Forres Local

Forres men are laughing off depression and finding space to talk about things that big boys aren’t ‘supposed’ to talk about.

That’s the message from the Forres Men’s Shed, which has taken roots in the biggest man-cave of them all, Moray Waste Busters.

And it’s here that the mostly retired members exchange banter, have a laugh and share jokes over a cup of tea.

But as chairman Tony Hartley explains, it goes a lot deeper than a social meetup.

Men helping men

He said the organisation helps men talk about things that they can’t talk about at work, in the pub or even to their wives.

“It’s all about men helping men. Men just don’t talk to people. If you go to the pub, there are five things they talk about – golf, football, cars, work, women – everything else doesn’t exist,” said Tony.

“It’s the camaraderie, it’s the banter, it’s that joviality that you get between workmates. When you retire, that goes, and most men only have their wives to speak to, and a lot of men don’t even have that.”

He goes as far as to say the shed gives men a reason to live when they have been at a serious low point. The door is open to anyone aged 18 to the grave.

Member John Gillies said: “It’s somewhere to come where you can talk to men. and it’s nice to come and be part of a bigger thing.”

‘Head Tea Boy’ Bill Valentine is the oldest member at 90 and he said that he too felt the camaraderie was what made the shed so appealing.

He said: “The boys are good to me, they pick me up from home and bring me in here. My eyesight isn’t so good so I can’t see to put screws in, but I help with other things. I’m the ‘head tea boy’ so the first thing I do in the morning is to make the tea.”

Laughing is the best medicine

Tony added: “All men have suffered problems of some sort, and a lot of them are down to depression.

“Here, there’s no such thing as depression. How can you be depressed when you’re laughing.”

Douglas Ross MP said: “I know that there are active Men’s Shed groups across Moray and it was highlighted to me at my meeting with the Elgin group, which has a strong membership, how valuable they are in bringing like-minded people together in a way that helps reduce isolation and loneliness.”

A Forres pub owner has rallied a team of local people to cut the grass outside his establishment because the council can’t afford to.

Gordon Brailsford from the Mosset Tavern offered food and drink to get people motivated to bring out their gardening equipment and help tackle the neglected area outside his watering hole on Friday morning. And they did.

Gordon said: “Around ten people have come down with lawn mowers, strimmers, rakes, gardening gloves, and have just got stuck in.

“Like many places in Moray, the area around the Mosset Tavern, the rose garden and the pond are at the mercy of the council cuts. We understand that cuts have to be made somewhere, but a view that we’ve looked out on over 14 years, usually a tranquil, peaceful place, sadly isn’t the case any more. And we don’t want to see it like that.

Forres pitches in

“The great thing about Forres is that there is so much community spirit. We asked for some help, and it has arrived in droves. Everybody is willing to pitch in.”

The Mosset Tavern is a popular venue for wedding receptions, and the rose garden is used by his guests for pictures of the bride and groom, but the unkempt appearance was causing him concern.

Until recently, the Moray Council regularly cut the grass in all public spaces, but due to severe financial cuts, grass cutting has been reduced across Moray.

Local councillor Graham Alexander said: “I congratulate Gordon in using his initiative to solve a problem which was having a negative effect on his business. As an elected representative I very much regret that the Moray Council can no longer afford to maintain many of our amenity areas in the manner to which we have become accustomed and I welcome the approach taken by Gordon and other well-meaning citizens of Forres.

Council leader Graham Leadbitter posted on his Facebook page: “I want to thank the individuals and groups in our community who have gone out and cut grass in areas that the council are no longer able to cover. I personally appreciate those efforts.”

He has also indicated there are more cuts to come and the council is looking at ways to make services more sustainable.

He added: “When it comes to parks, one area we are looking at is commercial sponsorship, which may be a way of reinstating the level of maintenance that we have become used to over the years. Generating new sources of income is going to be a really important area of work to help protect services as we go forward.”

A woman who commented in a Facebook group about the possibility of a Forres Market has been overwhelmed with support for the idea.

In just over a week, more than 170 people joined a discussion to develop the idea after Sophie Fullard created a ‘Forres Market’ group to get people involved.

Sophie originally asked on the Facebook group Forres Connected if people would be interested in starting a Forres Market and she said the feedback has been ‘through the roof’.

“Up and down Britain there are many small towns – and big towns – that have local markets going on. They’re great for tourism.”

As a musician and artist, Sophie said that a market could be used as a platform for local performers, as well as arts and craft vendors too.

“Whether it’s on the high street or Grant Park, it would be fantastic,” she said.

But she also said that it is down to the people of Forres to make it happen.

“I just moved back to Forres a couple of years ago after growing up here as a teenager, and I just feel like there’s so much potential.

“The feedback is that there was a market here before set up by Transition Town Forres, and I understand it was due to the lack of interest that it stopped.

“So even though we’re getting a lot of interest from people at the moment, we really need to put this in the hands of the people of Forres, and for it not just to fall on the shoulders of the few people that are gathering the momentum.

“I personally would love to see this as a community-based effort so that we could all be involved, contribute and bring something really great to Forres.”

Facebook: Forres Market