Oor memories, your memories, a’body’s memories: One year on, how our favourite son gave Scots a summer to remember* Charities hail success of fundraiser

Last summer can seem an awful long time ago and an awful lot has happened since.

But, as we inch in and out of lockdown, memories of Oor Wullie’s Big Bucket Trail are reminding fans of a time, just 12 months ago, when we wandered the streets of Scotland’s towns and cities searching for Scotland’s favourite son.

Everyone from Nicola Sturgeon and The Proclaimers to an army of children and their footsore parents enjoyed the nationwide art trail hailing The Sunday Post icon, visiting his 200 specially designed statues and ra i s e a staggering £ 1.3 million to help Scotland’s sick children.

Victoria Buchanan, from Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Char ity, said: “We can’t quite believe it has been a whole year since Oor Wullie’s Big Bucket Trail – a phenomenally successful f u n d ra i s e r that c a p t u re d the hearts of the Scottish people.”

Kirsten Sinclair, chief operating officer of Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “Funds raised through the trail have been vital in supporting our life- changing projects at Glasgow’s Royal Hospital for Children and Neonatal Units.”

Pa u l a Co r m a c k , d i re c t o r of fundraising at The A RC H I E Foundation, said:“thebuckettrailwas a massive fundraiser and has enabled us to do so much over the last year to support babies, children and their families.”

Exactly a year after the trail ended and the Wullies disappeared from our streets to be auctioned for the charities supporting Scotland’s children’s hospitals, we catch up with some of the artists, kids and sculptures to find out how.