Charles Bannerman

Ah... now I've seen the U tube clip I remember who Norman Collier was! And yes, the Chairman was wonderful.... I suspect he may also have become a model for the Tetley Tea Folk in their later advertising campaign.

The only Norman Collyer I remember was that tailor's on the High Street (but was that Norman??)... oh no... it was "John Collier, John Collier, the window to watch", wasn'it it? Maybe I'm confusing him with Norman Cordiner? Sorry TMFTJ, not sure who Norman Collyer is but if he does a "broken microphone" act is he maybe the guy who does the "WUN HOONDRED AND AYYYYTTTAAAYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I actually found the "Convention of Sunreaders" one of the most amusing parts of the whole thing. Gatherings like that explain many things from how the Tories pulled it off in the 1992 general election right through to the mass hysteria and blankets of flowers outside Kensington Palace when Diana died.

Eeeh bah goomlad, an' weren't it same bloke that went t'it Laaaaybah Paaaahty Confrunce at Blackpool to urge his broothahs an' comraydes tih voooate fur t'it composyyyyyte.

I really think The Herald aspires to be rather more than a local Glasgow paper along the lines of the Carnoustie Guide and Gazette or the Nairnshire Telegraph. It's a quality national broadsheet but on this occasion has failed to live up to that reputation. Apart from the general tone of the article, the bit I actually found most hilarious was the statement Travelling to the other end of the land in January, and the expense this entails... Er.... this is the kind of journey Caley Thistle, Ross County and Aberdeen do fortnightly and Glasgow is actually nearer the "end of the land" than Inverness is. The only problem seems to be that the end of the land Inverness is nearer is the one of which far too many people have difficulty conceiving when Castlecary Arches seem like the north west frontier to them. There does appear to be a very resilient perception down there which mirrors the Aberdonian 1983 timewarp. The difference is that this one involves the delusion that Partick Thistle are still big hitters in Scottish football. Perhaps they should smell the coffee a bit more vigorously and remember that their recent history includes time in the Second Division. No disgrace at all... that kind of thing happens to a lot of clubs - it's just that in this case there seems to be some kind of lobby that finds that reality a bit difficult to accept. Even though it was almost five years ago now, I think a lot of people up here still remember Partick Thistle's "QC in the dugout" mentality during the summer of 2004 when Caley Thistle faced (and overcame) the most vigorous of rearguard actions in an attempt to keep them out of (and relegated Partick Thistle in) the SPL.

Remember that little TV gem from the 60s and 70s? I was reminded of it last night when I switched on BBC2 hoping to see Dad's Army, but instead discovered a couple of tattooed, bling festooned "fatlads" playing darts, watched by what I can only describe as a Convention of Sunreaders. It was bad enough when the less obese of the contenders kept missing, putting the game into extra time so Dad's Army had to be cancelled. But it got worse (OK, I admit that I kept watching because it was so cringeworthily tacky!). When it eventually finished, the fatter guy (who seemed to finish second) got ?30,000. Then his slightly less gravitationally challenged opponent got NINETY FIVE GRAND! And I thought Colin Montgomerie was the only overpaid fatty in "sport"!

Find below, for your information and, if desired, comment, the report on the game in today's (Glasgow) Herald. (Why can't these boys just get over it and adjust to being a well established lower league club?) Inverness CT 3 - 0 Partick Thistle[ mailto:douglas.campbell@theherald.co.uk ]DOUGLAS CAMPBELL January 12 2009 JOHN Robertson managed a smile as he chatted at the stadium's front door. The defender was being supported by crutches and in a strange manner, his situation almost perfectly summed-up what had just transpired for his Partick Thistle team on the grass. Elimination from the tournament at such an early stage must have been painful for the club's people to endure, but their performance was, in many respects, pleasing and, had a main striker been employed, a rather poor Inverness side may well have been brushed aside. As it was, the main difference between the sides was a little Portuguese gentleman named Filipe Morais, deemed surplus to requirements at Hibernian but thought good enough to stroll into the Inverness starting line-up. He hit the target twice, the first by way of a violent deflection, with the scoring being completed by Iain Vigurs. From a Thistle perspective, the tie started badly with the draw, and deteriorated further. What can a club look forward to having been paired away to Inverness? Travelling to the other end of the land in January, and the expense this entails, while the monetary remuneration against such a poorly supported club is minimal. There were just 1803 paying customers present at the weekend, and a good number of that attendance were wearing red and yellow. The Glasgow lot had been in good voice, briefly, but when Robertson was kicked and hobbled off with a damaged ankle, their decibel level seemed to diminish. A few minutes later, they were a goal down, and when Liam Buchanan, Thistle's main - some would say only - striker, remained indoors after the interval, oh dear. Still, Thistle's passing of the ball here and there was easy on the eye, but when the white of Michael Fraser's eyes in the Inverness goal was noticed, Thistle seemed inept, almost clueless, and in the end an effort from substitute midfielder Scott Chaplain was their only big threat. Of course, if Gerry Britton were to miraculously manage to discard a few years and a good deal of encumbering tissue, he would be just the type of guy to aid his team's cause in forward areas, however he must make do with an assistant-managerial role at Firhill. Having slumped into a chair in the media area, recording devices were thrust before him, but Britton seemed to take little notice. He stated the obvious, of course, Robertson's demise, Buchanan's illness, major factors in the match outcome, but he then tried to be positive, in that there would be no interruption to his team's planning and preparation for an all-out assault on the first division title. Despite the presence of Morais - a player who when given space looks impressive - Inverness, having taken part in the big playground for some time, did not really look convincing. Te paying customers who watch Thistle on a regular basis will hope Robertson, one of their best players for ages, will make a comeback of Lazarus proportion, but three points against St Johnstone on Saturday afternoon would certainly bring a smile to their faces.

