The Kempock Stane

The Kempock Stane

Let Greenock keep Hielan Mary’s grave,

And the Port her Boglestane hain,

Bonnie wee Gourock can launch at them a’,

She’s got her Kempock Stane!

What sichts hae ye seen, wi’ your auld grey een,

As the centuries pass yer owre,

Sin the Druids ringed ye wi’ Beltane fire,

An splashed ye wi human gore!

But naethin’ tae equal the Christian sequel!

Tae your shaft Mary Lamont they hitch,

The Innerkip priest and the laird o’ Blackha’

And burn the puir lass for a witch.

The Black Douglas look’d frae his Gourock Ha’

His eye ranged his wide demesne;

His name and his castle hae baith passed awa’,

Still stands the Kempock Stane.

Noo, a ye sailors an’ fisher lads,

That ettle tae sail the main,

If luck ye wad hae, gang up the brae,

And deiseal walk round the stane!

An a’ ye lads and lasses braw,

When two hearts beat as ane’

Go get you up and, hand in hand,

Dance round the Kempock Stane!

Let Hielan Mary her welcome extend

Frae the castle Rock at Dunoon;

Let Rothesay hae her Royal Keep

To hide in the heart o’ her toun;

Nae Royal Keep does Gourock need,

As queen owre the Clyde she’ll reign,

As lang as Granny guards the toon,

An we keep oor Kempock Stane.

Greenock Town Trail Launch

 

 

There's another opportunity to grab copies of Wee Nasties and see the accompanying exhibition upstairs at The Dutch Gable House tomorrow as part of the launch of the new Greenock Town Trail....

 

From Discover Inverclyde....

On Tuesday 9th July a new Greenock Town Trail is being introduced, using 21 plaques which are situated in pavements across the central area of Greenock, highlighting historic locations in the town as well as famous local people in Greenock’s past, notably James Watt and Abram Lyle.

The new Town Trail has been put together by local tourism group Discover Inverclyde and the Inverclyde Tourist Group with help from local historians and Inverclyde Council and with the majority of funding coming from the Council’s Community Facilities Fund.

Chris Jewell, a Director of Discover Inverclyde said, ‘We are delighted to have had this funding to introduce what we believe will be a fascinating insight into many aspects of Greenock’s past. The Trail will take around an hour to complete on foot, unless you linger at some of the areas highlighted by the individual plaques, but you can start and stop the Trail at any point. Thanks are due to the Council and the Tourist Group in particular for enabling the Trail to be put together for the benefit of the many tourists coming here and also for the local community.’

Eleanor Robertson, Chairperson of the Inverclyde Tourist Group added, ‘The Trail will provide a lot of interesting history of Greenock to the many visitors coming from the cruise liners, and help them to focus on our local heritage, while giving them a fascinating Trail to follow. We had a lot of fun putting all this information together, and also discovered a lot of facts about Greenock’s past which are not well known.’

On behalf of Inverclyde Council, Provost Robert Moran said, ‘Inverclyde has a rich and varied history. The Greenock Town Trail highlights some of the most fascinating aspects of the town. It's appropriate the launch of the trail is in William Street in Greenock. It is our oldest street with two of the oldest surviving properties, next to the birthplace of the incredible James Watt, in the shadow of the historic Municipal Buildings and round the corner is the Strathclyde Fire Museum and Heritage Centre. Within a very short walk this town trail will open up some amazing stories and I would encourage as many residents as possible to take the trail and share the incredible history of Greenock with your friends and family.’

The plaques extend from the Custom House on the river’s edge to Greenock Cemetery to the south and take in the Esplanade, Ardgowan Square and part of Nelson Street, Grey Place, Clyde and Cathcart Squares and William and Cathcart Streets. An accompanying booklet has been produced giving more detail to each location and copies are available free of charge from local libraries, the Dutch Gable House, the McLean Museum and a number of local shops.

