Thank you for visiting this memorial to Andrew. We hope that you find it a good place to share your thoughts and memories.

I’ve known Drew since I was about 18. We shared many fun times when we worked at Filshill, then found ourselves again a few years after leaving Paisley both living in the same town in England by chance. I have many stories of Big Drew. RIP Big Drew Dickie Here are a couple: THE RACIST AND BIG DREW We were having a few beers in the pub on the corner of New/Old Sneddon Street, next to Carnegies. The barman was Chinese, some guy started abusing him with racist comments, Big Drew got up, lifted the guy by the throat and dragged him out the bar, gave him a few ‘slaps’ outside. Came back in, casual as you like, sat down and started drinking his beer like he’d been to the loo, oh and we had free beers all night. HANDBALLING THE 40 FOOTER When we worked at Filshill, we used to get deliveries of 40 foot containers packed full of loose sweets, wine gums, jelly babies, liqorice allsorts, jelly beans, American hard gums etc. One day we decided to have a competition to see who could unload it fastest. Big Drew and I were throwing these boxes containing 6 x 7lb bags to each other, I think Robert Ion, Big Dougie and a few others were racing us in twos, we hammered them, we were the only ones still standing when the container was empty. He was strong as an Ox in those days. Not many people could handball 42lb boxes like we did. We were probably only 10 and a half stone wringing wet each, THE MAWASHIGERI AND THE MISSING DAYS We were out having a few beers on a Sunday after work, walking through the Piazza (shopping precinct) talking about Karate vs Taekwondo, Drew did Karate, I did Taekwondo. Next minute he’s kicked me in the head, he’s jumping about shouting, two points for a head kick mawashigeri, so I swept his legs and he’s sitting on his arse. Then he’s like you’re getting it now so I start to run, we were both like whippets in those days, racing through the Piazza, I run down the ramp at Goldbergs, there’s a step that starts level with the top of the ramp, which continues to run horizontally till it’s a few feet higher, I catch sight of him in my periforal vision running along the step, nearly level with me, as I turn the corner he launches himself like Superman off the step, I duck and he flies over my head, landing with an almighty crack on the pavement. I look round and he’s lying motionless. People start gathering round, saying I need to cal, an ambulance. The big man wakes up and he’s like, I feel a bit dizzy, lets go back to yours, so we walk back to mine and he crashes on the couch. He wakes me up in the middle of the night, he’s got an egg sized bump on his head, he’s no idea how it happened, he asks if he;s been in a fight or if a car’s hit him, I tell him what happened and he goes back to the sofa. I get up for work in the morning and he’s gone. I go to Filshill and the MD comes up to me asking if I know where Drew is, his wife’s been on the phone, he’s nowhere to be found! He went missing for a couple of days, had amnesia, checked himself into hospital, then remembered who he was and went home! There are many more, you will be missed my friend, in your day, you were a special guy, you were 4 years older than me and you took me under your wing, I will never forget you

I am I and you are you, whatever we were to each other that we still are. Speak to me in the easy way which you always used. Why should I be out of mind because I am out of sight? Life means all that it ever meant, it is the same as it ever was.