Dundee’s Lost Tales – Horse Leaves Deposit

Dundee in the early days (before 1956) had only one club, The Dundee and District Club.

It served all the various sport associations i.e golf, bowlingtennis, rugby, cricket and hockey, which were all members of The Club as it were called.
This club was called a ‘gentleman’s club’ and there were strict rules on behavior, dress etc. This was also an exclusively male club – Ladies were allowed lounge but not in the bar.

It so happened therefore, that one evening in 1952, the club was busy and the chaps were playing snooker.
Frank Hardy, Jock Catterall, Bob Hulley and a few others were at one table when the manager. Mr Brooks, came over and spoke to Jock.

It transpired that one of the Catterall’s race horses was at the station, and the railway authorities wanted the horse off-loaded and removed.
jock Catterall therefore left the club to go and collect the horse.
Lo and behold, approximately one hour later, the back door of the club (which opened into the snooker room) burst open and there was Jock riding his horse into the snooker room.

Naturally there was an uproar, the manager was summoned and the waiters were forming a barrier so that Jock, who needed a drink desperately, could not approach the bar. All the youngsters fell about laughing.
Eventually Jock and his horse were escorted out of the club, not before however, the horse had left its calling card.

The older members were not amused and Jock was asked to appear before the ‘Committee’. When Jock appeared and was asked for an explanation for his behavior, he replied that there was nothing in the constitution or rule book which prohibited him from bringing a horse into the club.

Tom Worthington, who was then President of the club and also a lawyer, then asked Jock what was the gender of the horse.
When Jock replied that it was a mare, he was banned for six months from the club for having brought a lady into the bar.