In addition to the new Trail, six new double sided information signs are being installed highlighting to tourists and visitors many places worth visiting and including a number of additional facts about Greenock, its people and its past. Chris added, ‘We hope that both the new Trail and the information banners will add considerable interest and enjoyment to visitors’ time spent here and they will also provide a good source of information for the local community.’

The new Town Trail will be launched in William Street at 11am on Tuesday 9th of July after which a mini trail of four of the plaques in the immediate area will be visited by those present, accompanied by a number of characters from yesteryear including James Watt and Abram Lyle.

The Fisherman and The Monkey

A really scary monkey...

A playful, then very suddenly dark broadside ballad....

In Greenock town I’ve heard it said

A man there lived who to his trade

A fisher was a rummy blade

His freens they cawed him Dunkey O

Now a sailor brither he had got

Wha’d just come hame frae Hottentot

And frae that savage place he brought

A full grown living monkey O

For four lang years ‘twas telt tome

This sailor chiel had been to sea

When he came hame to hae a spree

He wasna’ very funky O

So wi his monkey in a box

At Dunkey’s door he quickly knocks

And the nicht was spent wi sangs and jokes

But he ne’er said he’d got a monkey O

Now ye maun ken  this sailor lad

A sweetheart up in Glasgow had

So to see her next day he would pad

In spite o’ freens or Dunkey O

Early next morning he did rise

As the sun began to climb the skies

Says he Na doubt he’ll get a surprise

When he waukens and twigs the monkey O

Now the monkey thocht like human kin

Twas time some breakfast was brocht in

It then began to yell and whin

And through the room went dancing O

You’d thocht t’was some ane killing pigs

For it yelled and cut some antic riggsut a’ this din and wild uproar

The monkey made upon the floor

The fisherman he loud did snore

‘Twas hard to waken Dunkey O

At length he thocht ‘twas time to rise

And he looked about him wi surprise

For on a table he espies

A thing in the shape o’ a monkey O

Now Dunkey Jumped up to his feet

Like lightning he ran to the street

And twa-three fishermen he did meet

And O but he felt funky O

He telt his story –wi’ ae consent

To Dunkey’s domicile they went

And they swore they’d make the thing repent

Be it a man or a monkey O

Now the monkey at the men did stare

For they strapped him down upon a chair

Says ane-On his face there’s ower much hair

To shave him I’ll no be funky O

Ane o’ ran and got some soap

And made a lather pipin’ hot

While another held him by the throat

Till the fishermen shaved the monkey O

Now the fishermen they laughed like mad

Such fun before they never had

When a wild young chiel whose name was Rab

Proposed to hang the monkey O

Then round it’s neck a rope they threw

And through a cleek the end they drew

And quickly to the riff it flew

For the fishermen hung the monkey O

Tales of the Oak - Digital Art

That's all the pages scripted for our Tales of the Oak comic, and Andy's working away so we can hit our deadline - we'll be launching the comic in September on Inverclyde's Doors Open Day this year.

There's a broad range of stories in there, from adaptations of some classic tales and ballads, to stories inspired by more recent and urban folklore.

You've already had previews of our Slenderman and Green Oak Trees strips, but there's 64 pages of terrifying action. Meantime, here's some more of what Andy's been up to...

The Katey of Lochgoil

One of the traditional songs that was never recorded for the Downriver CD, there's echoes of the nonsensical lyrics of The Irish Rover there. Ripe for reinterpretation...

