KnownitwasfromC&A
Norman Macleod reflects on the hard-hitting stories and funnier moments he’s delivered as the voice of the north for three decades
BY HEATHER GREENAWAY h.greenaway@dailyrecord.co.uk so I’m hoping people down here don’t mind me too much.”
Norman, who lives in Aberdeen, had only been in the newsroom for a few months when the Piper Alpha oil platform caught fire in the North Sea and 167 men lost their lives.
He said: “What a time to start. It was just the most devastating story. Aberdeen is not a big city and everyone knew someone who had been killed or affected by the disaster. Sensitivity was key and news crews from around the world, who were based at our Grampian hub, worked together to make sure only the facts were reported and nothing was sensationalised.
“Over the years, I’ve reported on all the major stories affecting the north of Scotland, including devolution and the collapse of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International – BCCI – which devastated the economy of the Western Isles.”
Norman added: “The closest I came to losing my cool on air was when I was talking about a storm back in 2005 that wiped out five members of the same family on South Uist, including two children.
“Seeing the pictures of the family made me extremely sad as I knew how much the loss must be affecting the island community – I found it difficult to maintain my composure and read the news on the back of that.”
As well as the serious stories, Norman has had a lot of fun jobs. He said: “When I was starting out in broadcasting, I did a lot of theatre interviews and met some big stars.
“One of the funniest was Cuban singer Margarita Pracatan, who passed away last month. She was barking mad but in a nice way.
“Barry Manilow was also good fun. I was walking towards him and he said, ‘My goodness what a wonderful suit.’ I thought if only he knew my suit was from C&A.
“John Pertwee had the biggest effect on me as I was a massive Dr Who fan and when I went to interview him, he was wearing his cloak and I was transported back to my boyhood.”
Manilow isn’t the only star to have been impressed by Norman – Lorraine Kelly described the rugged islander as “ridiculously handsome” in her column. He said: “Lorraine has said some nice things me about me but we have never met and I hope we never do, as I would only disappoint her. Long may the legend continue.”
Norman has also had some interesting foreign jobs, including having lunch with the Faroe Islands team ahead of one of their games with Scotland in the 90s.
He said: “It was a great laugh. We had raw whale meat – which was awful and will never pass my lips again – and roasted puffin, which tasted like salty oily chicken.”