Old Boys of the Brigade

beowulf said:
41st Anderston, Glasgow BB had camps every year and alternated between Meigle, in Perthshire and Balmaha. Great days.
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When was that mate? I was in the 32nd at Anderston in the early 80s and I think we went to those same places. We also went to Wales for a camp but I got drunk and got sent home! Wasn't one of my finest moments.
 
Broxi12 said:
From around 1985 until 1989.
Long before your time :)
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6th greenock 1979-81 junior section. Used to play football Saturday mornings at either Battery park (big pitch) Murdieston (more like playing in a trench) and Wellington (up on the hill behind old sugar house) a bugger if ball went by post or over bar, a trek down the hill to fetch ball. Good for time wasting of you were winning.
 
Used to be in the 4th East Kilbride from 2005-2017, but then discovered the drink, and the Friday 7pm till 10pm didn't really suit, got my queens badges etc, and my bronze Duke of Edinburgh which was good. looking back had a great time in the boys Brigade.
 
In todays programme Antiques Road Trip, the BBC1 Daytime show, was passing through Glasgow and they stopped off at Battalion Headquarters for a short segment on the Boys' Brigade. Natasha Raskin Sharp spoke to Jim McVean, our Battalion Secretary and then she took part in some games at our Skills for Queen's Badge Course.

If you missed it you can watch again on BBC iplayer https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001k2zy or it's repeated at 7.15am on Friday 17th March on BBC2. We're about 12 minutes in.

For those that don’t know the programme - two antiques experts travel around over the course of the week, buying items and then selling them at auction each day. Each day includes a local interest story from wherever they happen to be, and today they were in Glasgow so came to find out about the BB.
 
16th Paisley Junior Section. That was as far as I got. So basically primary 5 6 and 7 I think. Never went to company section as it clashed with visiting my grandfather and the school team and boys clubs provided the football.

Most of us were in it for the football teams but looking back it was far more than that and a great institution.

I'll be forever grateful to the good gents who gave up their time to run it for us. In some ways shaped my childhood.
 
My aunt was the leader of the Boghall one for 20 odd years. Laid her to rest on Monday and she was buried with her anchors.
 
mdingwall said:
In todays programme Antiques Road Trip, the BBC1 Daytime show, was passing through Glasgow and they stopped off at Battalion Headquarters for a short segment on the Boys' Brigade. Natasha Raskin Sharp spoke to Jim McVean, our Battalion Secretary and then she took part in some games at our Skills for Queen's Badge Course.

If you missed it you can watch again on BBC iplayer https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001k2zy or it's repeated at 7.15am on Friday 17th March on BBC2. We're about 12 minutes in.

For those that don’t know the programme - two antiques experts travel around over the course of the week, buying items and then selling them at auction each day. Each day includes a local interest story from wherever they happen to be, and today they were in Glasgow so came to find out about the BB.
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Cheers will give this a watch, Jim McVean was an officer in the 200th company when I was there, great guy
 
I remember in the late 60's being in the Springburn BB.
Used to train at marching with old Lee Enfield 303's.
There was a songs of praise live TV show from Glasgow Cathedral and we marched in like Hitler youth.
 
Dedé Arneaux said:
7th EK c.1987 for a couple of years until I was sent home for wearing long trousers whilst in the junior section (shorts only) even though there was a foot of snow on the ground.
Old man went ballistic.
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I was in the 7th for a couple of years around then as well. Played the bugle in the band or at least I pretended to while others made the noise. I enjoyed most of it except the church stuff, I remember being told if we didn't go to Sunday School we couldn't play in the football team so I wrapped it. Some good memories though.
 
gw4877 said:
I was in the 7th for a couple of years around then as well. Played the bugle in the band or at least I pretended to while others made the noise. I enjoyed most of it except the church stuff, I remember being told if we didn't go to Sunday School we couldn't play in the football team so I wrapped it. Some good memories though.
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Typo - should have been ‘77
 
I thought i would put up that John Kerr captain of the 37th Ruchazie boys brigade has passed away. he was Captain in Ruchazie just like his dad before him
his funeral will be held at Daldowie on Wednesday 10th May at 9.45 AM.
what a brilliant guy RIP
 
Anony Mouse said:
6th greenock 1979-81 junior section. Used to play football Saturday mornings at either Battery park (big pitch) Murdieston (more like playing in a trench) and Wellington (up on the hill behind old sugar house) a bugger if ball went by post or over bar, a trek down the hill to fetch ball. Good for time wasting of you were winning.
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I was in the 7th Greenock around that time, the church at George sq across the road from the old Tesco multi storey car park. Good times apart from them trying to shoehorn christian nonsense down your throat at every opportunity. When we came out we’d head to the Darling restaurant for a chip roll then round for the Bow Farm flats bus home.
 
mdingwall said:
Did you have one of these in the BB? To be honest I was more daunted facing it today than I was many moons ago in the 252 :D



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44 Cardonald: Best mate broke his arm one Friday night vaulting over one of these. The crack was heard all around the church hall. He ended up with metal plates in his arm, two massive scars and weeks off school. No such thing as Health and Safety in the 70s!
 