As I said in a recent letter to the Courier, now the advertising campaign for The Homecoming has begun, the first of the inevitable string of Nessie sightings can't be all that far away. This just seems to be Highland Year of Culture Mark 2... without the fireworks with any luck. Quite frankly it's a load of commercially motivated pseudoromantic claptrap... sorry, I mean the "Homecoming" NOT the Cup!

What sparked this one off was a tale I heard that in Primary schools they no longer sing "Ba ba Blacksheep" because the current obsession with Political Correctness dictates that it has to be "Ba ba Woollysheep" ;) (I suppose the next thing we'll have is a stadium announcement that the Man of the Match is Ian Woolly!) (Oh well since it's him I'm talking about I might as well drop in another few :thumb04: :018: ) Anyway, that made me cast my mind back to the old Singing Together books that we used to have in Primary school where the teacher put on the Home Service on the classroom radio and you sang along to these various songs with the help of your booklets. Some of the songs were absolute crackers but which nowadays would have absolutely no hope of an airing. (Could I at this stage ask the Moderators to realise that I am merely QUOTING from the texts of material used in education of the under 12s just a few decades ago.) Remember the "Wee Cooper of Fife" (Nickey, nackety noo noo noo)? This was a song about a guy who used to indulge in an orgy of wifebeating because his other half was reluctant to do the housework. Then there was "De Camptown ladies sing dis song...doo-dah, doo-dah. De Camptown racetrack five miles long, oh doo-dah-day...... Gwine to run all night, gwine to run all day, I'll place mah money on de bobtail nag, somebody bet on de grey." Yet another song of the same genre had the immortal line "De big buck nigger wit de seaboots on" (I kid you not... this is a quote from a traditional American song used in Singing Together in Primary schools in the early 60s!) And there was also "Sally Brown is a bright mulatto.... she drinks rum and chews tobacco, spend your money on Sally Brown." Can't see any of these returning to the curriculum in a hurry..... :015:

No, not a name a recognise.

I think this may well be the wife of Bobbuck Wright, head of Biology at the Royal Academy who is mentioned further up the thread. Ma Wright taught Math in the High School many moons ago when I used to go there, I left School in 1961 and she was middle-aged at that time, so do your Math and figure out how old she would be now if, indeed, she is still with us. Bobbuck Wright retired from the Royal Academy in about 1973 so would probably be about 100 by now and indeed I seem to remember hearing a dmall number of years ago that he had died at about 96 or thereby.

I think this may well be the wife of Bobbuck Wright, head of Biology at the Royal Academy who is mentioned further up the thread.

The tartan was conceived in 1997 at the time Caley Thistle won the Third Division title and was first seen on the night of the end of season celebration in the Caley Hotel when it was worn by Dougie Riach and Dougie McGilvray.

You would be talking about Bill Mowatt, former Highland Regional Councillor for Caithness who worked for the Record before setting up his own agency. One of the first radio interviews I ever did was about a sports facility in Caithness and I wanted a 90 second clip from Councillor Bill. 15 minutes later..... Bill, along with Ian Jolly and Jim Lawson are still around but I think they may have retired now. Ian's son Peter has now taken over the freelance photography mantle. (It is alleged that Peter no longer attends the Highland Press Ball after an incident involving sitting on the Chief Constable's lap. :thumb04: )

I walked past my old Primary School today.... it's a University now, of course.

:thumb04: :018: ;) "....or was it in the Gellions?" What a wonderful and accurate reflection of the journalistic profession! You are probably talking about The Courier which was on Bank Lane, just round the corner from the Gellions, but in effect the Gellions was probably a meeting place at the time for most of the journalists in the town. That shifted to The Phoenix (interestingly in the era when the P and J were along the road in Ballantyne House) but the journalists' pub nowadays tends to be Number 27 in Castle Street.

