Hugh Inkster was among the millions of Britons who celebrated the end of the Second World War in Europe in 1945.
But the far-travelled north-east man, who has died at the age of 97, must have been one of the few Scots who marked VE Day in a London double-decker bus.
As a teenager who grew up in the rolling fields of rural Aberdeenshire, Ballater-based Mr Inkster went on to spend more than 40 years in the military and advanced to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel while serving in such different locations as India, Singapore and Germany during the 1960s and 1970s.
Thereafter, the Royal Artillery gunner taught subsequent generations of young Artillery officers and Gunnery instructors before maintaining the war memorial in Ballater with such unstinting care that it was regularly recognised as being the best in Scotland.
He vividly recalled the circumstances which led to him enlisting towards the end of the hostilities in 1945. He said: “I was about 18 and I remember being told we had a one-in-ten chance of being sent down the mines.
“I had grown up in the countryside at Crathie – my father was the electrician at Balmoral – and I didn’t fancy that at all, so I joined the army and I did my basic training as VE Day approached.
We were soaking up freedom
“I was down in the south of England and we were given three days off. So we travelled up from Woking to London Waterloo and there was this massive party going on. We joined the crowds in the streets and we were singing, dancing, celebrating wherever you looked and it was like the Coronation and the Diamond Jubilee in one.
“There was a group of us who finished up in an empty double-decker bus. We slept in it and I was on the top deck and we were all so excited by what was happening.
“It was innocent fun – I know that all the bars were doing a roaring trade, but we didn’t need alcohol, we were young, we were soaking up the freedom and the chance to have a laugh and escape from the normal day-to-day life in the service.
“Eventually, I ended up in India, two months after VJ Day and I liked being a soldier, so I signed up with the Royal Artillery for seven years – and I ended up doing 42 years!”
His son, Alaister, spoke warmly about the meticulous care with which his dad and his friend John Forsyth maintained the war memorial for many years.
On one occasion, the duo’s efforts received a perfect score of 100 points to win the Best Kept Memorial award from the Royal British Legion Scotland.
Hugh paid tribute to the Queen
Alaister said: “Dad was always a glass-half-full person who found the positives in life, but he appreciated others hadn’t been so fortunate, so was determined to do whatever he could to make the memorial a fitting tribute to those who didn’t come home.
“They won a hat-trick of awards and although he didn’t make a fuss, he was still looking after it when he was in his 90s.”
The beloved husband of the late Ailsa and Helen, who survives him, along with Alaister, was a popular figure in Deeside and paid a poignant tribute to Queen Elizabeth when she died in September 2022.
He had first met the young girl who later became a monarch when they were just children together and his father worked at Balmoral Castle.
He said: “It is the duty of an old soldier to come to pay my final respects.
“In 1944, I took my pledge to the King and his successors. She was a terrific lady.”
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His funeral will take place at Glenmuick Parish Church on Monday, February 26 and attendees have been asked to wear bright colours rather than veils and grey suits.
As Alaister said: “Dad wanted this to be a celebration of his life, with no weeping and wailing, because he thought he had had a good innings.”
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