An enquiry from a journalist has prompted me to tell the story of our prize oyster, Hamish, who for many years travelled around as our mascot.
When the first of our Loch Fyne Oysters were put down in the late 1970’s oyster farming was a bit more haphazard than it is these days and a few adventurous molluscs escaped along the shore line and continued growing undisturbed.
When we started opening more Oyster Bars in the 1980’s it was always good to have a star attraction at the openings and my uncle Johnny, rather than be upstaged by anyone else, decided the best candidate for this would be one of the ‘giant’ oysters that had recently been discovered on the shore. So Hamish began his travels.
Oysters can travel and stay alive for considerable periods of time if kept cool and damp, so Hamish use to rise from his bed on the shore and travel with Johnny by train, car and plane to wherever a new site was opening, then be returned to refresh himself in Loch Fyne a few days later. He was always popular wherever he went and developed quite a fan club.
When we began our Food Fair in 1990 he extended his activities in the Guess the Weight of Hamish competition. To ring the changes a consort was found for him in the shape of a slightly smaller oyster who was named after Johnny’s friend and food writer/champion Henrietta Green, so it became a double act.
Into the new millennium Hamish continued to tour while Loch Fyne Restaurants opened and the Food Fair grew. Sadly 2003 saw the passing away of not only my uncle Johnny, but also Hamish. Possible in sympathy for his lost companion but also because we reckon 25 years is about the limit an oyster can live to.
There are more Hamish tales to come and maybe some more giant oysters so watch this space.
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