Photos of Dundee Cubs and Scouts in the 70s and 80s - from Fordell Firs fun to Gang Show gags

The Courier

28-05-2025

These time warp images show Cubs and Scouts in Dundee having fun and doing good deeds in the 1970s and 1980s.
The Scout Movement was formed in 1907 and has provided young people across the world with the opportunity to learn new skills and build lifelong friendships.
Many former members will recall their promise to do their best and help other people.
Others may have fond – or not so fond – memories of time spent camping under canvas in the great outdoors at places like Douglaswood and Fordell Firs.
The Gang Show is performed at the Whitehall Theatre to packed houses and the most famous event is the World Scout Jamboree, with memories lasting a lifetime.
Were you in the Scout Movement in Dundee in the 1970s and 1980s?
You may find yourself or someone you know in our gallery.
The 50th Dundee (Broughty Ferry) Cub Scout Pack at the Scout Training Centre at Fordell Firs, near Dunfermline in June 1973.
They were celebrating National Cub Day and enjoyed good weather.
Dundee Scouts were setting off from Tay Bridge Station for the International Scout Camp, which took place at Blair Atholl in July 1976.
There were 900 Scouts in attendance and some of the overseas visitors came from countries including America, Canada, Gibraltar, Japan, Libya and Uganda.
These Scouts from Broughty Ferry were making friends with a group from Spain and cooking a meal together using an open stove.
After the camp the overseas Scouts spent a week in the home of a Scottish Scout so they could really get to know about Scottish culture and the country.
Amateur short-wave radio enthusiasts from the 52nd Dundee (Ogilvie Church) took part in the 'Jamboree on the Air' in November 1977.
It was the 20th event of its kind and allowed the boys to speak with Scouts worldwide.
Dundee Scout Association held a 'Superscout' competition at Craigie High School in June 1977, which was based on the popular BBC show Superstars.
The competitors took part in swimming, athletics and games.
Back (from left) – David Ogilvie (silver), Fraser Middleton (gold), Bob Smith, Assistant Area Commissioner, Venture Scouts, and Neil Holland (bronze).
Front (from left) – Craig Simpson (Jubilee Crown), William Wood (Jubilee Crown) and Ross Haston (Jubilee Crown).
Rehearsals in full swing in March 1980 at Roseangle Church ahead of the Dundee Scout Gang Show, which took place at the Whitehall Theatre from April 7-12.
It was first performed at the 5th (Downfield) Scout Hall in 1967.
The Gang Show format of songs, dance and short comedy sketches was created by Ralph Reader, the producer of the Scout movement's original Gang Show.
In 1972 the production moved to its current location at the Whitehall Theatre.
Youngsters taking part in a Mexican scene in the April 1982 production.
The evening was full of songs, dance and comedy.
The 1982 Dundee Scout Gang Show featured a Royal Ascot scene.
Any youngster involved in Scouting in the city is eligible to enlist for the show.
The Scouts of the 23rd troop attached to St Pius Church, Douglas, took ownership of a £200 minibus when it was put up for auction by Dudhope Training Centre.
It took them skiing to Glenshee, to camp at Caputh and to the panto in Edinburgh.
It was set for its longest journey with a trip to London during the Dundee Fortnight.
What a way to make an entrance in April 1983.
A group of the Gang Show soldiers were pictured marching on the new university bypass towards the Whitehall Theatre for their dress rehearsals.
The 23rd Dundee St Pius X Scout Group ready to head off to London in July 1983.
Did the £200 minibus make it there and back?
Scouts and helpers who cut the grass at Mid Craigie Parish Church in August 1983.
They stepped in after bride and groom-to-be Jean Innes and Charles Barclay complained about having to have their photos taken in the long grass.
Some of the cast of Dundee Scout Gang Show line up in April 1985.
Thousands of children have taken part at the Whitehall Theatre over the years.
Roger Buist was the long-serving show director.
Leaders look on during this demonstration of backwoods cooking from the boys of the 25th Dundee Scout Group at Camperdown Park in June 1985.
Backwoods cooking is the art of using an open fire with limited instruments.
Members of the 5th Downfield opened a shoe shine stand in the Overgate Centre in Dundee for the annual Bob-A-Job Week in April 1985.
The tradition involved Scouts carrying out tasks in return for a cash donation.
The Western District Cub Scout Annual Indoor Competition was held in Charleston Primary School in February 1987.
As our picture shows, the home-made helicopters proved popular.
A group of Dundee Scouts leaving Tay Bridge Station in July 1988 to attend an international camp in Wurzburg in Germany over the holiday fortnight.
The cost of the trip was £150.
It was organised by Doug Winter.
The 45th Dundee (Broughty Ferry) Scouts represented Dundee in the Scouts inter-area camping competition held near Peebles in September 1988.
They won the overall title and the Coca-Cola Cup for highest camping standards.
The 14th Dundee Cub Pack celebrated their 60th anniversary in February 1989.
A new badge was designed to mark the occasion.
The winning patrol from the 45th (Broughty Ferry), which won the Dundee Scout Association Area Flag Competition at Douglaswood in June 1989.
The group went forward to the national final.
It is the final image in our Dundee Scouting gallery.
Did you spot anyone you recognise?
Let us know.