Tributes paid to Elgin ABC Taxis founder George ‘Pav’ Farquhar

George “Pav” Farquhar, the Elgin taxi proprietor whose working life was defined by his generosity and a gift for making people laugh, has died aged 93.

To generations of locals, “Pav” was the man behind ABC Taxi, the local taxi service he started with just one car and one driver – himself.

In later years he was known for the joy he took in Scottish social dancing, helping turn the Jolly Dancers group he helped create into a friendship circle that carried him through retirement and beyond.

Early life and Canadian beginnings

Although he was a Moray man through and through, George’s story began thousands of miles away.

He was born in Winnipeg, Canada, on November 15, 1932, after his parents left Elgin in search of a better life. The family’s Canadian chapter lasted around 18 months, with his father – a blacksmith by trade – finding work linked to the lumber industry.

But the harsh winters took their toll and the family returned to Elgin, where George grew up in a busy household.

He had three brothers and three sisters and, from an early age, showed the streak of entrepreneurship that would follow him throughout life.

As a boy, he was remembered by relatives as “a rogue” – but a generous one. He would collect firewood, chop it into kindling and sell it on for a few shillings.

He attended St Sylvester’s School in Elgin but around 14, his life took a dramatic turn when he contracted rheumatic fever, leaving him in hospital for eight months.

It damaged his heart and left him classed as disabled. Doctors told him he shouldn’t stand on anything higher than a stool, or lift anything heavier than a kettle.

But according to his daughter June Farquhar: “It didn’t stop him.”

Illness, resilience and RAF service

As a young man he signed up for the RAF, but suffered a second bout of rheumatic fever and spent another long spell in hospital – this time in Lincolnshire. He was discharged in 1951, deemed unfit for service.

June said her father could describe the illness in vivid terms even years later – curled up in pain, joints seized, sometimes too weak to feed himself – and she remembered him becoming emotional as he retold it.

The distance from home was made worse by a simple mix-up: after being moved within the hospital, his family didn’t realise where he was, and his mail stopped reaching him.

“He really felt lonely,” June said.

On returning to civilian life, many employers were reluctant to take him on because of his disability. But George was not one to accept limitations, and his answer was to “just get on with life”.

He became a van driver for Duncan’s Bakery, a labourer and driver with Scottish Tarmacadam and then a driver and fitter’s mate at RNAS Lossiemouth (as RAF Lossie was called then) and then Elgin Central Engineers.

Building ABC Taxis from one car

In 1956, he married Dolly after spotting her at a dance and telling a friend: “I’m going to marry her.”

The friend’s reply: “That’s my sister.”

They built a life around hard work and family, raising three daughters: Hazel, June and Rosemary.

In 1969, George began the venture that would make him a familiar name across Elgin: a taxi business originally called Farquhar Taxi Service.

It started with one car. George drove it himself at nights while also working at Elgin Central Engineers.

Dolly drove the taxi during the day and worked nights in the telephone exchange, and the family quickly became part of the operation.

At home, the rule was simple: be quiet when the phone rang.

As the business grew, it evolved into ABC Taxis – chosen, June said, because it was easier for visiting servicemen from RAF Lossiemouth to pronounce, and because it would come first in the phone book.

The fleet became known for its black cars that were often adorned with ribbons and used by couples for weddings. Undertakers also hired them as extra mourning cars, if needed.

Meanwhile, George also a yellow van that he used to deliver parcels for City Link, a home delivery service for British Rail’s Red Star Parcels.

Life beyond the wheel: the joy of dancing

Work was constant, and the hours often meant they “never saw one another”, June said. Dolly would be up early for morning runs and George worked late into the night.

But when they finally slowed down, it was dancing that filled their lives.

Their love of Scottish social dancing grew from nights out into something bigger: what began as the “Over the Hill Club” at Mundole Caravan Site later became the Jolly Dancers.

They organised regular events in halls including in Bishopmill and New Elgin, and travelled to dancing weekends as far afield as Ayr and Fort William.

Dolly died of cancer 21 years ago, aged 69, and George was “absolutely gutted”, June said.

But he had promised her he would keep dancing, and he did – supported by the group, who partnered him at dances and helped bring him “out of his shell”.

George was known as a whistler and was rarely without a joke. When prompted, he would recite some Bothy Ballad poems.

He also had a “uniform”: a boiler suit and a hat. June remembered a moment in Lidl when a little girl asked him if he was a farmer.

“No,” he replied. When she pressed him on why she thought that, she said: “Well, you’re in a boiler suit.”

He loved children, June said, and adored being a grandfather. His first grandchild, Trisha, was born in 1983, and George doted on her – taking her out in the parcel van and letting her “help” even when he was doing DIY jobs at home.

He later welcomed grandson Gary and granddaughter Rhiannon, and was a great-grandfather to five.

Final year and family by his side

In his final year, George became increasingly frail, with memory issues and a series of falls. Even then, June said, he was still determined to be outside, working in his garden.

But more often he’d be pottering around in garage on various projects.

After a long period in hospital from September through to December, he moved into Andersons Care Home in Elgin on January 8. He was admitted back to hospital on January 19, and died later that month. His family ensured he was never alone.

George “Pav” Farquhar was predeceased by his wife Dolly. He is survived by daughters Hazel, June and Rosemary, three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

[Source: Press and Journal]