Interview of Strachan Birnie

30 Novemember 2004 (recording is corrupt and inaudible in parts) John MacGowan Key Strachan Burnie (Glasgow, 12 March 1937) (being the boy, he was given all the family names – a tradition in his father's house). He has two sisters, Lindsey and *inaudible*. He went to Allan Glen's School in Glasgow (Dirk Bogarde and Charles Rennie Mackintosh are ex-pupils). He left school when he was 16 and joined the Inland Revenue before having to complete his National Service at 18, he joined the Scots Guards. His army experience included going to Dusseldorf for a year and he remembers the city still being devastated by the war. He eventually became a corporal. After this he was posted back at Chelsea Barracks and was involved in such ceremonial activities as Trooping the Colour, he talks about how "emotional" he was to be marching behind the bagpipes on such an occasion. He was also posted as a guard at the Tower of London, although he was "relieved" from his position for "not awakening the bugler" on one occasion. He also did guard duty at Buckingham Palace. After this he went back to Glasgow and joined the continental department of Thomas Cook Travel Agents, his job involved travelling to the different destinations the company was advertising and arranging travel for customers. He did this for around 6 years before becoming a sales representative for office equipment. By this time he had met Elizabeth Anderson, they later married in 1963 in Glasgow. From here he joined the Bank of Scotland as a teller and worked his way up to head-teller. By this time he and Elizabeth had two boys. He also became the first Conservative counsellor in Kirkirnpilloch and served for a number of years. He was then hired by the Bank of Montreal in Scotland and then was then offered a position in Vancouver. He remembers his father being disappointed that he was leaving Scotland, but when he came out to visit in later years, he soon changed his mind. He therefore flew to Toronto and took the train to Vancouver. He remembers marvelling at the space of Canada as he travelled through it by train. He remembers the colours being "so different from Scotland". He said coming into British Columbia felt "more Scottish" due to the mountainous landscape, the prairies were so flat and would stay that way for hours of travelling. He arrived in Vancouver in October 1972. When he was shown his work, he was taken aback at the number of women working there. In Scotland, he says, the only women working in the bank were making the tea.... He was one of the only men working in the bank and was also put in charge of handling the bank's gun when taking money to other branches. He eventually became a manager of a branch in North Vancouver before retiring at 60. In retirement he went on a cooking course and learned how to play bridge.... He also started to appreciate the art of Charles Rennie Mackintosh when he came to Canada, he remembers the Charles Rennie Mackintosh Revival being in full swing when he visited Scotland. He says he had read up on Canada before coming out, so a lot of it wasn't all that new or surprising. But he was taken aback at the size of the country. He also remembers the people he met being extremely friendly. He also came in contact with other Scots and was soon invited to give the Immortal Memory speech at a Burns night held be a Presbyterian minister just a few months after arriving. He also gave the same speech at the Chinatown Lions Club where they ate haggis with chopsticks. He also says his sense of identity flourished while in Canada. He started wearing his kilt, which had remained in a cupboard while in Scotland. He also took part in many Scottish events, such as Burns Suppers. He also says he became more aware of his "roots" and heritage while in Canada and he wanted his sons, Colin and Guy, to be aware of their background, although he also thinks that his and his son's lives have "expanded" and their perspectives "broadened" by being in Canada. He also became more interested in Scottish literature, and this blossomed though his friendship with Alma Lee, a fellow Scottish immigrant who founded the Vancouver International Writers Festival. In fact, he introduced him to a new world of Scottish literature, and he even had authors such as Andrew Grieg, an Orkney writer, over for dinner. James' father was George Burnie (Glasgow, 7 October, 1905). He was part of the Glasgow police force. He used to be involved in crowd-control at Celtic Park when Celtic played their local rivals, Rangers. John remembers going to Old Firm games and sitting among "the cloth" (Catholic priests) and being so surprised at the division of the fans' seating – one half was all Celtic, the other half all Rangers. Like "oil and water", they weren't allowed to mix. George and his wife met on one of the islands of Loch Lomond, Inchkallia. They were later married in Glasgow. His father was a piper. He learnt the pipes at the Boys Brigade, Glasgow. He was a great reader of Burns, he could recite the whole of "Tam o' Shanter". Meanwhile, John didn't really get into Burns until he came to Canada. James' grandfather was John Strachan (Elgin, 1879) and was born near the Kirk of Burnie, which is the oldest church is Scotland (1140?). He came to Glasgow and joined the police force. His grandmother was Margaret McGowan and probably came from the borders. James' great-grandfather, his father's grandfather, was called George and he was also involved in the police force in Morayshire, his wife was called Mary Hunter. There were no Gaelic speakers in his family. His father claimed he had traced the family name back to a small town near Bergan, Norway. He therefore believed that "Burnie" comes from the Vikings who came and settled around the Moray Firth area. He remembers politics and religion being quite prominent in his family. The area where he lived in Scotland was a Protestant and he went to the Presbyterian church. He remembers the Orange Marches and segregated schools. He say he didn't "meet a Catholic" until he entered the army. His wife Elizabeth's father was Professor Tom Anderson of Glasgow University (CBE) – a very imposing man. John remembers him being very difficult to get to know in Scotland, but in Canada he was a lot more accommodating and John got to know him a lot better over a glass (or two) of whiskey. He used to go and spend time with him on the Isle of Arran, where Tom had retired, and they used to tour the island. James' mother's last name was Key (January 25 1908). She came from an English family, although she was born in Glasgow. He remembers his aunts being "very English", his mother was only one who made the transition into Scottish manners. He talks of there being a few "family secrets" on his mother's side. For example, one of his uncles was "excommunicated" from the family for abandoning his wife and child and marrying a younger woman. Then his aunty Eilsa got involved with a greenkeeper from Paisley. They had a child, David. She was therefore sent back down to England and the father was never mentioned. David was later arrested in Turkey for smuggling drugs from Greece and imprisoned for 19 years. He then tried to trick remaining aunts and uncles out of their property by getting them to sign deeds over to him, ironically, his actions brought all the cousins together to try to stop him and bring him to justice. His mother's father, John Key, married a lady called Wade, who quite possibly was related to General Wade. He had a business in the south of England and Scotland. Keywords: Glasgow, Scottish societies, religion