles. Here is photo of him that was taken in 2019:

He appears to have been born in 1958. A biog at Glasgow University paints quite a vivid picture:

Dr Cameron Marshall - General Council Business Committee

Elected Member University of Glasgow General Council

Cameron graduated B.Sc. with first class honours in Physiology in 1979, was an active member of the University Royal Naval Unit, and Chief Purser of PS Waverley during the summers of 1976 and 1977. With a focus on cellular electrophysiology, he obtained a Ph.D. from Brown University in the USA in 1984, continuing research and teaching at the MRC receptor mechanisms unit at UCL, in the areas of single ion-channel recording and receptor kinetics.

Forsaking academia in 1989, he studied business administration at INSEAD, Fontanebleau, with special interests in strategy and in organisational behaviour. Thereafter Cameron pursued a commercially-focussed international career in the research-based pharmaceutical industry. During a varied career, positions held included : Commercial Director for Lilly France in Paris; Executive VP Marketing for Lilly Europe in London and Indianapolis; Commercial Director for Glaxo Wellcome UK ; Managing Director of GlaxoSmithKline Poland in Warsaw, and latterly, Chairman and Chief Executive of GlaxoSmithKline Germany in Munich, from 2008 to 2013. Cameron returned to live on the Clyde coast in 2014 after 35 years outside Scotland. He speaks French fluently, German tolerably, and can read a speech in mostly comprehensible Polish. A Clyde Steamer enthusiast, he is a board member of the operating company of the paddle steamer Waverley. Cameron enjoys classical music, some opera, sailing on the Clyde, and has a growing interest in aesthetics.

However, there have been complaints from locals that he is not too welcoming of people walking through the extensive grounds that surround the castle, as this 2014 story from the Largs and Millport News highlights:

The public have been assured they are still welcome to walk in the grounds of Skelmorlie Castle.

The confirmation has come from North Ayrshire Council after a Skelmorlie woman who walks her dog in the area told the “News” she got the distinct impression the owners of the castle were trying to discourage walkers.

Anne Murdoch, 70, who has visited the grounds for 20 years, says a network of paths identified as being open to the public were now in a poor condition and some had become “muddy, overgrown and dangerous”.

She said: “I have stopped going up there now. Elderly ladies like me have difficulty walking up there and I have abandoned the idea. If I fell when I was on my own, there would be no one there to help me.” The “News” contacted one of the castle’s owners, Dr Cameron Marshall, to ask what the situation was but he refused to speak to us. Instead he referred us to North Ayrshire Council’s access officer.

We sincerely hope that the situation has improved since then for local walkers, and we may personally investigate at some date in the future.

WHO OWNS AYRSHIRE'S STATELY HOMES? (1) MONTGREENAN HOUSE

Ayrshire is graced by some beautiful manor houses and impressive stately homes, but more often than not few people actually know who owns them or lives there. To correct this "information blind spot," this series will endeavour to identify who the "Lords and Ladies of the Manor" are, and tell you a little bit about them.

First on our list is Montgreenan House, set in fifty acres of gardens and parkland, near the hamlet of Benslie, not that far from Kilwinning and Irvine. 

The house is an elegant Georgian mansion built in 1817 by Sir Robert Glasgow with architectural features by Alexander 'Greek' Thompson. Until 1982, it was the home of the Viscounts Weir, minor nobility, after which it was sold to various owners, becoming a hotel at some point. In 2007 it changed hands for £1.3 million.

On 24th April, 2014, it was sold for £995,000 to a mystery owner who then made it into a private residence. 

The owner

Information on the identity of the new owner was hard to come by, but thanks to a recent newspaper item about planning permission, we can now confirm that the owner is Gerry Hilferty, the Managing Director of Brodie Engineering, a Kilmarnock-based rolling stock engineering business. That means they fix trains.

Hilferty's biog at the Brodie website states the following: 

Gerry is a Chartered Engineer and founded Brodie Engineering in 1996. He is a railway engineering career professional with extensive experience of rolling stock maintenance and repair and the design of specialist bespoke infrastructure maintenance vehicles and infrastructure handling equipment.

In addition to this, he clearly likes his privacy and cherishes his security, as the recent story about planning permission to install a two-metre high fence, CCTV and floodlights around his property. 

According to the Irvine Times:

Planning chiefs insisted all sections be positioned at least three metres away from footpaths or track and fencing shall not obstruct, block or divert walking routes and that the field of vision of the CCTV cameras will be limited to land inside the site only.

