Nostalgia: Battles lines drawn as market forces go to war in Kirkcaldy

The market had started in September 1975 in the former Fifeshire Posting Company premises at Balfour Place, owned by Bellway Holdings.

But with the lease agreement between Bellway and market owners Spook Erections – who also ran Ingliston Market in Edinburgh – coming to a close, the Balfour Place building was bolted close with the locks changed.

But nobody had told the traders who turned up on the morning of Tuesday, May 4, expecting business as usual. Undeterred, they were allowed in to fetch their belongings and quickly set up an impromptu market for the day in the car park.

Douglas Nelson, director of planning for Kirkcaldy District Council, said he would allow the market to continue for that day, but warned that the council would not allow the market scheduled for Friday to take place in the car park...so the traders set up in Volunteers’ Green instead.

This incurred the wrath of Fife Council and the chairman of the planning committee, Councillor Henry McLeish, a future First Minster, then accused the managing director of Spook’s Scottish arm, Nigel Maby of displaying a “cavalier attitude” towards the council and quickly obtained a court order banning the market from Volunteers’ Green.

But Mr Maby fired back, saying he had no intention of stopping the market, claiming that the area was “common ground”.

The market continued, with a bit of cloak and dagger organisation.

On Tuesday, May 11, first on the scene was Spook Erection’s local superintendent, Keith Payne, who had parked his Rover car at one of the entrances the previous night. Soon, a second car joined him to block the only other entrance to the Green.

As the traders arrived, Mr Payne moved his car just enough to let them in and then quickly drove it back into position again.

Things turned farcical when a council van arrived on the scene to cut the Green’s grass, and the workmen did the best they could, cutting the grass between the stalls.

The now-illegal market was now being held thrice-weekly as behind-the-scenes matters came to a stalemate between the two parties.

A two-hour meeting at the Town House failed to find a solution. A plea from the council to stop operations until an alternative site was found was refused

The council’s interdict, which barred Mr Payne from setting foot on Volunteer’s Green, was having no effect, indeed, a Spook Erection flag was even hoisted at the entrance on market days.

The council continued to look for another site for the market but, in desperation, turned to the Government to intervene in the row.

Thus, a public enquiry was scheduled to be held in December, until then the market would continue with no further council action taken.

At the enquiry Spook Erections formally appealed against the enforcement notice to remove traders from Volunteers’ Green.

Both sides of the argument were heard and planning director Douglas Nelson went off to consider his decision.

It took until July 1977 when the District Council finally got the news they’d been waiting on – the market at Volunteers’ Green was to no longer be used as a market site.

Spook Erections lodged a last-ditch appeal but it was dismissed by Bruce Millan, Secretary of State for Scotland.