Craiginches

by Bryan Glennie

We had to get word out. We knew that was the key because we had to try and spread the word as far and wide as we could to try and get as many of Craiginches former colleagues informed as we could. We would have liked to get every single one, who was still with us, but we knew that would be near impossible, with people’s lives taking different paths and ending up all over the world.

  We went public with our planned date and venue via the mainstream press. The Press and Journal and Evening Express newspapers helped us and so did the local radio stations, Original 106 FM and Northsound One and Two. Even the Sunday Post got in touch with us to help us and to give us a bit more national publicity.

  We also managed to secure a major sponsor. Kenneth Black, a successful businessman in the city, agreed to give us the financial backing we needed. We were lucky because Kenneth’s dad, Bill, worked with us at the prison. He was a civilian in the works department, where his main tasks were bricklaying and slating. That allowed us to upgrade our menu, to a choice of food selections. Norma at the Carmelite was also really helpful assisting us with menus, tickets and taking care of all the small things. Tickets went quite steadily and we hit the thirty mark quite quickly. Tickets continued to go steadily and on the night more than sixty-five former colleagues plus their partners attended the reunion. Included within that number were two gentlemen retired prison officers that had been responsible for escorting Henry J. Burnett to the gallows for the final time back in 1963.

  Things went really well and the night was an overwhelming success. The response we got from all who turned up was first class.

  It was brilliant going round the tables, meeting old acquaintances and seeing so many smiles on people’s faces. There was a real buzz about the night and it looked like everyone enjoyed it.

  We also had a raffle to make money for good causes, in the usual Craiginches style and spirit. All the prizes were donated by the people who attended the reunion. We made £260 from selling tickets, with all the money going to the new Renal Unit that is in the process of being built at Stonehaven Hospital. The reason why we decided on that was the fact that Allan MacKinnon, one of the driving forces behind the evening, had gone through a successful kidney transplant when he was still working at Craiginches. We thought it was fitting that the money should go there.

  The response to the raffle after the event was just as uplifting and a number of thank you cards and emails began to drop in. Here are one or two responses.

  An enormous thank you to Ernie Christie, Allan MacKinnon and yourself, and the other people who helped, for arranging the reunion.

  You went above and beyond the call of duty, if you pardon the pun.

  But all the extras like the tiepins, menus and the huge raffle made it a really enjoyable and remarkable evening. My wife, Margaret, even commented on how great the night was.

  It was amazing and I would not have missed it for anything. People will be sorry they did not attend when they find out how truly remarkable it was.

  The fact that some of the boys were in the over-eighty bracket was also great.

  The night went so quickly that I was unable to talk to everyone although I had a good go at it.

  I really have a lot to be thankful for between the Scottish Prison Service and the staff I have served with in Aberdeen, Shotts and Peterhead. They have helped to shape me and my future for the last thirty-five years.

  Like switching the light mode OFF.

  All the best for the future,

  Harry and Margaret Hopkins.

  *

  Well, what can I say? Many congratulations and a huge thank you for organising such a wonderful occasion on Saturday. I am still reliving it and the loads of conversations we all had. It was also so sad to hear of the passing of some of our colleagues over recent years.

  It was such a surreal evening and I am so proud to be part of it. My time at ‘Craigie’ was a really happy time, even though as in life there were bad times, and to still be friends with my female officers, it was just an amazing night.

  I hope life is good and kind to you all,

  Thank you so much for everything.

  Jayne Reid.

  *

  A special message just to say thank you very much for a special evening and your company.

  Isabel and Peter Smith

  (Peter was a retired chief at Craiginches)

  *

  Just a quick note to say thank you to yourself, Ernie and Allan for a great evening.

  There must have been a lot of time and effort put in behind the scenes into making it such a great night with such good food and company.

  It was nice to see some of the old faces once again.

  Thanks again to all involved.

  From

  Ally Grant

  *

  WOW. You must all be so proud of how well last night went. Give yourselves a huge pat on the back.

  There were lots of kent faces but thank goodness for the name badges, that was a stroke of genius.

  I do hope there aren’t too many sore heads today but I am sure everyone who attended will have gone away with very happy memories.

  It would be great if we kept in contact as I think very fondly of my time at Craigie.

  #

  Again, a huge thank you for organising the reunion.

  Regards to all,

  Anne Kennedy

  *

  Reading all the cards and messages of congratulations and seeing all the people at the reunion made all our work worthwhile. It was a lot of work for all three of us on the organising committee, but it went so well that I am delighted we decided to take the reunion on. It has also helped to reconnect a few old friendships amongst people who may have lost touch since they and Craiginches departed. That for me and everyone on the committee was job done.

  43

  A Little Bit About Me

  I have told you my story from HMP Aberdeen but my formative years were spent in the village of Insch in Aberdeenshire. I was the only son to Eddie and Janet Glennie.

  I wasn’t in my new home that long because we were soon on the move. But it wasn’t a big upheaval. We were only going three doors up, as the Glennie family moved to 5 Church Terrace. It was a very lively household, thanks pretty much to my three older sisters, Madeleine, Elma and Elsie.

  I had a very happy childhood with a lot of my time spent in the great outdoors. I have fond memories of bus trips to Aikey Brae fair and my regular visits to Tarlair swimming pool with the local Sunday School.

  It was perfect for the great outdoors because we were very fortunate to have Bennachie close by. I have climbed that hill many times and will always remember the day we climbed it at four o’clock one clear morning, along with a couple of friends, to see the sun rise over Banff. What a sight it was and well worth the early start.