Funny seeing pictures of "the buck". Our company (9th Glasgow) also had parallel bars and Indian clubs and we used to showcase these gymnastic skills at our annual display.
 
mdingwall said:
So shine up your buttons with Brasso,
Its only tuppence a tin,
You can get it in Woolworth’s for nothing,
Providing there’s nobody in!
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Funnily ,I was singing that other night.
Some say that he died of a fever.
Some say that he died from a fright.
But I know what my father died of.
He died of the smell of the sweet smell of daffodils, you thought I was going to say shhhhine up yet buttons.........
 
Although I wasn’t in the BB but was in the cubs and scouts. One of my abiding memories was the fantastic well organised football league that the local BB and Cub Scout groups had in our area. They’re was always more of an edge to games when we played against a couple of the BB teams. Very competitive wee league and had some great players. It was was my first taste of playing structured league football. The local paper would feature the results and winners of the cups etc. Great times.
 
I wonder what the membership is like for organisations like this. Get the impression modern kids would not be interested in this kind of thing.

But done properly they could be showing kids really useful skills.

Saw an article on an American football coach who was teaching his players basic car maintenance, and DIY stuff.

Skills like that are useful and should have widley available through orgs like the BBs.
 
GM276 said:
I wonder what the membership is like for organisations like this. Get the impression modern kids would not be interested in this kind of thing.

But done properly they could be showing kids really useful skills.

Saw an article on an American football coach who was teaching his players basic car maintenance, and DIY stuff.

Skills like that are useful and should have widley available through orgs like the BBs.
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My eldest are in the Army and Sea Cadets and they fill a comparable role.
Having one in each stream is interesting to see differences and similarities.

For a lot of the kids, and certainly parents it feels very transactional though - you turn up and get awards & medals and “stuff”.

My two have done Engineering courses, First Aid, Presentation skills and loads of Leadership exercises.

I do find that the Sea Cadets are incredibly officious about much of it and do manage to damage goodwill from parents in the way they communicate and expect parents to jump when they change arrangements at the last minute.
 
In the late 50s I was in the lifies in St James Church in Pollok which I loved but when I moved on to the 208 BB I wasn't that keen all that marching and polishing and getting up early on a Sunday for Church parade wasn't really for me .
I moved away from Pollok many years ago and it would be interesting to know if the 208 is still going.
 
narizazul said:
In the late 50s I was in the lifies in St James Church in Pollok which I loved but when I moved on to the 208 BB I wasn't that keen all that marching and polishing and getting up early on a Sunday for Church parade wasn't really for me .
I moved away from Pollok many years ago and it would be interesting to know if the 208 is still going.
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The 208 Glasgow is still going strong but there has been some uncertainty about the future of the church it meets at:

www.facebook.com

208th Glasgow Company, The Boys' Brigade - Greater Pollok | Glasgow

208th Glasgow Company, The Boys' Brigade - Greater Pollok, Glasgow. 338 To se mi líbí · Mluví o tom (2). A uniformed youth organisation based at St James' (Pollok) Parish Church, Glasgow serving the...
www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
 
Le Capitan said:
The 208 Glasgow is still going strong but there has been some uncertainty about the future of the church it meets at:

www.facebook.com

208th Glasgow Company, The Boys' Brigade - Greater Pollok | Glasgow

208th Glasgow Company, The Boys' Brigade - Greater Pollok, Glasgow. 338 To se mi líbí · Mluví o tom (2). A uniformed youth organisation based at St James' (Pollok) Parish Church, Glasgow serving the...
www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
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Thanks very much for that, good to see that they are still going strong
 
Only found out recently that John Cooper who was one of the officers in the 41st Co. passed away. John was in charge of the Battalion Brass Band that played at Ibrox Centenary Celebrations in 1983. Great man who also wrote a couple of books of the BB in Anderston.
 
barcode said:
When was that mate? I was in the 32nd at Anderston in the early 80s and I think we went to those same places. We also went to Wales for a camp but I got drunk and got sent home! Wasn't one of my finest moments.
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I was part of the team that won the Steadfast Football trophy. I am sure we beat Stoke in the last 8, Durham in the Semi and the 32 Anderston in the final. I played for the 227 Yorkhill. We had lost to the 32nd in the first local rounds but went through as second, so they were super confident, Cocky really thinking they couldn't lose. They could and did.
 
Unclerico27 said:
44 Cardonald: Best mate broke his arm one Friday night vaulting over one of these. The crack was heard all around the church hall. He ended up with metal plates in his arm, two massive scars and weeks off school. No such thing as Health and Safety in the 70s!
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Another 44th Glasgow member here. You were a good few years before me though going by your 70s comment :))
 
Captain_Buns said:
Another 44th Glasgow member here. You were a good few years before me though going by your 70s comment :))
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I attended in the late 70s: Dougie Keith, Billy Bisset, John Haining, Bobby Waters annd Alex Niven ( great guy) are the officers I can remember. I must admit I was only there for the football and sneaking round to the Aldwych to meet the Lourdes girls, a tad more attractive than my year group at Penilee.

Great camps at Seahouses and we had a fantastic pipe band I recall. Good days!
 
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