Greater Easterhouse has produced more than its fair
share of Local Heroes, from valiant soldiers to community
activists. We can never mention all the people who have
had an impact on the area, so here are just a few of
them…
Find out more about a local hero by clicking on their
photograph above or by choosing their name from the
list below;
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Freddie Anderson
Freddie Anderson was a poet, playwright and author.
Born in Ireland, he moved to Glasgow to work as
a museum attendant. He became involved in the
theatre, and his plays won great critical acclaim.
He won an Irish post award for the literacy work
he did in the Easterhouse community. The author
of The Ghost of Provanhall, Freddie was a long-time
supporter of the old house, and fought successfully
against its proposed demolition.
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Bobby Russell
Bobby Russell signed for boyhood heroes Rangers
in 1976 and following a spell with Motherwell,
he returned to Ibrox in 1998 to become youth team
coach.
‘I was born and brought up in Easterhouse
and my first taste of organised football came
when I joined a team in the local street league
called Rantic (Rangers-Celtic) when I was about
eight.’
Picture and quote courtesy
of The Evening Times
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Gerard Kelly 
Born in Cranhill. I grew up in a place where I
not only knew my neighbours but I knew everyone
in my street, where if you sat next to someone
on a bus it was considered manners to talk to
them. I’ve since learned that the rest of
the world is not like the East End of Glasgow.
It’s the rest of the rest of the worlds
loss, it really is.
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Elaine C. Smith 
Actress and comedienne from North Lanarkshire
“ I had the best New Year of my life in
Easterhouse. I was at drama school and one of
my friends invited me to spend Hogmanay with her
family…It was the first time I had encountered
the ‘steak pie thing’. At 18 this
was all new to me eating steak pie just before
midnight, it was weird but great.
The people of Easterhouse were incredibly welcoming,
and still are. I stayed up right through the night
until 7.30 am and the generosity of the people
we met was second to none.”
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Elaine C Smith
at the Trondra Hidden History Exhibition
and talking to the group
(click for larger images) |
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Scheme 
Scheme were a rock band from Greater Easterhouse.
They formed in 1980, and by 1985 had played the
Pavillion and sold out the Apollo – the
first unsigned band ever to do so. In 1983 they
walked on the People’s March for Jobs all
the way from Glasgow to London, playing various
venues on the way down, and gigging at Crystal
Palace. Channel 4 made a documentary about them
in 1986.
‘As a band we all
had great times in the rise of our popularity
during the 1980’s’
Denny from Scheme
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Billy Boyd 
Billy Boyd was born in Greater Easterhouse and
grew up in Cranhill. He played Pippin, the hobbit,
in the blockbuster film Lord of the Rings. “My
mates and I formed a band at school called Foreign
Country. We rehearsed in Easterhouse Community
Centre and played gigs all over the area. We played
an outdoor gig once in Auchinlea Park. We’re
still mates.”
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| Who are your Local Heroes? |
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Cathie Carroll 
Cathie Carroll was a recovered alcoholic who,
with her husband Jimmy, helped to train the Easterhouse
Citizens’ Advice Bureau in dealing with
the problems of alcoholism. She was a devoted
Christian, and worked tirelessly for the local
community.
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Bob Holman
Described as ‘the good man of Glasgow’,
Bob Holman is a Christian Socialist, who came
to live in Easterhouse to fight the poverty he
saw there. A former Professor of Social Administration,
he helped set up FARE – Family Action in
Rogerfield and Easterhouse.
‘If you look around Easterhouse you see
youngsters with bags of ability but the scales
are tipped against them…I want a much more
equal society and that is not happening.’
Picture and quote courtesy of
The Big Issue.
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John Wheatley
John Wheatley, from an Irish mining family, settled
in Ballieston and served as Labour Minister of
Health. He went down the pit in 1880 when he was
eleven, and his experiences led him to form the
Catholic Socialist Society twenty-five years later.
His support for the 1915 rent strikes made him
a popular hero.
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Stevie Allen
Stevie has worked for many years as the janitor
of Provanhall House. Through his amazing guided
tours and events at the house he has brought history
to life for countless local children. |
Maureen Maurice
Community activist. Maureen Maurice has
worked tirelessly in the area for many years,
and is currently the Chairperson of the Mental
Health Forum. She has been a source of support
for people from Greater Easterhouse for decades
– a real local hero.
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William Reid
William Reid is a true local hero. Born in Ballieston
in 1921, he joined the RAF at 19. On November
3rd 1943, he flew the Lancaster Bomber O for Oboe
of No 61 Squadron on a mission to bomb industrial
installations near Dusseldorf. His plane was attacked
by a German Messerschmitt 110 fighter, and he
was injured in the head, hands and shoulders.
Despite repeated hits from the Messerschmitt,
further injuries to himself and the death of his
navigator, Reid completed his mission and, relying
on the moon and Pole Start for direction, brought
his plane home. He was awarede the Victoria Cross
for his bravery.
After 5 weeks in hospital he was back in the
air. However, in 1944 he was captured and taken
prisoner at Stalag Luft 111. He was held there
until the camp was captured by the Russians in
1945.
William Reid died in 2001, aged 79. He once said
‘I don’t think I was a hero. I don’t
think of myself as a brave young man. We were
young. All we wanted to do was get our tour over
and done with.’
Photograph and Quote courtesy of the East End
Independent |
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Sir Patrick Dolan
Sir Patrick Dolan Born in Ballieston, Dollan became
Lord Provost of Glasgow
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Bobby Williamson
Bobby Williamson grew up in Easterhouse. He is
currently manager of Hibernian Football Club.
He started his professional football days with
Clydebank and then moved on to Rangers for a transfer
fee of £100,000. Following a spell in England,
he returned north to Kilmarnock first as a player
and then as manager. Bobby’s finest moment
came when Kilmarnock won the Scottish Cup for
the first time in 68 years. “I grew up in
Shandwick Street and I went to Easthall Primary
and then West Wood Secondary. I played for the
Primary School and joined the Boy’s Brigade
just to play football as well. At secondary school,
I joined a street team, Auchengill. I was football
oriented from a young age. Our old close was full
of people who were on the poverty line. They were
always leaning out of their windows and chasing
us away from the street. We would go away and
hide for ten minutes and then go back to our football
game”.
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War Heroes
The War and Greater Easterhouse
Many brave young men and women from Greater Easterhouse
served their country in the World war’s.
War heroes included D. Crossan, W. McKay
and D. Park
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