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The Friends of Brodick Castle AGM was held at the castle last Wednesday evening.
A very busy year with excellent speakers at the monthly winter meetings increased profits from the summer events, and a new ‘buggy’, bought and paid for and soon to be delivered, were the main points from retiring chairman Sinclair MacLeod’s report to the AGM.
The new ‘buggy’ referred to is an electric vehicle to transport those with mobility problems.
It can include wheelchair bound visitors from the reception centre to the castle and gardens and will be driven by a rota group of volunteers from the friends.
The vehicle will come into operation next year after driver training sessions.
Ken Thorburn, local property manager for the National Trust for Scotland, was able to give the friends a very upbeat report of the 2007 season at Brodick Castle, Gardens and Country Park.
The property exceeded its budgeted targets in admission income, visitor numbers, catering and plant sales.
The local recruiters signed up 2040 new members and over four ‘mystery shopper’ visits to the property scored 95.4 per cent in the independent report, reflecting highly on the local NTS staff.
The 10th annual art exhibition in November welcomed 800 visitors to see more than 300 paintings, sculptures and ceramics and realised sales of £10,800.
A new friends committee was elected at the meeting.
It is: George Davies, chairman; Ann Hollingworth, vice-chairman and membership convenor; Carol Davies, treasurer; Vivienne Haigh, secretary; Morag Watson, outings convenor; Richard Haigh, fund raising convenor; Sinclair MacLeod, past chairman; plus newly appointed committee members Joan Stewart and June Angus.
After the AGM, Eileen McAllister, the head guide at Brodick Castle gave a fascinating history of the Hamilton family from the first Duke to the present day.
It was most impressive that the whole talk, illustrated by slides, was done without one note.
