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Brian Forsyth: Former associate editor of Arbroath Herald dies aged 72

Brian Forsyth.
Brian Forsyth.

Journalist Brian Forsyth, whose working life was spent at the heart of the Arbroath community, has died aged 72.

He joined the Arbroath Herald newspaper as a reporter, worked his way up to become chief reporter and retired as associate editor in 2014.

Even after his retiral, Brian continued to play a big part in community life.

Photo archive

He acquired an enormous collection of negatives taken by former Herald photographer Ian Wight which document several decades of social, civic and sporting life in Arbroath.

Brian passed many of the negatives to Angus Archives. He scanned and restored many more and shared these on Arbroath Facebook pages.

His wife Linda said the remaining negatives will now be passed to Angus Archives for preservation for future generations.

Beginnings

Brian was born in Arbroath to electrician John Forsyth and his wife Eva.

He began his schooling at Hayshead and in 1956 the family moved to Caithness when his father got a job in sales and repairs for the Creda company.

They returned to Arbroath in 1966 and Brian completed his education at Arbroath High School.

Journalism

The following year, he joined the staff of the Arbroath Herald under the editorship of George Shepherd.

His colleagues included Arthur Binnie, the reporter who landed the scoop that the Stone of Destiny had been left at Arbroath Abbey in 1951.

Other colleagues included Nor Riddle and Ian Wight the photographer.

In those days, the newspaper was printed above the offices in Burnside Drive and boasted a weekly circulation of more than 10,000.

Community figure

Over 47 years, Brian was one of the newspaper’s most visible representative. His deep involvement in the community bequeathed him an unparalleled knowledge of his home town.

He met his future wife, Linda, at the Marine Ballroom and the couple married at St Andrew’s Church in 1971. They celebrated their golden wedding anniversary last year.

Outside work, Brian had been secretary of Arbroath SNP branch and participated in Arbroath Abbey Pageant.

Press gang

Ian Lamb, former DC Thomson editorial manager (newspapers) who knew Brian well from their time working together in Arbroath described him as a “people person”.

“As a journalist and having grown up in the community on which he was reporting, he had a wide circle of friends and acquaintances.

“More importantly, he could empathise with them, understand their feelings in any given situation, and report both accurately and in tune with local opinion.

Valued

“In the Press gang of the 1970s, when I served as local chief reporter for The Courier, and which included the Arbroath Herald and Arbroath Guide, he was happy to share his knowledge so that reports on events, activities and concerns in the local community were accurately reflected in day-to-day and week-to-week Press coverage.

“I counted Brian as a friend as well as a colleague – even while working in a competitive newspaper environment. He had a deep knowledge of the town and community which benefitted us all.”

Brian Forsyth and Brian Stormont covering football at Gayfield during the 1990s.

Former Arbroath Herald editor Brian Stormont said: “I worked with Brian on and off for around 20 years in total. He was a friend as well as a colleague and someone who gave me a good grounding in journalism which has stood me in good stead for more than 30 years now.

“He knew everyone in the town and nurtured contacts that he could call time and again.

“His knowledge of Arbroath, too, was astonishing. This was particularly useful when researching caption information for the popular Auld Lang Syne feature that so many Herald readers looked forward to seeing every Friday. Without him that feature simply would not have existed.

Good colleague

“There was another side to Brian too. He was always keen to keep an eye on colleagues, often bringing me a flask of his pea and ham soup which was amazing, or stovies for my lunch. A wee thing and something that I wholly appreciated.

“When he retired in 2014 it was a sad loss for the paper as there was a huge void left in the newsroom. It was a void that would never be filled.”

Brian’s funeral will take place at Parkgrove crematorium, Friockheim, on Friday April 29 at 12.30pm.

You can read the family’s announcement here