Tributes to Kilmarnock's most famous paperboy

Jan 2 2009 by Stef Lach, Kilmarnock Standard

KILMARNOCK’S best known “paperboy” has been found dead in a Glasgow burn.

Josie McNeillie, a familiar face around town, went missing in October. Tragically his body was discovered in a burn in Bearsden just before Christmas.

The 42-year-old had been selling papers on the streets of Kilmarnock since he was a teenager.

To many, he was the likeable lad who toured shops and pubs with copies of the Kilmarnock Standard and Evening Times.

His biggest sales came from customers at Gala Bingo in Portland Street and visitors to Crosshouse Hospital.

Josie, who lived with mum Elizabeth in Western Road, Kilmarnock, was last seen boarding a bus to Glasgow on October 10.

This week his 66-year-old mum said: “It was a full two months and two weeks that he was missing and it was very hard to accept when I was told he had been found dead.

“He sold the Standard every week for 25 years and it made him very happy. He was so well known in the town.

“Ever since he went missing people would ask me every time they saw me if I had heard any news about Josie.

“I’ve received so many sympathy cards. That shows just how well liked he was.”

Elizabeth and Josie’s brothers Jim, 44, and Andy, 42, will lay Josie to rest in Kilmarnock when the body is released by police.

A Strathclyde Police spokesperson said: “The body of Joseph McNeillie, of Western Road, Kilmarnock, was recovered near Grampian Drive, Bearsden, on Friday, December 20.

“There would appear to be no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death and a report will go to the Procurator Fiscal.”

Standard circulation man Sandy Gilmour said he had worked on many newspapers but had never comes across a more dedicated street vendor.

Sandy added: “We produced a special edition of the Standard in 1997 when Killie won the Scottish Cup. It was Saturday night and we pulled out all the stops to get the paper on the streets just hours after the final whistle and well ahead of the Sundays.

“The town was heaving, the shops were soon shut for the evening and most of Kilmarnock were celebrating in the pubs.

“Who could we get to sell the Standard among the boozy crowds jammed into the town centre that victorious night?

“Step forward Josie who hit the place with sackloads of the special edition. It was a sell-out – and no one could have played a more vital role than our Josie.”