At seven, Marjorie told her first big story, describing why Prince Philip should have married her and not the Queen. This was Eyemouth 1957 so it was entirely relevant. Her mother had bought her a new pair of white ankle socks and off she went!
She learnt stories at the knee. The family boat was the Fleetwing BK235, skippered by her grandfather, so her first stories were about the fishing boats, the men who sailed in them and the strong women and the bairns who were left behind. There’s something about the North Sea that brings out the best in storytellers, telling about the men and women who followed the herring, the brutal conditions and the friendships that lasted a lifetime.
University in Glasgow brought a ween of new stories, mainly about the the now almost forgotten industries: the mills, shipbuilding, mining, crofting and the fishing and when she started teaching at Earlston High School in the Borders she came to love the Border tales and the tales of Scotland, its people and places and its rich history. As a teacher no child was give a novel, a play or a poem without the story of it being told beforehand. Big narratives and atmospheric storytelling have always been the key.
Today Marjorie has never lost her love for Eyemouth where she is a guide/storyteller at Gunsgreen House and a community storyteller. There are still schools to visit, community groups to share stories with, storytelling events and old-fashioned concerts to perform at.