POLICE had to order an upset aristocrat to move his car from his own land - when he blocked a ferry slipway after his wife was left stranded on the mainland.

Charles Fforde, laird of the island of Arran, parked his car on the entrance and exit and insisted on a face-to-face meeting with the captain of the Ardrossan to Arran Calmac ferry as it was about to dock at Brodick.

He told staff that he felt he was entitled to park there as he owned the foreshore.

The incident ended when police spoke to the the 65-year-old landowner, who is descended from James II, Mary Queen of Scots and Emperor Napoleon III, and he finally moved his car, allowing passengers to disembark from the ferry.

The ferry skipper had decided to set sail early from Ardrossan for safety reasons on Sunday afternoon because of high winds.

One worker said the ferry had to pull away immediately because there was a danger of the gangway at Ardrossan being damaged and people being hurt.

"The ship was bobbing up and banging the side of the pier," he said. "The safety of the passengers has to come first."

But Mr Fforde was left upset as he felt the ferry captain could have let his wife Linda, and dozens of others who ended up stranded on Ardrossan, to have the option of leaving their cars and going on the ferry as foot passengers.

His wife had to stay overnight in a hotel in Ardrossan while awaiting the next hour-long crossing the following day.

Mr Fforde, who owns the Arran and Sannox estates that make up much of the northern half of the island, defended his action, denied being abusive and said it was he who went to speak to the police officers.

"I was very disappointed first of all with the skipper at Ardrossan who was under pressure because of the weather and a bit upset with the people at Brodick, who I know quite well, as we travel that boat every week, that they wouldn't relay my request to the captain," he said.

"I wanted to find out why the captain just raised the ramp, dropped the ropes and sailed off without giving any of the pier staff at Ardrossan the chance to ask if any of the drivers wanted to leave their cars in Ardrossan and just jump on the gangway. They were told there may not have been another sailing till Tuesday.

"OK, the interests of safety was the reason put forward, and that's understandable, but I can't believe the ship is in grave danger when you haven't got 10 minutes just to ask if anyone wants to go on the gangway.

"People who live over here deserve a little bit of consideration in those circumstances."

Asked why he parked on the slipway, he added: "I just tried to get the pier staff at Brodick to radio the captain. But they wouldn't relay my request.

"The ferry was 10 minutes away. How can you try to get someone to pay attention when you want to see the skipper? He wasn't going anywhere else that afternoon or the next day. The estate owns the foreshore at Brodick. The place where I parked the car was on my own ground. It is leased. The slipway crosses the foreshore."

A police spokeswoman confirmed they were alerted after a passenger parked his car at a slipway where the vehicles would come off the ferry.

"He was told to move his car. He did. And when the ferry came to berth there was no blockage," said the spokeswoman who confirmed no formal complaint was made in relation to the matter."

A Calmac spokesman said: "I am aware there was an incident in Brodick when a member of the public became abusive towards staff. As is policy in these instances, the matter was referred to the local police who spoke to the person involved and it was resolved very quickly."