Box and Fiddle
Year 20 No 02
October 1996
John Laidlaw - Obituary
‘The Border Reiver’
It is with sadness that we note the passing of 'The Border Reiver’, John Laidlaw at the age of only 41. He was born in Berwickshire where music was part of the family scene, as both his father and uncle played the accordion.
His initiation to the accordion occurred at a dance at Yarrowford where he was listening to Ian Wilkie’s Band. Ian gave young John a ‘shot’ of his box and he immediately proceeded to pick out ‘The Dashing White Sergeant’. Soon after that incident his father bought him a 48 bass Pietro for £10 and John never looked back from that moment on.
In November of last year, following a bout of measles, he was diagnosed as having leukemia, possibly triggered by the measles, and he was immediately admitted to the Borders General Hospital.
During his sojourn in hospital, another misfortune befell him. He contracted chickenpox and also developed an allergy to one of the drugs in his medication. Consequently, he was obliged to suffer a spell in an isolation ward, which in his own words was ‘gie wee’ and, of course, communication had to be by intercom.
Another result of his stay in hospital was a considerable collection of get-well card, which he kept in a polythene bag, all 439 of them, including one from Runrig which he greatly treasured.
At Easter the Reiver remarried. His new bride was Vicky Sproule. Vicky was a Highland and Country dancer. Their reception was held in the Osbourne Hotel in Edinburgh, then a second reception occurred in their chalet in Tobermory during the Mull Festival.
Vicky and both families have been completely supportive during John’s illness as have been the band and his many friends. John adopted a philosophical attitude towards his illness and was very cognisant of the fact that he had a fight on his hands. He succumber to his illness on Wednesday, 28th August, 1996.
‘The Border Reiver’
It is with sadness that we note the passing of 'The Border Reiver’, John Laidlaw at the age of only 41. He was born in Berwickshire where music was part of the family scene, as both his father and uncle played the accordion.
His initiation to the accordion occurred at a dance at Yarrowford where he was listening to Ian Wilkie’s Band. Ian gave young John a ‘shot’ of his box and he immediately proceeded to pick out ‘The Dashing White Sergeant’. Soon after that incident his father bought him a 48 bass Pietro for £10 and John never looked back from that moment on.
In November of last year, following a bout of measles, he was diagnosed as having leukemia, possibly triggered by the measles, and he was immediately admitted to the Borders General Hospital.
During his sojourn in hospital, another misfortune befell him. He contracted chickenpox and also developed an allergy to one of the drugs in his medication. Consequently, he was obliged to suffer a spell in an isolation ward, which in his own words was ‘gie wee’ and, of course, communication had to be by intercom.
Another result of his stay in hospital was a considerable collection of get-well card, which he kept in a polythene bag, all 439 of them, including one from Runrig which he greatly treasured.
At Easter the Reiver remarried. His new bride was Vicky Sproule. Vicky was a Highland and Country dancer. Their reception was held in the Osbourne Hotel in Edinburgh, then a second reception occurred in their chalet in Tobermory during the Mull Festival.
Vicky and both families have been completely supportive during John’s illness as have been the band and his many friends. John adopted a philosophical attitude towards his illness and was very cognisant of the fact that he had a fight on his hands. He succumber to his illness on Wednesday, 28th August, 1996.