IT’S Glasgow Fair weekend – and for one reader who lives hundreds of miles away from the city, that brings back many happy memories.
Jim Taylor said: “I live in Rosehearty, Aberdeenshire, and during Fair Fortnight in the 1940s and 50s, our local beach and indeed the streets of the town, were always crammed with Glaswegians. The happiness, the sheer enjoyment radiated from their faces.
“Everyone in this small town welcomed them with open arms as they entertained us dour Aberdeenshire residents so well.
“We all made many lifelong friends. Our visitors from Glasgow lifted our spirits throughout those harsh days following World War Two.
“Even school children came for a holiday to our local school with their teachers – maybe some of your readers were among them?”
Jim adds: “Those who came here even started a get-together in Glasgow each winter called the Rosehearty Evening, which was a dinner and dance. This carried on for many years.”
“I can still see the high cliffs flooded with holidaymakers and all enjoying themselves - what a wonderful sight it was.
“We all loved those days and eagerly looked forward to it each year.”
Were you one of the Glasgow holidaymakers who visited Rosehearty? Get in touch to share your memories with Times Past.
Regular reader Dan Harris also has fond memories of the Glasgow Fair.
“I have a photo of my dad holding me outside the house we rented on holiday in Dunoon during the Glasgow Fair,” he says.
“My Dad was a lamplighter at that time – it must have been around 1932, a year after I was born, so the rent must have been low.
“His father came on holiday with us too, and he was an iron moulder in a foundry on the canal bank above Firhill.
“The other photo I have was taken when I was about three or four, at the Portobello beach with my mum and dad, and my aunt and uncle and their friends.
“I remember my head being underwater, and feeling I was drowning…no idea what happened, but that memory of being lifted out of the water has never left me.
“Portobello was a favourite destination for Glaswegian holiday makers in those days.”
Ella Martin, from East Kilbride, remembers going to Millport with her aunt and uncle, and cycling around the island, for her Fair holidays.
“A real highlight was an ice cream from the Ritz cafe, which we’d eat on top of Crocodile Rock,” she says.
READ MORE: Unique statues lost in Springburn Halls demolition to go on show in city
Where did you spend the Glasgow Fair?
Were you one of the holidaymakers queueing up like the hundreds of souls in our picture taken at Port Dundas in the 1950s?
Maybe you stayed at home and had fun on Glasgow Green - our photographers were on hand to capture all the fun of the fair in this shot from the 60s.
Get in touch with Times Past to share your stories and photos of happy holidays in days gone by.
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