Buckie Coronation event organiser says 'no offence intended' after Nazi flag displayed as part of exhibit
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THE organiser of a Coronation event in Buckie says he didn't mean to cause offence after a Nazi flag was displayed as part of an exhibit.
The Buckie Fishermen's Hall played host to a 'Blast from the Past' event on Saturday and held an indoor Coronation street party on Monday.
As part of both events, Second World War memorabilia was displayed around the hall including ration books, British wartime propaganda and various other era-appropriate items.
The hall was also decked out in bunting to celebrate the Coronation.
However, a table draped in a Nazi flag, which was accompanied by a German army helmet, caused a stir online after pictures of the exhibit were posted on a community Facebook page.
One person commented: "Absolutely disgusting having that on show." Another person added: "Why do we need to see that horrible Nazi sign?"
However, Stan Squires, the organiser of the event, says that he didn't mean to cause offence with the exhibit and merely wanted to tell a story of the time.
"I'm going to be 82 soon," Mr Squires said. "This was part of my life growing up in the 40s so I was just trying to put a story across of my life.
"Unfortunately for us, a big part of that was Nazi Germany but I really didn't want to upset anybody. It was just about showing off war memorabilia.
"There was no offence meant by it but if I offended anybody then I would like to apologise to them. It really wasn't meant to be that way."
The event's main purpose was to raise money for charity with all funds donated to Clan Cancer Support Moray and Oaks Elgin.
And Mr Squires says that was the main point.
"Overall we've had a brilliant event," Mr Squires added.
"I've done what I wanted to do and that's raise money for the charities.
"We've raised £1270 for that and that's the main thing."
