Gunnar Mauritz Belfrage was born in Gothenberg in 1887, son of architect August Wilhelm Belfrage (1841-1909). In 1904, aged 17, he came to Scotland, where he was initially an assistant with the firm of Gjertsen and Bruce ship chandlers in Methil.  In 1909 he spent some time in Germany before returning to Sweden to train as a masseur. In 1915 Gunnar returned to Scotland and worked in hospitals in and around Glasgow. During his time there he married Inez Maria Soderberg in 1919. They had three daughters while living in Glasgow - Ingrid born in 1920, then Signe in 1922 and Asta in 1923. Soon afterwards the family settled in Fife.

In 1926, Mr Belfrage was appointed German Missionary at the 'Deutsches Seemanshaus' (pictured below in its heyday and in more recent times) on Durie Street, Methil. This job was to act as a pastor to the many German-speaking seamen that would have come in and out of Methil docks - a post he remained for around a decade. The German Seaman's Mission was built in 1900 to provide religious services for the increasing number of German seamen visiting the port. The piece below from the St Andrews Citizen of 21 April describes its dedication. The first missionary appointed was a Herr Johannes Voss. The mission was suspended during the First World War and closed permanently in 1939. Gunnar Belfrage was mentioned many times in the local press during his time as missionary - an example of this from 1 February 1930 Fife Free Press is further below.

By 1936 the Belfrages had left Methil and were pursuing other interests, while based in Lundin Links, as the adverts below show. Mr Belfrage advertised his massage therapy in the Fife Free Press of 14 Nov 1936, while Mrs Belfrage was listed in the MacDonald's Directory of 1939-40 as a confectioner. They supplemented these activities with the 'Tea Gardens' at their home, Imrie Cottage on Emsdorf Street (the premises that formerly hosted Andrew Thomson's baker shop). The advert at the top of this post for the tea gardens appeared in the 10 June 1936 Dundee Evening Telegraph.
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Tea Gardens were a popular concept in the early decades of the last century (and before). A couple of examples (not local) are illustrated below, where folks have basically turned their own garden into an al fresco cafe serving home-baking and drinks. In the 1930s when Lundin Links was very much still a fashionable summer resort, there would have been no shortage of potential customers for such an enterprise - especially on Emsdorf Street - a key route between the hotel and boarding houses of Lundin Links and the pier and beach at Lower Largo.

Belfrage's Tea Gardens seem to have been short-lived however as by 1940 the Belfrages had moved to 'Sandilands' on Leven Road in Lundin Links. They stayed there until the autumn of 1946 when the couple left Scotland to return to their homeland of Sweden. Inez died there in 1968 while Gunnar died in Stockholm aged 87 on 12 December 1974. 

In addition to his many paintings of Largo, George Leslie Hunter also produced many sketches of the area. Lots of his sketches were recognisable scenes of the beach or still existing buildings. However, the one shown above focuses on the Pier Pavilion with little contextual background. It would have been a familiar scene at the time but now only those aware of Largo's local history would know what and where this is. The pen, ink and coloured crayon drawing is named The Pierrots, Largo and dates to 1923.

This drawing was purchased by the Kelvingrove Art Gallery in Glasgow for its permanent collection, along with two others 
(Fife Landscape and Largo Harbour). As the book 'Hunter Revisited' by Smith and Marriner states:

"The Pierrots is one of a series of drawings Hunter did of the open air theatre near Largo jetty. Since his days in San Francisco he had maintained an interest in the theatre, as much as anything for its colourful spectacle. The Pierrots at Lower Largo staged a popular form of vaudeville entertainment for summer visitors; often Hunter depicts scenes of the audience milling around, capturing on paper the causal seaside atmosphere."

This is the striped 1920s version of the pavilion (see photograph below). The pavilion changed in appearance a few times in the decades that it graced the pier. At the foot of this post is another Hunter sketch of a similar scene. In this one, the pink cloud suggests an evening performance as the sun sets. I wonder whether the pier could ever witness such scenes again....

Largo must have had its fair share of interesting visitors passing through over the years. The photograph above features a particularly colourful character standing outside the entrance to Cardy House. The undated image, held in the St Andrews University Image Bank simply states "Print depicting a woman with a monkey. The monkey is sitting on top of a horse. The back is labelled 'Italian woman, name is Angelino?'".

Perhaps she was there as part of a larger troupe of entertainers - maybe when the 'shows' were in town. The image below shows precisely where this unusual photograph was captured, with 123 Main Street in the background.
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Holiday season is upon us and Largo Arts Week is kicking off - so here is a lovely circa 1950 image of children at play on the beach at the Temple. The sender of this postcard in 1952 was an M. Allan who wrote to a friend in Portsmouth:

"I will have your tea ready so come right on from station. We are having very hot weather, so hope it will continue for your visit."