Twas in the year  eleventy-nine

And March the fortieth day

T’at ta Katey of Lochgoil my boys

To sea she’ll pore away

CHORUS

Wi ma fal lal  de dall

Fal  lal de dall de day

Noo Katey she’s as fine a ship

As ever yet was rig

And when she’ll cot her mainsail up-

Cot! You’ll took her for a prig

CHORUS

T’ere was Tonal’ Mhor and Tugal’ Mhor

Shon Tamson and Shon Roy

And all oor whole ship’s company

Was two ladies and a poy

CHORUS

As we gaed py ta Toward Light

She’ll plew a won’rous plast

Says  Tugal’ Mhor to Tonal’ Mhor-

“She’ll think she’s pest pelow”

CHORUS

As we steer roon’ ta Ailsa Craig

She’ll plew a won’rous gale;

Says Tugal’ Mhor to Tonal’ Mhor-

“Put ship and turn her tail”

CHORUS

Ta captain being kind to us

Put on ta muckle pot

Wi’ scatyuns for to poil for us-

Put de’il  a ane we’ll cot

CHORUS

T’ere was Tonal’ Mhor and Tugal’ Mhor

Shon Tamson and his mate

Was puttin’ his hizzen’s son ashore

For breaking a scatyun plate

CHORUS

Ta signal t’at oor Katey had

Was Tonal’s ponnet plew;

Ta skipper being oot on shore

It’s he ta signal knew

CHORUS

Noo Katey she is hame again

And safe a Greenock quay

And when she goes to sea again

She can took new hands for me

CHORUS

Wee Nasties - The Greenock Catman

Originally, our new book Wee Nasties featured a verse about local legend the Greenock Catman, but in the end, he didn't quite fit. Of course, we are all big fans of the Catman and wouldn't want to be offending him, so we thought we'd print Mhairi's rough draft sketch and our verse on the blog. 

A much friendlier version of the Catman appears in the childrens book I've written The Superpower Project, which is published by Floris Books in February 2016.

Down the track’s a Catman

Who has rats on toast for tea

He never cleans his teeth

Or has a bath like you and me.

He lives in an old tunnel

That runs below the town

And if you’re down there playing

He’ll come up and pull you down.

He’s never very lonely though,

His friends are all lost cats

So if a kitty’s missing

They get share of Catman’s rats.

Over 500 copies of the book have been distributed so far, we've kept a few copies back for another opening of the exhibition over the summer months. There was a smashing wee piece on the launch on your local tv channel Inverclyde TV.

Remember...you can still enter our Wee Nasties competition...

There’s a poor wee frog lurking in some of the pages of Wee Nasties, he ended up trapped in a jar by Auld Dunrod. Happily, though, he escapes. Maybe you can tell us what happened to Dunrod’s Frog when he escaped.

Did he meet even more nasties? End up as frogs legs on toast? Or maybe there’s a much happier ending....

Why not try telling us what happened in less than 200 words, and you can win a prize.

The top 5 entries will be printed on the Magic Torch blog www.talesoftheoak.co.uk, with the overall winner receieving a framed print of one of the Wee Nasties signed by the artist Mhairi M Robertson.

Your entries can be posted to

Auld Dunrod, Magic Torch, 175 Westburn Centre, Greenock, PA15 1JZ, or emailed to aulddunrod@gmail.com

Competition open to all under 12s and the closing date for entries is 26 June 2013.

Keep Corlic Wild

There's a new facebook page, Keep Corlic Wild, raising awareness of the plans for a 70 meter meterological mast which many believe will have a detrimental impact not only on the local landscape, but also local archaeology relating to local Roman sites. The mast will monitor conditions for a proposed wind farm. The page explains some of what has happened in other areas during wind farm construction and also explores the company ultimately behind the proposal.

A planning application has been lodged with Inverclyde Council, you have until this Friday, June 7th, to add your comments to this proposal.

Often, as we've seen before, objections to such plans and schemes are decried as getting in the road of "progress"...more accurately, "profit", still the basis of so much regeneration and sustainability planning, something even Unesco World Heritage Sites like Edinburgh Old City struggle against. Or it could be, that you feel wind farms are a fact of life we all have to accept, in the same way as the railway once was.

Torch are not directly involved with this particular Facebook campaign, but we certainly recognise its concerns.

For more on the archeology and Roman heritage of the area, you can read a survey produced by one of the members of the protest group based around Lurg Moor or read some of our own research.