2008 in the Kilmarnock Standard headlines: July to December

Jan 2 2009 by Stef Lach, Kilmarnock Standard

IN JULY, a spectacular tornado appeared over Kilmarnock in the middle of a freakish storm.

Torrential rain battered the town and as the downpour eased, the incredible sight had hundreds of people staring up at the sky.

A team of window cleaners was hard at work in New Farm Loch when they spotted the twister and one of them filmed it on his mobile phone.

Bobby Millar said: “It was an incredible sight. It lasted for about four minutes in total and it looked as though it was getting closer to us all the time.

“It grew bigger and started spinning faster before it just disappeared into thin air.

“None of us had ever seen anything like it in our lives and it certainly made the working day that wee bit more interesting.”

KILMARNOCK'S most famous musical sons Biffy Clyro stole the show at the T in the Park festival, taking to the stage wearing nothing but bright red trousers.

The tore through a fantastic set of their hits on the main stage watched by thousands of fans.

You can watch a video of our exclusive interview with drummer Ben now by clicking videos and pics at the top of this page.

BRAVE Heather Clark posed for a top fashion photo shoot for charity on being released from hospital after a second mastectomy operation.

The 31-year-old from Kilmarnock has been diagnosed with breast cancer twice in three years, and faced a further battle after the disease spread to her spine.

Heather, a fashion addict, was glad to be out of hospital and getting dolled up in designer outfits at Silverburn Shopping Mall in Glasgow.

IN AUGUST plans to close Bonnyton Post Office came under fire from all quarters as residents, councillors and even MP Des Browne slammed the decision.

Teenager Ross Gibson returned home to Kilmarnock after a horror fall from a balcony while on holiday in Spain.

The 18-year-old suffered serious head injuries and was in a coma for more than two weeks.

But just seven weeks after the dreadful accident in Magaluf, Ross was well on the road to recovery. The whole town got behind the family and Ross’s Kilmarnock FC heroes paid him a visit as he recovered.

FED up living in fear of creepy crawlies, Dunlop man Robin Watson invented the world’s first foolproof spider trap.

The 39-year-old tried every so-called spider solution on the market but found that none of them did the trick. So he came up with the idea for a kind of horizontal sticky fly trap.

After finally tracking down a company who could supply a glue strong enough, Robin invented the SpidaTrap – a piece of card with a strip of very strong glue that spiders and other insects can’t escape from but is completely harmless to humans.

IN SEPTEMBER, wannabe pop princess Lucy McDowall got a taste of the superstar lifestyle when she won a Disney competition that made her dreams come true.

The 11-year-old, a pupil at Gargieston Primary School in Kilmarnock, entered Disney’s Hannah Montana Make Me a Popstar for a Day competition.

Lucy was whisked off to London where she was treated to a popstar makeover including hair and make-up, a two-hour recording session in a professional recording studio and a chauffeur-driven limo to drive her around in style.

KILMARNOCK man Peter Crombie lost so much weight neighbours thought his partner had another guy in her life.

Super slimmer Peter shed almost 14 stones in 18 months. The 35-year-old saw his weight plummet from a staggering 28st 1lb to 14st 4lb.

He went from being a massive 56-inch waist to a mere 34-inch off-the-shelf man. And his astonishing former XXXXL t-shirt measurement collapsed to just an L.

Peter, an engineer with Rolls Royce in Glasgow, was justifiably proud of his amazing achievement and puts his new slimline look down to determination, perseverance, the support of friends and family and the fact he stays close to the new Hunter Fitness Suite in the NorthWest Area Centre.

The 6ft 5ins gentle giant cut out Chinese takeaways, crisps, chocolate, cans of beer and other junkfood since he adopted his get-tough approach to transforming his life.

IN OCTOBER, a little boy who saved a toddler from drowning received a double honour at his school.

John Rooney, 9, was presented with a medal and a special headteacher’s award to reward his quick-thinking actions which saved another little boy’s life.

The drama happened during the summer holidays as John enjoyed a holiday in Turkey with mum and dad John, 44, and Julie and sisters Nicola, 12, and Caitlin, 4.

He said: “I had just been playing with a toy ring which sinks to the bottom of the pool and you have to swim down and get it.

“I had picked up the ring and was just getting to the edge of the pool when I heard a lot of noise behind me. I saw the wee boy struggling and splashing in the water.”

John wasted no time and swam over to the younger boy and dragged him to the edge and to safety.

A RETIRED garage boss from Kilmarnock played the name game with tabloid tearaway Jodie Marsh.

And Alan Marsh, 59, came away from his confrontation with the former stripper and Page 3 model convinced the pair could be related.

He hung out with the sassy star at the opening of the new Play nightclub in Glasgow, and was thrilled with the result of their conversation.

Said Alan: “I introduced myself to Jodie and when she learned we had the same surname, we chatted away great style. She wondered if we might be related, because my father was from Essex and so is she.”

Outrageous Jodie was also amazed to hear that one of Alan’s three sons is called Joedy!

STUNNING Shweta Shetty shot to national stardom after a chance encounter with a talent spotter while out on a shopping spree.

The 22-year-old Kilmarnock lass went on to front a huge campaign that SAW her face grace billboards and magazines across the UK as the face of electronics giant LG.

A billboard featuring her face pulled up outside her house in Kilmarnock’s Grange estate.

IN NOVEMBER, lifelong Killie fan John Collins made the ultimate sacrifice for charity by wearing the shirt of his team’s local rivals Ayr United.

The accountant donned the top for a day at his office in Glasgow to raise £2600 for cancer treatment unit The Beatson Oncology Centre.

His colleagues at the accountancy firm BDO Stoy Hayward challenged him to do the charity stunt and paid for the privilege of seeing him put on the colours of Ayr.

John, 52, a Kilmarnock FC season ticket holder, joked: “It was painful pulling on an Ayr shirt.”

MSP Willie Coffey issued a rallying cry to his constituents to get behind the town’s football team.

Willie, a lifelong Killie supporter, says he couldn’t understand why the number of home fans had dwindled in recent years and urged people to give their support to the club he loves.

He said: “Killie must have dropped two or three thousand home supporters over recent years. And the reasons are not clear.

“Kilmarnock’s admission prices compare favourably with other SPL clubs and haven’t really increased too much year on year.

“We have a great club, a fantastic stadium and facilities which are the best in Scotland by a mile. And a management team that continues to defy the odds, unearthing new talent like Mehdi Taouil and our own youngsters.”

IN DECEMBER, music student Lauren Gordon, 20, won an early Christmas present of £500 when she scooped first place at a singing contest. The Kilmarnock lass belted out Jennifer Hudson’s hit Spotlight at the competition at Irvine’s Rivergate Centre.

You can watch the video now by clicking videos and pics at the top of this page.

A BUNGLING burglar gave cops the easiest case of their lives when he dropped a letter containing his name and address at the scene of the crime. Alan McLean was jailed for six months after his costly mistake led police straight to his door in Galston.