In the life of Christine Petrie, who has died aged 72, can be traced a large swathe of Dundee’s industrial history.
She began her career at the Calendar Works jute mill, then was a member of the vast workforce at Keiller’s confectionery factory in the city centre before joining Timex.
There she gave more than 20 years of service making watches and miniature televisions before becoming involved in the Timex strike; one of the landmark Dundee disputes of the past century.
In common with thousands of Dundonians of the time, she followed family members into the manufacturing plants and spent years working alongside relatives.
Christine was born in November 1950 to Alex McDade, who worked in the Douglasfield mill and his wife, Marjory (nee Hird) who worked in Calendar Mill.
She had three sisters; Marjory, Sandra and Margaret, and two brothers, George and Alex.
Sporting achievements
Christine was educated at Mid Craigie Primary and Linlathen High School, where she was part of the trophy-winning netball side, and left aged 14 to work in the jute industry at the Calendar Mill.
She remained there for two years before joining Keiller’s, making chocolates in its factory between High Street and Albert Square.
Her mother had moved with her to Keiller’s from the Calendar Work and she was also joined by two of her sisters.
Christine’s son, Allan, said; “My mum then went from Keiller’s to the Douglasfield works where my grandad and my mum’s two brothers worked, and then she moved to Timex.”
In 1974, Christine married Andy Petrie and raised two, sons Sean and Allan.
They later separated but remained good friends.
Timex dispute
Christine had worked at Timex for more than 20 years and son Allan for five years when the strike came along.
Allan said: “We were on strike for nearly a year with us both being on the picket line every day of the strike.
“It was funny because my mum and her lifelong friend, Moira Ferrie, would hide every time a photographer from a newspaper or a cameraman from the television came to the picket line.
“They were scared they got caught on the picket line because they were signing on. But we were all signing on. It was the first and only time they had ever signed on and didn’t realise that we were entitled to be on the picket line.
“My mum and myself voted against ending the strike and she along with the majority were extremely angry when the union withdrew its support from us. This led to the women, including my mum chasing, Jim Airlie, the union leader out of town.”
After Timex closed, Christine trained as a self-employed sugaring practitioner to undertake cosmetic hair removal.
Family life
One of her great joys was taking her grandchildren on holidays, in stages according to age, to the Disney parks in Florida and Paris.
She was an avid reader and theatre goer and a regular visitor to the ice rink to watch her grandson play ice hockey.
Allan said: “Mum loved being around her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and was very protective of them all but especially of Megan and Sean who have a rare medical condition called FoxG1 syndrome.
“Both attend Glenlaw House respite centre and it is for that reason we are only having family flowers at the funeral and asking people to donate to Glenlaw House parent and carer group as she would prefer to help her grandchildren than have flowers.”
You can read the family’s announcement here.
Conversation