Charles Bannerman

Cafe George in Queensgate?

That could be anywhere in the Highlands, it may have been the winter of 1978/79 I think when the Black Isle was covered like this even driving a lorry was strange only seeing snow out the sides 10 feet deep in the drifts. I was down between Culbokie and Poyntzfield in the morning and 2 guys had started to dig their car out similar to the snowplough. Passing back up the road a few hours later they had uncovered the car only to find it would not start After a jumpstart to get them going they went on their way. Yes, 78-79 was the worst of one or two really bad winters round about that time, to the extent that there was speculation that a new Ice Age was coming - until the Global Warming bandwagon got up and running. The photo reminds me of the time early in 1979 when I went running up Leys Brae and the ploughed snow on either side just got higher and higher to the extent that once it was a couple of feet above my head, near claustrophobia obliged me to head back down. Early 1979 was also the period when Kingsmills Park underwent no fewer than 29 pitch inspections before Thistle could play Falkirk in the Scottish Cup. At that time I had the misfortune to own a Simca 1300 (which was sold to me by a Thistle supporter!) and the use of jump leads was frequent to say the least.

Strathpeffer Spa by any chance?

It is slightly tempting to reply to some of this, but I really have to say that the excellent threads running on Olde Inverness just now are far more inspiring!

But not on a Sunday!

How about compromising on north-west because that's just about where Thurso is in relation to Wick so I suppose "down the road" indeed isn't quite right. It's more like "up ee rodd"

Optimist! Maybe we should hold a poll on which will happen first - finishing the flood barriers or starting the West Link? Neither looks remotely imminent. Using the following three terms, construct a sentence to describe the management of public works in Inverness - Gelluns.... Highland Council.... p!ss up.

That corner site has housed so many different things over the years, with florists and hairdressers prominent among them. It's currently a very good cycle cafe.

Yup. It's Mason's electrical store at the bottom of Crown Road, opposite The Plough. The exact location would have been what is now at the side door of the Eastgate Centre car park just at the pedestrian crossing over to Eastgate. The Mason family originally lived in Dalneigh on the corner of Rowan Road opposite the school but the business must have been fairly profitable since they later moved into a large house half way up Culduthel Road. There were something like 5 kids, one of whom was in my class in Dalneigh and the oldest one, Brian, had twin boys (Keith and Colin) who used to play or perhaps still do play for Inverness City. The business closed, I think many years ago, but not before my dad bought our first ever (cutting edge technology!) stereo from them in about 1967. I remember the thing kept going wrong and we had to get a refund! The steps in the photo are where that stupid waste-of-public-money art work is and were a direct link between Stephen's Brae and Crown Road.

Feck all wrong with the old Tech ye Toff! Caleyboy... I am greatly concerned that you should call IHE a toff! Because if so, what does that make the rest of us Kaddie Rats? Generally, Toffs - but there are one or two exceptions CB! Dalneigh through and through me! On the other hand IHE was allegedly born in Stephen's Brae brought up in the biggest house in the town on the side of that hill on the way to Fort William.

Is it just me....or does this pic hint that this was taken before the Howden End? Without being too pedantic...I think what you mean is that the photo may have been taken before the construction of an enclosure at the end of the ground which became known as The Howden End after the garden business located there in 1965. But yes, I believe you may well be right!

George MacKintosh. He lived in Leys Drive and apart from having been my Lifeboy leader in the 1st Company he was also a good family friend. Long gone now I'm afraid. (By the way I think the collective noun for Lifeboys is "team" while "troop" refers to the Scouts.)

I have never understood why they refer to that point of view as "Temperance" since the word means "moderation" whereas what these folk are advocating is total abstinence.

Feck all wrong with the old Tech ye Toff! Caleyboy... I am greatly concerned that you should call IHE a toff! Because if so, what does that make the rest of us Kaddie Rats?

Yup... definitely Wick- round about the time my grandparents lived there I suspect.

Naw... back in the old days it would have been on!

Nor do I remember a cycle department there. For a time it was also called Thomson Brown Brothers I think. I assume that the photo in #82 is of the start of the demolition of the old suspension bridge in, I think, 1959. The middle man of the three looks a bit like Robert Wotherspoon who was Provost at the time. The Bank Street sign appears to be on a wooden fence which is closing off the bridge and this was probably the best place to which to relocate the sign. That looks like the back end of a Morris Minor GST something disappearing off the right margin.

Ah... the "dangerous" end of Laurel Avenue! Another great photo!

That perhaps boils it down to White, Brown, Black or Green? There used to be a Black Bridge Bikes in Inverness, but I don't think it existed as long ago as the 50s when the photo seems to have been taken.

That's not Munro's in Baron Taylor's Street is it?!

Where are the white Aran jumpers?

I just can't imagine two more upstanding gentlemen than "Scoobies" and "Flash", both of whom I knew fairly well and I'm sure Mr Moncur, whom I remember vaguely, fell into the same category.

They had no choice. They were compelled to do so by their clan chiefs who in turn considered themselves obliged to Charles Edwart Stuart. It was all part of a feudal system which, regrettably, still lives on in part since a number of these Hooray Henrys still own much of the land up here and even have titles. I don't know how well it's appreciated that all these Jacobite rebellions and the so called Glorious Revolution which they followed were simply civil wars about which brand of royalty was going to rule over the people - Protestant or Catholic. Unfortunately the option of not having any royalty at all didn't enter into it.

I think that may be ringing a vague bell. Which company and roughly how long ago? 5th, mid 70s. No, not ringing a bell after all. I possibly wasn't in town at the time.

I think that may be ringing a vague bell. Which company and roughly how long ago?