Fyvie Castle, fourteen miles north of Inverurie, is the beautiful setting that hosts the annual rally of the Scottish North East (SNE) branch of the Morris Minor Owners Club (MMOC). On Sunday 17th September the 2023 rally celebrated seventy-five-years since the launch of the Morris Minor.

On Saturday 16th September no fewer than nine Glasgow Moggies club cars made the trip of just under two hundred miles north for the event, seven of them first time attendees. Upon arrival seven of them converged in Aberdeen, enjoying a few pints of refreshing beer and a delicious Chinese meal.

On Sunday morning it was a beautiful forty-five minute drive further north through rolling Aberdeenshire countryside. As the convoy neared Fyvie it picked up a Rover P4 in the middle. A pleasant change from an ugly modern finding its way in there.

Upon our arrival we received an enthusiastic and heartfelt warm welcome from SNE branch committee members Neil and Lesley Barclay, who put a lot of hard work into making the rally happen. They were more than happy for all sorts of club banners, flags etc to be displayed to add to the sense of occasion.

About sixty Morris Minors were booked to attend the Fyvie rally and although not all of them made it this was still – by quite some margin – the largest gathering of Morris Minors in Scotland this year.

The rally was also open to non-Morris Minors. There was an impressive display of historic military vehicles, various makes of classic cars and even some modern performance machinery. In addition to this there was a pipe band, highland dancing and a dog show. Many attendees were in period attire to add to the sense of occasion. The fish and chip van was excellent. There really was something for everyone.

One particular car stood out for the editor, an NSU Prinz. An unusual little car produced in West Germany between 1958-1962 and the helpful owner was happy to explain all about it in great detail.

The Glasgow Moggies also wish to thank SNE member Abb Forbes, who restored a beautiful black saloon currently owned by one of our members, for his donation of spare gaskets to the club. This gesture was much appreciated and they will surely come in useful.

It should also be noted there were two important birthdays at Fyvie Castle. Firstly, Glasgow Moggies founder member Brendan Quinn celebrated his 65th birthday. To mark the special occasion the club presented him with a card, cake and canvas print of his Morris Minor, Wee Henry. Secondly, Bertie the Series II celebrated his 70th birthday. Many happy returns to both and lang may yer lums reek.

We extend our sincere thanks to everyone at the SNE branch for their efforts in making this excellent rally happen and for the warm welcome extended to us.