| Description | Tape 1 Side A: FLORA ANNE MACDONALD born Aberdeen 16.10.1948. Younger of two children. Details re: parents' names. Knew maternal grandfather, details re: him. First man to cycle from Aberdeen to London. Mentions his diary of the event. He worked at Stoneywood Paper Mill. Details. Paternal grandfather killed at Burnt Island in railway express accident. Father in private service as a chauffeur on big estates, later in motor engineering. Recalls father's stories, his attitude to employers. Describes him, his attitudes, own similarities to him. Details re: mother (present at interview), her activities with Guildery, her work as secretary. Mentions sister's illness with multiple sclerosis. Father's ear problems through work. Describes childhood home near Dyce Airport. Spent time working with father as apprentice motor mechanic. Wanted to take up motor engineering, join army. Reasons for not being able to do so. Went to Bankhead Academy. Describes Dyce at the time. Parents took in lodgers. Explains father's attitude to dress etc; his personality. Details re: sister's health as child. Explains own liking for mechanical things, DIY skills. Feelings about school, teachers, lack of success there, career prospects. No television at home, little discussion of politics. Father,and self, Jo Grimond supporters. Religion as part of childhood. Grandfather involved with Salvation Army, building of Church of Scotland in Bucksburn. Sister an organist at Episcopal church etc. Relationship with sister. Describes Stoneywood in pre-oil days and now. Recalls George Mair, now chief executive of Aberdeen bus company. Changes in social life since youth.
Tape 1 Side B: Recalls Aberdeen during childhood, changes to city. Feelings about demolitions. Changes to harbour, impact of loss of Wellington, Regent bridges, impact on fishing and other industries of arrival of oil industry. Recalls harbour situation. Details re other industries that have now gone. Grain millers produced cattle feed etc. Recalls travel in youth to different parts of Scotland, parents' travel to England. Left school at 15. Explains job situation. Repressing effect of school. Not allowed prize for essay because of attitude. Feelings re own life in retrospect. First job with George W Bruce Ltd works in Rubislaw Quarry (1964) as Office Junior. Details re boss, Colonel Bruce. Details re: work, wages, bonus, ambitions etc. Recalls jumps in wages when joining oil industry. Recalls colleagues in quarry work. Mentions Aberdeen Construction Group. Start of own smoking. Next job in research institute, Bucksburn as telephonist, later typist. Details. Recalls social life, Strathcona House, hill walking etc. Joined Channel Airways as Ground Stewardess (1969). Details re company, its services. Early operation of flights from Great Yarmouth for oil industry. Details re itinerary, own work routine, colleagues, aircraft. Helped engineers. Recalls early oil personnel, e.g. Halliburtons, Hamilton Bros. Resentful attitude of BEA to other aviation companies. Own first realisation of arrival of oil industry. Mentions Sea Gem disaster. Recalls Customs man at Dyce, his role, dealing with KLM passengers, Andy Hill's charter service. Details re: Hill, his multiple roles piloting, engineering, cleaning, book-keeping. Recalls early Bristol helicopter people, airport social club, other staff, problems.
Tape 2 Side A: Left airport work later in year (1969) because company had to end service. Explains. Mentions government help for BEA. Never involved in unions. Explains feelings about unions, individual responsibility. Recalls 3-day working week. Feelings re: union activity in offshore oil industry. Got temporary work (1970) through Staff Finder Employment Agency (now Aberdeen Appointments Agency) then run by Miss McArthur. Did work for Amoco in small office in Number 5 Bond. Details. Mentions Sedco, Conoco, Aberdeen Service Company. Details re: personnel. Low oil company presence at time. Recalls first hearing Texan accent, difficulty with this for Aberdeen people. Explains move to Schlumberger (1971-73). Details re: personnel, names, progress from 5 Bond to bigger offices. Explains own way of dealing with temperamental French manager. Mentions other personnel. Details of own work with wages, accounts, banking, financial reporting etc. Recalls reaction of Americans to hotel and housing accommodation in Aberdeen. American impact on rising prices, effect on local people. Comments on attitude of Americans. Growth of staff in Schlumberger, their earnings. Reaction of Aberdonians to new situation. Details re: own relationship with manager, feelings about him, his methods etc. Attitude of oil industry to Scottish people in labour force, reaction to this. Own attitude to unions. Lot of ruthless people came from Great Yarmouth, Norwich, South Shields, took oil and services companies for a ride. Details re: honest garden shed builder who built huge business involving jack-up units, Portakabins etc. Aberdonians slow to catch on unless they were already in business.