Prior to work starting a written statement and diagram detailing measures to protect trees, roots, habitats and permit the passage of wildlife, such as badgers, through or under the fence, shall be submitted to NAC.

They added: “Notwithstanding the legend on an approved drawing, no part of the fencing shall consist of railway weldmesh with concrete posts, nor shall Tornado R19/180/5 mesh be used with details of an alternative specification be submitted for approval of North Ayrshire Council as Planning Authority. "

AYRSHIRE'S TOP COP IS NOW A MAN OF MUSLIM BACKGROUND

Diverse!

The new head of police in Ayrshire has an interesting and unusual name. In fact, to be frank, it is a Muslim name, although it should be pointed out that his mother is Brazilian while only his father is Pakistani.

As reported by the Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald:

Ayrshire has a new top cop after it was announced that Chief Superintendent Faroque Hussain would take over as Divisional Commander for the area.

He replaces Ch Supt Mark Hargreaves who was transferred to the Glasgow Division to head up policing of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) which will take place in the city in November.

Ch Supt Hussain said: “I am delighted and privileged to be appointed as the next Local Police Commander for Ayrshire. I am looking forward to continuing the excellent work and relationships built with local partners and communities across North, East and South Ayrshire by my predecessor Chief Superintendent Mark Hargreaves.”

Ch Supt Hussain has 20 years police experience and from 2016 to 2018 he served in the Ayrshire Division as a Superintendent...

He is currently a Strategic Firearms Commander, having previously been an Authorised Firearms Officer and a Tactical Firearms Commander.

While everybody is an individual and should be judged on his or her merits, there are several issues that Ayrshire People should be aware of.

Having police officers of a different ethnicity from the majority of the population can often have an alienating effect on those being policed. This has often been reported on in Black communities in the USA when they are policed by White officers.

Additionally having ethnic minorities in positions of great responsibility can lead to problems, because it may be considered "racist" to criticise them when they do something wrong. This was the same problem that led to Muslim grooming and rape gangs going unreported in the UK for so long because the authorities felt it might be seen as somehow "racist" to hold them accountable.

Also, even though ethnic minorities are more likely to be treated leniently because of fears of being seen as "racist," actually complaints of misconduct and corruption against Asian officers are ten times higher than against their white colleagues!!!

This fact emerged in 2006 when the Left-wing Guardian newspaper reported that a secret high-level Metropolitan police report concluded that Muslim officers are more likely to become corrupt than white officers because of their cultural and family backgrounds. 

The main conclusions of the study, commissioned by the Directorate of Professional Standards and written by an Asian detective chief inspector, stated: 

"Asian officers and in particular Pakistani Muslim officers are under greater pressure from the family, the extended family ... and their community against that of their white colleagues to engage in activity that might lead to misconduct or criminality."

It recommended that Asian officers needed special anti-corruption training and is now being considered by a working party of senior staff.

The report said that British Pakistanis live in a cash culture in which "assisting your extended family is considered a duty" and in an environment in which large amounts of money are loaned between relatives and friends.

Let us hope that Mr Hussain has had the full anti-corruption training and does a good job. We will follow his career with interest.

Hussain (right) wearing a Pakistani tribal costume, with his parents in 2011

AYR LASSIE KILLED IN IRAQ MISSILE STRIKE

The British victim of a missile strike on a US-British base in Iraq was apparently a young woman from Ayr. 

As reported by the Daily Mirror:

The 26-year-old female medic died along with two US soldiers when an Iranian-backed militia fired 30 Katyusha rockets at her base north of Baghdad.

She is the first British woman killed in Operation Shader, the UK mission to train Iraqi troops.

Colleagues of the unmarried combat medical technician from Ayr, Scotland, praised her dedication, describing her as larger than life.

Commanding officer Lt Col William Leek said: “She was hugely popular in the Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry and we are proud and humbled to have served with her.

“She was a larger-than-life soldier who was determined to deploy on operations, help others, develop herself and gain practical experience.”

L Cpl Gillon, who juggled military training with a civilian career as a self-employed sports physio, was among 400 troops taking part in Operation Shader.

Time to wonder again what the hell we are doing in Iraq, especially after ISIS has been defeated, and after the Iraqi Parliament voted in January for all foreign troops to leave the country. 

Really, why are we still sending our young men and women to their deaths? Is it to back-up the US petro-dollar? Is it a favour for Zionist donors in America who have paid billions to US politicians to keep US and Western forces in the Middle East?