I wonder if it did and what they got up to during the visit?

A charabanc was an early form of bus. Initially horse-drawn, these became motorised in the early 20th century. Usually open-topped and typically used for pleasure trips, charabancs had bench-style seating arranged in rows facing the front of the vehicle (see photographs below). The name derived from the French char à bancs - carriage with wooden benches. A canvas folding hood was located at the rear of the vehicle, similar to a convertible car. 

The demise of the charabanc was hastened by its poor safety record (often caricatured in postcards - see end of post). Little protection was offered to passengers in the event of an accident and their high centre of gravity was not helped by the tendency for them to be well-loaded and to travel steep and winding tourist routes. 

​The accident detailed above (from the Fifeshire Advertiser of 28 December 1918) sees charabancs being used in unusual circumstances - in use to transport wartime workers at night in the middle of a harsh winter. Slipping on an icy surface on a steep and winding road, the lead vehicle "crashed into the parapet wall at Mr Adam's painter's shop". The painter's shop is the light-coloured tall building on the right hand side of the road in the image above.

The 'Pier Pavilion' on Largo Pier changed in appearance over the years, as the selection of images above shows. The temporary and portable nature of the structures plus exposure to the salty air would mean frequent repairs and a limited lifespan. The 'pavilion' with its stage was accompanied by a fenced off section containing seating. An early reference to the Pier Pavilion exists in the 9 January 1913 'The Stage' newspaper, which said:

"Wanted to Let; very reasonable terms to really First-Class Concert party or Attractive Entertainment - Largo Pier Pavilion. Tip-up stalls, stage and scenery. From Easter to end of June. Only tip-top show would be entertained."

The 'tip-up stalls' were later replaced with benches and (more pricey) deck chairs. While a charge would be made for a seated view of the performance, those trying to watch from outside the fencing would not escape the notice of the company - members of which would pass around the crowds with collection tins. The 22 June 1929 Fife Free Press snippet below gives a flavour of the popularity of the venue in the 1920s.

Owned by the Pier Committee by the 1920s, the pavilion could be rented for the season (see example adverts below from The Stage for the 1927, 1928 and 1934 seasons respectively).
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While 'The Rigmaroles' enjoyed a twelve week run on the pier in 1927, one of the most regular performing companies was led by Tom O'Reilly. In 1925, 'O'Reilly's Vaudevillian Orchestra' were in residence at Largo. By 1929 they were still around but known as 'O'Reilly's Hammer and Tongs' (see piece below from 29 August 1929 The Stage). The company provided a ventriloquist act, comedy, songs, sketches, dancing and various musical items featuring a range of instruments. Further below, is a notice from The Stage on 11 September 1935 where the retitled  'O'Reilly's Serenaders' were performing for a sixth season.

By 1936 there was debate over the future of the pier pavilion and its alfresco shows. As the feature below from the 25 July Fife Free Press indicates, many would have wanted to preserve this traditional form of entertainment. But the unreliable weather, changing fashions and lack of profitability were beginning to work against it. The option to hold more events in La Scala was proving to be popular. The pavilion's days were numbered.

On 24 Dec 1937, the Dundee Courier ran the advert below when one of the structures was put up for sale along with a quantity of deck chairs. However, perhaps a sale was not secured as the pavilion was still mentioned in the 1938 season, including a performance by the local silver band. The era of the Pier Pavilion came to an end early during the Second World War when the Pier Committee was dissolved. 
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Eighty three years ago today, the snippets above appeared in the Fife Free Press in the local news update for Largo. Both short stories relate to fresh beginnings - the first to the completion of new housing and the second to a the new impending holiday season.  While the replacement of buildings happens rarely, the annual preparation for the influx of holidaymakers was part of the rhythm of life at the time. 

The "old-fashioned corner" of the village referred to in the top news item was a small section of Lower Largo's Main Street known then as 'Butters Buildings'.  James Butters was a weaver/net maker/boatman who had died late in 1934. He (and his parents James Butters and Margaret Gilchrist before him) had owned a few dwellings and a loomshop for many decades, while living opposite at 'Cliff House'.  James senior was a fisherman. He and Margaret had ten children but only  James (1860-1934) survived into adulthood.  

The replacement buildings were built by Walter Horne, who was married to a cousin of James Butters (Agnes Guthrie).  Part of the new construction later ​housed the Cockleshell Cafe. interestingly, the "old red tiles on the roofs" were reused on the new building. Red roof tiles remain there to this day (see photograph below with the buildings in question to the right behind the tree).

The six-part BBC Scotland drama series 'Tutti Frutti' (which follows the fortunes of rock and roll band 'The Majestics') is currently being shown again on TV. Many will know that Episode Two of the series was partly filmed in the Lundin Links Hotel in the summer of 1986. The above photo shows cast members Stuart McGugan, Harriet Buchan, Maurice Roeves and Jake D'Arcy taking a break outside the front entrance of the hotel. First broadcast on 3rd March 1987, the series also starred Robbie Coltrane, Emma Thompson, Richard Wilson, Katy Murphy, Ron Donachie and Fiona Chalmers.

