HE is such a distinctive figure, that even now, 70 years later, he is instantly recognisable. This is Winston Churchill in May, 1947, leaving Ayr Town Hall after receiving the Freedom of the Burgh.

Although Churchill’s Tory Party was beaten by Labour in the General Election after the war, he nonetheless retained an enormous amount of affection from the public as seen by the thousands who lined the route from the station to the hall to cheer as he was driven there in that rather smart open-topped limousine.

The Herald noted that he was smoking his customary long cigar when he was met at the station.

Churchill’s connection with Ayr stemmed from him commanding a battalion of troops from the Royal Scots Fusiliers in World War One which had been raised in Ayrshire.

His speech that day made some important points. He argued that the Second World War had been unnecessary as if the League of Nations, backed by the French Army and the British Navy, had stood up to Hitler’s illegal re-arming of Germany in the thirties then his regime would have collapsed.

He also stressed that claims during the war that Britain could not have been easily invaded by Germany were correct, and that it was inconceivable that a German Army could have managed to cross the Channel and make its way up to Scotland.