  We also had Dunnydeer Castle hill, where we did our sledging in the winter, and on a nice day you also had a beautiful view from the top.

  My mum used to work in the kitchen at our local school, Insch Junior Secondary School. Unfortunately, I lost my dad when I was twelve years old and my mum when I was twenty-six. It was hard for her bringing up four children, but I will always be proud of the start in life she gave me and to all my sisters. She did everything for us and I never wanted for anything.

  Church Terrace was a super place to be brought up. We had lovely neighbours and it was a really friendly place. We, ironically, lived next door to a family who were also called Glennie but we were not related. It was in the terrace, along with the other Glennie boys, that I started to play football. We spent half our time having to sneak into gardens to rescue our ball back but it helped us hone our skills.

  I recently returned to Insch to visit my old street and you could hardly get room to do a three-point turn never mind play football, but I suppose that would be the same in most streets now we are in the twenty-first century and most people have cars. Street football has also become a thing of the past.

  Also beside us we had Gran
ny Gibson, who I mentioned earlier, but she is worth a second mention – a wonderful lady who used to wash the football kit for our local Insch team. I would pick up the big brown case filled with the clean kit and then take the dirty one back at night for her to wash again ready for the next game.

  Managers these days might have their own noticeboards but for the Insch FC team we had to go to the local butcher’s to see if we were for the chop. The team line-up was normally put in his window for the next game.

  I also started to support Aberdeen Football Club. They were our local senior team. I used to regularly go and watch the Dandy Dons. It was a bit of a trek but it was a small price to pay to see my Aberdeen heroes – Archie Glen, Paddy Buckley and Graham Leggat – in action. I used to take the train from Insch to Kittybrewster station, which has since disappeared, and then I would walk over Froghall to Pittodrie with a neighbour of mine, Thelma Smith, who is still a Dons supporter and still lives in Insch.

  Thelma Smith went on to become matron at the local Insch War Memorial Hospital.

  I enjoyed my education at Insch Junior Secondary School and in my early years I was lucky to have the two Miss Forbes, who were both lovely ladies. I was heavily involved in sport at school. I was the captain of Dunnydeer Sports Team and I was also the sports champion, along with Evelyn McWilliam, who was the girls champion. I also played for the school football team and was even lucky enough to be picked to play for the Donside and District Select. We played against a Dundee select, although we got beaten 1–0.

  I was very much into technical subjects at school and went into Aberdeen to serve my time as a lathe turner at Barry Henry & Cook. I stayed in digs with a lovely couple, Mr and Mrs Black, above the Rose Bowl pub in Hutcheon Street. They were like a second mum and dad to me. I thought I was safe enough staying with the Blacks although I had to be evacuated from their flat twice. It had nothing to do with them or their cooking as the nearby comb works went on fire on two separate occasions.

  I will always remember an interview for a job I had with a gentleman called Mr Watson. I was trying to get a job as an apprentice engineer at Barry Henry & Cook. I sat down and within minutes he asked which football team I played for. At that point I was playing for Inverurie Loco Works A team. That was as far as the interview went. He then told me to start a week on Monday. I was just lucky to be playing for Loco Works A at that time because we had an excellent works team with Highland league and Junior league players.

  After I served my time I came home to Insch to be a postman. It was a special time in my life being a country postie. We were so important to the community. We were not only delivering their mail but also their messages from the local shop and their prescriptions from the local chemist. We were like the village messenger in some of the more remote places. By this time I had met my wonderful wife Hazel at the local dance hall and got married and we have been together now for fifty-three wonderful years. We have also been blessed with two lovely daughters, Jacqueline and Lesley, and three smashing grandchildren, Jordon, Greg and Jason.

  I also started to teach keep-fit classes for the local footballers and also started playing for Insch FC. We had a very successful team, winning many trophies, including the season we won the champions cup beating all the top teams from the Aberdeenshire leagues. I also started working with an old schoolteacher friend of mine, Gordon Gerrie, in the local boxing club, where we ran a very successful club with many district champions and one Scottish champion Harry Johnstone.

  While involved with the boxing I passed all my exams and became a Scottish Amateur Boxing Association judge and referee. As you know those were qualifications I went on to more than use throughout the years.

  I was pretty active within the Insch community. I became a church officer at our local parish church, working with the Reverend Rodney McDonald. I had a great relationship with him. My main duties were looking after the church, the grounds and the church hall. I also had to look after the clock in the steeple, which needed a lot of tender loving care.

  When the Post Office strike was going on I felt I needed a change of direction, as I had a young family who needed a more secure future. I had several discussions with the reverend about my career possibilities. He was always very positive about my future and urged me to look for a fresh outlook. He helped me look at the bigger picture when my own concern was where my next pay cheque was going to come from. It was also during this part of my career that I qualified as a Scottish Football Association referee. Also, as you now know, I decided to join the Scottish Prison Service and the details of my career are all in the book.

  I, however, did not completely sever connections with my home in Insch. I commuted for the first year from Insch until I got a house in Aberdeen. A friend and colleague of mine, Jim Lawie, is someone I will be forever grateful to, as he changed his day off that week to help me and my family move everything into Aberdeen. That move changed our lives forever and it is fair to say we have never looked back – although I will never forget my home and friends in Insch. The same goes for Craiginches and all the people I worked with and came across in my time at HMP Aberdeen, Craiginches, or ‘Craigie’ as we more affectionately knew it.

  REST IN PEACE ‘Craigie’ 1891 to 2014