​​Below are a couple of stills from the second episode, 'On the Road Again', showing 'Vincent' at the hotel foyer and staircase. Alongside these stills are two promotional shots of the hotel for comparison. Note that, for the purposes of the show, the foyer was made smaller by boxing in the area to the left where the ornate pillar is. Presumably the hotel had to be made a bit less elegant to be in-keeping with band's budget.
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The images below show some of the cast in the 'lounge', off to the right of the entrance hall. This room was opposite the reception/office (see floor plan at the foot of this post). Robbie Coltrane's character famously wore a silver lurex suit in this episode - ready for the band's performance at Denbeath Miner's Welfare Institute. Incidentally, Coltrane was no stranger to the area, as his mum lived in Largoward.

The series, written by John Byrne, won six BAFTAs in 1988. In 2006, Byrne re-wrote it as a stage play. Finally, after years of music licensing issues which prevented its re-screening on television, the series is being rerun on BBC Scotland - catch it quick on iPlayer. ​Episode 1 is due to drop off iPlayer in a matter of days, although the series is also available on DVD.

Back in the Summer of 1970, a 'Grand Opening' took place of a new enterprise on Emsdorf Street in Lundin Links. The Yellow Carvel offered food and dancing in what had formerly been La Scala cinema. Named after Admiral Sir Andrew Wood's ship, the opening was reported in the East Fife Mail as follows:

"A new entertainment centre for all age groups opened last week in Lundin Links. The 'Yellow Carvel', the brainchild of Mr Ian Addison, was launched with a buffet dance on Friday. Mr Addison has converted what was the La Scala cinema into a centre which will provide entertainment ranging from the latest on the pop scene to folk singing and a village hop. It will be open Tuesday to Saturday inclusive with a different programme each evening and during the day it will be open for coffee and other refreshments."

Mr Addison felt there was a need in the community for such a venue as there was little for locals or visitors to do. Tom Clayton the former La Scala owner, who had a wealth of experience on providing entertainment locally, had been helpful during the preparation for the opening of the Yellow Carvel. The venue's original weekly programme was a discotheque two nights a week (Wednesdays and Saturdays), dancing to "Fierce" on Tuesdays, folk singing on Thursdays and a village hop on Fridays. Timings and prices are shown in the advert below.

The opening buffet dance attracted more than 200 guests. However, the 'Yellow Carvel' name continued only until 1972, when it was rebranded as 'Seaway'. Below are a range of adverts for 'Seaway' from the mid 1970s. Note the wide range of live acts that performed there. Hogmanay 1975 saw the well-known jazz musician Chris Barber perform with his band. 

Finally, the architect drawing further below, dating from 1981, shows the front of the building annotated with proposed alterations. Soon afterwards, another re-branding of the venue took place, when it became the 'Admiral's Bell'. 

The above photograph shows the Slee family of Edinburgh on holiday in August 1933, with part of the Temple visible in the background. The family came to Lower Largo annually from the early 1930s until the Second World War. Their visits began when the children had whooping cough and the doctor suggested some sea air. A book named "Two Generations of Edinburgh Folk" by Dorothy Slee (1993), describes the holidays as follows:

"Granny rented a cottage at Largo for us for a month and it was such a success that we returned there annually for six or seven years. The little rented cottages were at the far end of the village of Lower Largo, just across a narrow road from the beach. Happy and carefree, we spent more of our time on this beach - building sand castles, paddling, looking for crabs in the rocks, or floating in a large rubber inner tube".

The book was part of the 'Flashbacks' book series designed to reveal the daily lives of individuals in the context of their own time and place. Dorothy worked at the National Museums of Scotland who co-produced the series. The concept of the series was that everyone can contribute to the "total sum of knowledge of human history" and that "local and personal history" should be set alongside political and other kinds of history.
 

The second photograph above shows some members of the family sitting outside their rented cottage. It has since been demolished and replaced by the modern home that is now 5 The Temple. You can recognise the neighbouring house (number 7) which looks the same today.  Later in the Dorothy Slee's book there is a description of the entertainment on offer in Largo at the time:

"At the other end of the village by the Crusoe Hotel there would be pierrots and a Punch and Judy show to visit, where we would stand enraptured by the strains of "Oh, oh, Antonio" or "Why am I always the bridesmaid never the blushing bride?"....We would sometimes climb up Largo Law and always have a picnic at Shell Bay which meant a trek along the beach laden with picnic gear and, most importantly, Grandpa hugging the large yellow melon."

Below is the spot where the above photo was captured - the group sat by the low wall in the left hand foreground.