THIS is a look at Lochgelly's history through a poem from Andrew Bell.

A was born n bred In this wee auld mining toon Where the people are friendly from the tap all the way doon No a day goes by u dinnae hear morning Lizzie, Bob or Jock As they go doon for their groceries towards the auld toon clock Ootside St. Andrews Church, a war memorial for aw to see Wi names o the men who fought ‘n gave their lives for you ‘n me Wi over 20 pubs, clubs n hotels, the businesses were booming But years gone by ‘n it’s all fast food, hairdressers ‘n a place for dug grooming Wi little tae dae, you could go to the loch n catch some fish But beware of the legend known as big Eck or is he jus a myth Wi a local gala held but once a year The whole community comes out for the festivities n cheer A parade n floats as far as your eyes can see Those days are past and are all jus a memory Tho the gala is still going it’s no quite as grand The people still turn out tho to a place known as the happy land Miners working day n night doon the Mary pit Digging the coal out n coming back up covered in it Yer maw clouting yer ear n saying by jings Yer mawket have u been playing oer the bings Whether ye still bide here or moved away Ye ken yer welcome back any day Dinnae wait too long n come back soon This is Lochgelly, our wee auld mining toon ANDREW BELL