Obituary: Ken Hay

Kenneth Hay, professional photographer and motorcycle enthusiast Born: 10 December, 1922, in Bowling. Died: 29 March, 2010, in Montrose, aged 87.

KENNETH (Ken) Hay was a well-known professional photographer in the North-east. In a career spanning 50 years, he took around a million photographs including some 6,000 weddings, a feat that is unlikely to be repeated.

Born in Bowling but brought up in Montrose, Hay had already embarked on a career as a professional photographer when his future wife joined him in the mid-1950s.

June Hannah had been seeking a position with a local photographer and Hay was suggested as a possible employer. Without any hesitation he offered her a job and, just as quickly, decided that his attractive young assistant was the girl for him. The couple married in the autumn of 1956.

Their dedication to providing a service to their clients was such that they interrupted their own honeymoon to cover another wedding.

Both Hay and his new wife were members of the British Institute of Professional Photographers and the couple continued to work together until 1991 when Ken suffered the stroke, which brought his career to a premature end. When he eventually retired Ken was one of the institute's longest serving Scottish members.

His photographic career started with a commission for a local daily newspaper and, as his reputation grew, he found himself contributing press photographs to around ten newspapers in total.

When Glaxo Laboratories, now GlaxoSmithKline, first set up in Montrose in 1952, Hay was appointed as the official photographer for the Montrose factory, a post he held until 1986.

His work covered a multitude of subjects ranging from weddings and postcard views to industrial and commercial scenes and was regularly used for calendars, postcards and featured in a number of publications.

In December 1995 some of his work was brought together for a six-week long exhibition, described as "an historical eye-opener", in Montrose Museum.

As well as mounted displays of his work, a further 80 slides of his portraits, landscapes and industrial scenes accompanied an evening talk written and compiled by Hay.

He and his wife also donated much of their collection of pictures and some 40,000 negatives covering local and national life to Angus Council's Cultural Services Department to form a wonderful archive of memories of the North-east of Scotland.

Initially, Hay went to his professional engagements by bus or even on his pedal cycle but in 1946 he purchased a motorbike to get around in. Although he began to use a van for himself and his equipment in 1955, his love of motor cycles never left him and he was a founder member of the Montrose and District Motor Club in 1947.

He was also a regular participant in the Scottish Motorcycle Trials. Indeed, after Hay had popped the question to June, she informed him that she would marry him provided he won the Thornton Trophy at a meet at Finavon near Forfar.

Whether this was a motivating factor or not, he did win the competition, despite the fact that his recent form had been poor. In truth, failure would not have prevented the course of true love.

A quietly spoken, mild mannered man, Hay had a strong competitive spirit coupled with a steely resolve and was one of the foremost grass track racers in the North-east.

He was certainly not a boastful man but he did have faith in his own ability on a motorcycle. I recall hearing him recount how he had overheard two of the younger riders at a meet, blissfully unaware of his presence, remarking that they were unlikely to win anything as Ken Hay was there. He described the incident simply as gratifying.

Ken was also a dinghy sailing enthusiast, a pastime he took up in 1965. One of his sailing companions recalls a sea-going trip down the east coast in rough seas with rocks and cliffs too close for comfort. With his fellow crew member fearing for his life Hay remained calm, assuring him that they would get back safely, which, of course, they did.

He was involved in the setting up of the chess club in Montrose, 41 Club and the Montrose Society, the local civic society which was formed in 1956 to protect some of the town's heritage. Hay was also a member of Round Table and served on the committee of the Montrose Sailing Club.

Despite his active lifestyle being curtailed by his stroke, he continued to get about the town on a motorised scooter for a number of years and even when such outings eventually proved beyond him he fought his disabilities right to the end.

Ken Hay is survived by his wife, June, children Andrew and Lynne and his three grandchildren.