Obituary: Hugh Ferguson, painter and decorator, socialist and peace campaigner

Published on 16/07/2012 00:00

Born: 11 March, 1941. Died: June 19 2012

On Tuesday, I conducted the funeral of my lifelong friend, Hugh Ferguson, better known as “Fergy”, at Harlow Crematorium, which was full of friends and comrades. The service began with Galician pipes, played by Vic Blake, and ended with the 
Internationale, sung by the Red Army Choir.

Fergy was born in my home village of Hurlford, in Ayrshire. He had a great love and knowledge of the countryside and used to take us for long walks and teach us about birds and how to guddle trout.

Fergy trained as a painter and decorator and was a very good one, working widely at home and abroad. However, he also tried to become a speedway rider and became a reserve rider for Edinburgh Monarchs in the early 1960s.

Fergy was a lifelong socialist and peace campaigner and a fine singer, helping provide the important contribution that Scottish folk music made to the Aldermaston marches.

He was badly injured outside the BAE missile plant in Stevenage when he was sitting down in protest and a lorry ran him over. Later, when I visited the plant as an MEP, I could truthfully say that I had visited the plant, but as a demonstrator!

Fergy spent many years in Harlow, Essex, but returned to Scotland and helped to build the Scottish Socialist Party in Kilmarnock before returning to Harlow where he spent his final years living at the Parndon Mill Gallery and studios, in Harlow, where he helped the director, Sally Anderson. Ferguson leaves three children Peter, Helen and Keara.

HUGH KERR