Thomas McCabe: Ninewells porter, B&Q greeter and Dundee North End football man, dies aged 87

The Courier

16-05-2025

There's not many people who can claim they once drove a tank down Lochee High Street, but Thomas 'Tam' McCabe was one of them!
The Dundee man, who was well known as a porter at Ninewells Hospital, a 'meeter and greeter' at B&Q and a lifelong supporter and organiser of grassroots football, is being warmly remembered following his death aged 87.
Tam passed away peacefully following a battle with vascular dementia and Alzheimer's.
Despite his diagnosis, his sense of humour remained intact to the end, as did his devotion to his large, close-knit family.
Born in Dundee on March 24 1937, Tam was one of 10 children to Peter and Kathleen McCabe.
He attended St Mary's Primary School and later St John's High School.
After leaving school, he held a variety of jobs including with Harry Scott Glaziers, as a lifeguard at Dundee Swimming Baths, and at engineering firm Bell & Sime.
He was called up for National Service and served in the Royal Air Force, stationed at RAF Cosford.
His time in the RAF remained a regular feature of his storytelling. In particular, he told tales of flying Chipmunk aircraft, undergoing survival training in the Pyrenees, and even driving a tank down Lochee High Street. This all delighted his grandchildren.
The survival training was to come in handy on one occasion, however. While trying to fix the roof on his shed, he fell off the ladder and gave himself an 'affy bump'.
His only comment after that was that it could have been a lot worse had he not remembered how to do his 'commando roll to save himself'.
In his post-service years, Tam worked at Ninewells Hospital as a porter before semi-retiring.
Unsuited to a quiet life, he later took a job at B&Q as a greeter, becoming a well-known and warmly regarded presence until his final retirement at the age of 80.
Tam met his wife Barbara in his early 20s, under circumstances the family fondly remembers as fate.
He was originally supposed to meet her friend. But when she didn't turn up, Barbara stepped in to break the news.
They went to the cinema instead – and never looked back.
The couple were married for 67 years, receiving congratulatory letters from both Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III. They had four children: Barbara Jr., Helen, Tracey, and Tommy.
A passionate football man, Tam co-managed the Butterburn Youths team in the Dundee juvenile leagues with his friend David Stewart.
He remained deeply involved in the sport throughout his life, closely following the careers of his son-in-law Gus and grandsons Nikki, Gary, and Owen at clubs including Cowdenbeath, Brechin City, St Andrews United, Downfield, Lochee United, and Dundee North End.
His son Tam McCabe Jr. told The Courier: 'There will be a cup in the juvenile league next season in memory of dad. At this point we don't know which age group yet'
In later years, Dundee North End JFC became Tam's spiritual football home.
Saturdays were often spent at the games followed by a couple of pints and post-match banter with players and staff. This frequently required a family member to collect him from the club long after full-time.
Tam was also a devoted Hibernian fan and counted their 2016 Scottish Cup win as one of his proudest football moments.
He was proud of all his grandchildren, but always said his proudest moment was his experience watching his granddaughter Shaney McCabe represent Scotland at international level.
In his final days, Tam was surrounded by family, including his sister Betty – his last surviving sibling – and sister-in-law Helen, watching old cowboy films and his beloved Laurel and Hardy.
After his passing on January 20, the family discovered that Tam was a cousin of two former Celtic FC players.
They were Johnny Crum who won league titles in the 1930s, and club legend Jimmy McGrory, still Celtic's all-time top goal scorer with 522 goals from 501 games.
Tam is survived by his wife Barbara, children Barbara Jr., Helen, Tracey, and Tommy, grandchildren Gordon, Nikki, Linzi, Charli, Owen, and Shaney, and great-grandchildren Jack and Lilly.
He was predeceased by siblings Peter, Jimmy, Robert, Billy, Daniel, Patrick, Kathleen, and Sadie.