A popular Perthshire berry farmer has died aged 57 after a short illness.
Willie McIntyre, who farmed at Wester Essendy, near Blairgowrie, was known for his ”droll” turn of phrase.
Born at Fernbrae in Dundee on August 21 1954, he was the oldest of three children, with sisters Anne and Morag following shortly after.
His father Ron was a soft fruit grower in Essendy, while mother Louise was a shop worker.
Mr McIntyre spent his early years on Blackloch Farm, attending Hill Primary School and Blairgowrie High.
Despite developing a skill for growing berries at Blackloch, he was described as something of a rebel at school, preferring to listen to the Rolling Stones than pay attention in class.
This love of music led to a romance with his future wife, Jean Seggie, with their relationship blossoming into marriage on March 18 1972, four years after they met.
Their wedding was held at the Station Hotel in Blairgowrie and the couple started married life in a cottage at Easter Essendy, where their oldest daughter Sarah was born.
Shortly afterwards, the McIntyres moved to a flat in Blairgowrie’s Allan Street, where Kelly, Lynne and William made an appearance.
As his family continued to grow, Mr McIntyre worked at a number of jobs, including as a forklift driver at Smedley’s canning factory, working on pipelines throughout Scotland and landscaping work with Wilson Landscaping.
This changed, however, when his father died in 1976 and he made the decision to take on the berry fields and become a grower.
He proved to be a dab hand at this, making a profit in the first year which allowed him to buy a tractor.
The distinctive vehicle, which has flames painted along the side, is still in use today at The Sholach, where Mr McIntyre has grown berries since 1993.
As well as his work in the berry fields, he also worked as a roustabout on a rig before progressing to the position of head crane operator, a role he enjoyed until 2000, when he left to concentrate on the berry industry.
In the late 1990s, he played host to a number of seasonal workers from eastern Europe and struck up such a close relationship with them that he visited them in the Czech Replublic, where he enjoyed a warm welcome.
In a bid to make his business year-round, Mr McIntyre diversified into growing Christmas trees and it soon became the traditional place for many families to pick their own centrepiece.
Sadly, in March this year, he was diagnosed with pancreatitis and despite battling hard against the illness he passed away at Ninewells Hospital surrounded by his family.
Mr McIntyre is survived by wife Jean, daughters Sarah, Kelly, Lynne and son William.