I have been following up Barry Wilson's move from ICT to Queen of the South and in the course of that, Barry has asked me if I would post a message of thanks on this board from himself to the Caley Thistle fans. The formalities of the move will be signed tomorrow and his contract at Inverness, which was to expire on 19th January, will be terminated on January 1st. Barry will therefore be eligible to make his QoS debut v Morton this Saturday and will also be clear to play in the Cup on January 10th since he is not yet cuptied. CaleyThistle fans not travelling to Hamilton on January 17th will have a chance to say farewell to him in Dingwall that day when QoS are away to Ross County. Barry was especially keen that his appreciation should be communicated to the fans, and in particular he mentioned this website where he asked for this post to be made. "They've said a lot of supportive things about me there and I would like them to know I appreciate that. The Caley Thistle fans have been great to me ever since I went there first in 1996 and I really would like to thaqnk them all for that," he said. The statistics are - 353 appearances (bettered only by Ross Tokely and Richard Hastings), 83 goals - bettered only by Dennis Wyness). These goals include the last of the previous and the first of the current millennium, the opener at Celtic Park on Feb 8th 2000, a goal in the defeat of St. Johnstone which won the Division 1 title and an especially memorable lob of the keeper in a Scottish Cup tie at Motherwell.

Don't use ebay.

Aye, remember that shop, the Mckenzie brothers ran it, Dunc the taller one had great window dressing skills, he used to empty the stock box into the window display and walk off. Known to Invernessians as "Hughie Pram's"

Just to let you know, I have checked with the club and can confirm that Lionel Djebi Zadi has not been released. This would appear to be a tale that has run out of control since an erroneous newspaper article earlier in the week.

The missionary's name was Miss Helen MacLean and the Chinese woman was called Shu Fan. Miss MacLean had been a missionary in China (or at least that's what I understand the missionary position to have been ) during the 1930s when it could be quite dangerous to be Chinese and she had rescued the woman from the country. They stayed towards the top, not far from the end of Dunain Rd. but on the Dalneigh side. My recollection of them was from the 60s and indeed it was very unusual to see a Chinese person in a town which at the time had no more than 2 or 3 Chinese restaurants. I do also remember a Miss McCuish at Dalneigh but don't remember her becoming Mrs Gillanders (hence presumably also becoming more familiar with the missionart position :thumb04: ). By the way I took a run along Fairfield Rd last night and the house which was initially occupied by the Ballantynes and then by the Duncan's was No. 57 "Glencoe".

Who was this... someone with a mastectomy?

My P6 and 7 teacher Mrs. Ballantyne also used to live on Fairfield Rd, about 100 yards nearer the town and on the same side as "Bobbuc" Wright. Before that she used to live through the wall from us in the same semi in St. Andrew Drive! She was a good teacher and also pretty good at laying the belt. I also remember one time when she was organising the prizes for prizegiving I took a peek at how much mine had cost and she slapped me on top of the head. Would have been in the Sun and on a charge these days. I actually think the Duncans moved into the Ballantynes' house. Robert Duncan was heidie at Lochardil for years. "Flaky Bill" Anderson (as I believe those at the High School called their Rector) was on the other side, on the corner of Ross Avenue, more or less opposite the end of Dochfour Drive.

Not a shop I've tended to patronise much of late (hence my contribution to its demise) but I thought I'd take what's probably a final walk through what's been an Inverness institution just for old time's sake and also to take a look at the bargains available in The Plunder of Woolworths. Actually the mainly 10% reductions weren't all that spectacular, and somewhat short of plunder, but what does that matter when people are losing their jobs? But my visit did spark off a few memories - such as the bags of broken biscuits which you could buy for 1d, although I'm too young to remember "nothing over 6d". I also had one last look at the Pick and Mix and a final trip up what I think was the first escalator in Inverness. Certainly when I was very young, the promise of a visit to Woolies at the end would keep me quiet in the town all afternoon. And then when I started buying Christmas presents myself, I used to inflict all manner of cut price crap from Woolies on friends and relatives alike. They were ace for Christmas decorations too and then in a later era, I started to take my own kids there when they needed toys. The "backawoolies", like Boots Corner, is long gone since they closed off the back doors years ago and soon the whole place - a veritable institution of fond memory - will be no more.

Thistle's last away strip was green. I remember being at its official launch in the Haughdale in 1992 I think (a bit later thaqn my childhood days!). Excellent lunch it was too!

What wonderful places these were for kids of past generations. Christmas really arrived when Santa set up home in Benzie and Millers and you approached the Grotto through a long alleyway stacked with toys - which doubtless gave kids ideas above their station as to what they wanted when the big day came and did wonders for Benzies' sales. I think it was half a crown that Santa charged in those far off innocent days when he didn't get branded an old pervert for inviting you to sit on his knee. Then there was Jimmy Nairn's wonderful Disney creation in the Playhouse cafe with all the characters in murals around the place. What a fantastic fairyland that was.. again in a bygone age when you could admire fairys without being called a great big p**f. Outside in "the town" the Christmas lights perhaps weren't so elaborate - just the main streets and a "Merry Christmas" on the Greig St. Bridge. Latterly they relented and put coloured panels into the street lights by the river. And the Christmas lights weren't switched on ibn these days until mid December as opposed to mid summer which is virtually the case now. What a wonderful, romantic experience for pre pubescent baby boomers... but then the whole thing was ruined when you got older and started celebrating your Festive Season in pubs..... which closed at TEN!