The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Friends say farewell to ‘one-off’ Kennedy
Former prime minister Gordon Brown and ex-Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg were among those who travelled to the Highlands to pay their respects to Charles Kennedy.
Mr Kennedy’s party colleague and fellow former north MP Danny Alexander, Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie, former first minister Lord McConnell and current Deputy First Minister John Swinney also joined the mourners.
Another famous face was one of Mr Kennedy’s closest friends – former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell.
Lords Steele, MacLennan and Thurso, Sir Robert Smith and former Scottish secretary Michael Moore also made the pilgrimage to Caol.
Speaking shortly after the service, Lord Steele said: “It was a fantastic Highland occasion and it was great to speak to people who’d been at school and university with Charles.
“He was irreplaceable, a one-off. We remember him as a great friend and colleague, and we miss him terribly. It was a fantastic day – and the weather shone on him as well.”
Sir Menzies Campbell, who succeeded Mr Kennedy as Lib Dem leader, told a press pack watching events from a respectful distance outside the church that his colleague had possessed the simple gift of “connecting with people”, and was “as at ease canvassing in a street, like this, as he was taking George W. Bush to task over the Iraq war.”
He said he would remember Mr Kennedy as “a man of wit, humour and fun, but also a man who knew when it was time to be serious”.
Lord McConnell, a former Labour first minister, said: “The whole day has been a fitting recognition of an amazing life.
“Charles was rooted in this community, a huge figure in national life in the UK. But you’ve also got a bright, sparkly day and when I first met him in 1980, he walked in and sparkled and lit up the room and I think the fact the sun shone today on Lochaber means we’ve got the kind of day he would have revelled in and that makes the day memorable for everybody.”
Former Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy said: “There’s snow on the hills, the sun in the sky and a song in the air in the church. It was a great tribute to a wonderful man.
“I enjoyed campaigning with him in the referendum and I had some great times with him. This was a sad occasion, of course it was, but I’ll always remember Charles with a smile on my face.”
Close pal Hugh Dan MacLennan said: “It was very emotional for everyone because it’s still hard to believe.
“Charles’s presence in Fort William is just everywhere.
“We’re half a mile away from his house and half a mile from the two schools he went to and the mix of people in the audience was extraordinary – the ‘great and the good’ of British politics along with crofters and musicians. It was just the way he’d have wanted it, I think.”