Tape 2 Side B: Other women in oil industry: recalls situation in early days. When working for Global Marine, all colleagues men. Comments. Oil business provided opportunities for married and other women. Mentions latchkey kids. Craig and Wood families' head start in business. Mentions others who made good money from oil, others who lost it all. Recalls people squandering money. Details re: Oil Wives Club, membership restrictions, their charitable work. Recalls in pre-oil days old moneyed families of Aberdeen who stuck together, business clubs, and separate working class. Recalls various balls patronised by royals etc. Post-oil changes to situation. Own social life, attitude to friends; oil business social sets. Mentions Woods family in early days, Hamilton Brothers. Now works for Wood Group. Their reputation as offshore employers. Mentions Piper Alpha disaster. Background to joining Chalk Catering (1973), working for Keith Laddiman. Details re: personnel, daily routine. Recalls use of ticker tape, mishap involving a dog. Describes crews, stewards, problems with advances on wages, nasty incidents, effect of alcohol. Details re: personnel, 'Yarmouth Yanks' etc. Recalls stories involving staff. Difficulty getting people to do catering work. Details. Describes disastrous recruiting drive in Dundee. Company employed trades union expert to fight company's corner (against unions). Comments on working conditions offshore, pay etc. Details re: companies serviced by Chalk Catering. Mentions Venture I and Venture II rigs. Chalk serviced American, British companies. Details re: ownership changes in Chalks, Keith Laddiman's role. Background to joining him in Scott Catering, later Stavanger Catering. Feelings re: Scottish nationalism, monarchy, tradition.
Tape 3 Side A: Feelings about Scottish dependence on London government, implications re: oil industry, Scottish nationalism. In early years of industry, Aberdeen a push-over. Inconsistent attitudes, waste of local money through grants etc. Mentions employment of UK personnel, Aberdeen, UK's loss of revenue. British people in menial jobs. Mentions Shell, BP. Companies wouldn't take people on to train them. Quality of food offshore was the best. Explains situation re: wine for cooking offshore, need to add salt to wine. Scott Catering started with one rig, BP Forties Bravo, c40 men, grew to c500 men offshore. Worked as office manager. Details. Explains Norwegians' confused approach. Recalls hard work, Keith Laddiman's resignation. Details re: his successor, his different approach. Loss of Beryl, Dolphin, Elf contracts etc. Caterers at the bottom of the heap in offshore hierarchy. Mentions competition. Complaints procedure offshore. Practical difficulties. Made redundant after management buyout. Details re: a chef manager who caused problems. Background to own redundancy, recalls frightening situation, fear for personal safety. Worked with Keith Laddiman at Commodore Hotel, Stonehaven. Details re: other accounting work since. Scott Catering work provided necessary experience for work in small business accounts.
Tape 3 Side B: Work since oil industry experience. Background to present job as Assistant Accountant in Don Fishing, subsidiary of Wood Group. Details re: company, its work, branches, subsidiaries etc. Details re: day to day work. Disastrous situation in fishing industry. Explains own confidence in the industry. Details re cod situation, closure of fishing grounds. Danish situation, EC fishing policy, Norwegian situation. Feelings about Britain going into Europe, difference between British and European people. Aberdeen ruined because of oil industry. Explains. Mentions involvement of oil people in the area, in villages etc. Effect on communities, city, traffic. Question of what happened to oil money. Need for flyover in Aberdeen. Unable to see good for Aberdeen people arising out of oil industry. Recalls pipelines being laid, jobs being thin on the ground. Recalls Piper Alpha disaster, reputation of the platform. It was not a popular place to go. Recalls aftermath of disaster. Impact of oil industry on industrial estates. Childhood memories of farm land taken over by industry. Mentions continuing work with private clients, enjoyment of own horses, dogs, mother. Death of sister at 42, her husband killed soon after. Brought up their children - surrogate family.
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