The Dunblane Tragedy: 30 Years On
On March 13th 1996 - 16 children and their teacher were killed in an unspeakable tragedy
Last updated 3 hours ago
The people of Dunblane will mark the 30-year anniversary of the tragedy there with “quiet dignity and respect”, the minister of the town’s cathedral has said.
Rev Colin Renwick, who moved to Dunblane Cathedral 12 years ago, said the 16 children and their teacher who died “will never be forgotten”.
Dunblane Cathedral will be open until 8pm on Friday, the day of the anniversary of the school shooting, to allow for “quiet and respectful remembering”.
Other churches in the area will also be open.
Some in Dunblane will also be placing candles in their windows as a “quiet way to remember and pay their respects”.
Sixteen children and their teacher were murdered in the deadliest mass shooting in UK history on March 13, 1996 when gunman Thomas Hamilton entered the gymnasium of Dunblane Primary School and opened fire on a primary one class.
Those who were lost
Sixteen children and their teacher were killed.
Victoria Clydesdale, five, whose mother Lynne had wanted her to stay at home the day the shooting happened because she had a rash. But the little girl was determined to go because it was gym day.
Her mother Lynne Clydesdale, said: “What am I going to do without her? She said six bye-byes to me as she went down the path to go to school – now I’ll never see her again.”
Emma Crozier, five. Described by neighbours as “lively, charming and bright”. Her father John and siblings Jack and Ellie went on to campaign for greater gun controls.
Melissa Currie, five, whose family lived in a bungalow close to the school.
Charlotte Dunn, five. Her family moved to Dunblane only a few months before the tragedy.
Teachers at her previous school, Cradley Church of England primary school in the West Midlands, described her as a lovely bright, bubbly girl who was full of promise. She and schoolfriend Melissa Currie had a joint funeral service in Dunblane Cathedral.
Kevin Hasell, five, whose elder sister also attended the school. He was described by neighbours as “a loveable wee thing, a typical boy”.
Ross Irvine, five, was the last of the Dunblane children to be laid to rest at a private funeral service.
David Kerr, five, whose family left his favourite cuddly toy beside his body after saying their last farewells at the hospital in Stirling.
Mhairi MacBeath, five, whose father Murray had died in October a few months before the tragedy. Mhairi’s funeral service included an extract from one of her favourite bedtime stories, which her father used to read to her.
Teacher Gwen Mayor, 45. Last year she was honoured with the Elizabeth Emblem, which was introduced in 2024 for public servants who died in the line of duty.
Speaking last year her husband, Rodney Mayor, said: “You would have to have known Gwen to know that she would have done whatever trying to protect the children in her care.
“She paid the ultimate price for that commitment. Finally, we now feel that she has been honoured for what happened that day.”
Brett McKinnon, six, who lived in the same street as Joanna Ross.
His funeral service included an AA Milne poem which ended: “But now I’m six, I’m as clever as clever. So I think I’ll be six now for ever and ever.”
Abigail McLennan, five, described by neighbours as “a dainty little girl” with two elder sisters.
Emily Morton, five. Her mother Kathryn was on duty at Stirling Royal Infirmary as a cytologist when news of the tragedy broke. Her husband Leslie rushed to the hospital and together they went to the school.
Sophie North, five, an only child, whose mother Barbara died of cancer at the age of 31 in 1993.
Her father Mick has gone on to become a prominent anti-gun campaigner. Paying tribute to his daughter in March 1996 he described his daughter as “the most precious gift I ever had” and “such a very special little girl”.
John Petrie, five. Described as “a lovely wee boy with a cheeky face”.
Joanna Ross, five, a close friend of Emma Crozier. A joint funeral service was held for them where they were remembered as “wee angels”.
Hannah Scott, five, remembered as a happy and chirpy youngster who was a popular playmate.
Megan Turner, five. Her mother Kareen Turner said: “Every parent of every child will say theirs was special. But Megan was so, so special to us. She was so full of life – always jumping and running.
“She stood on her head more than on her feet – she was wonderful.”
Reflections from John Swinney
First Minister John Swinney has reflected on the “contrast” he will “never, ever forget” with the Dunblane tragedy and the birth of his son on the same day.
Mr Swinney recalled how he welcomed the birth of his son Stuart while aware of “the devastation that was felt by people I knew who had lost their children."
He said he received a call that Stuart would be born while at work at an insurance firm in Stirling, a few miles from Dunblane.
“I left the office and saw ambulances going up the motorway towards Stirling, and didn’t quite know what was going on.
“So that day my son was born, and I remember the preciousness of his birth into the world and how I felt as a father of a new child.
“But I couldn’t stop thinking about the fact that that very same day, some of my work colleagues had to come to terms with the loss of their child in this unspeakable tragedy.
“The contrast of how I felt about the arrival of my son in comparison to the devastation that was felt by people I knew who had lost their children, was a contrast that I’ll just never, ever forget.”
Mr Swinney voted in favour of a ban on handguns in the House of Commons in 1997, a year after the tragedy.
Gun Control Network
In the months following the attack a group of campaigners, lawyers, academics and a parent of one of those killed set up the Gun Control Network (GCN), to lead calls for stricter gun controls – including a ban on handguns.
GCN chair Gill Marshall-Andrews recalled the “very strong and very violent” resistance the group faced from the pro-gun lobby.
“We were under enormous pressure from the gun lobby, because we were the obvious target for them,” she said.
“They couldn’t really target the Dunblane families. They couldn’t criticise them. They couldn’t attack them because of who they were.
“Mick (North, whose child was among those killed) was involved but the rest of us were not involved in Dunblane. So we were, as it were, legitimate targets.
“So we had a lot of death threats. We had a PO Box in Finchley that was regularly closed because of bomb threats.”
Ms Marshall-Andrews said the campaigners were repeatedly told handguns couldn’t be banned “because pistol shooting is the fastest growing sport in the UK”.
She added: “If you think about that, that sums it up in a nutshell, because if handguns had not been banned then, we would be down the American road.”
In September 1996 the Cullen Report recommended tighter restrictions on gun ownership, and in 1997 John Major’s Conservative government introduced a ban on most handguns.
Later that year Tony Blair’s Labour government introduced legislation widening the ban to include all cartridge ammunition handguns.
Ms Marshall-Andrews said campaigners had been “overjoyed” at the move.
“That was the gold standard. That was amazing. That was something that couldn’t be done,” she added.
Asked why the campaign had been so successful, she said there had been a “tide of public revulsion” against the tragdy, and that “it seemed to be possible to do something about it”.
The GCN campaign has continued, with Ms Marshall-Andrews saying it helped bring about a ban on imitation firearms in 2006, and, in Scotland in 2015, to legislation requiring the registration of air guns.
She said the group’s main focus is now on getting shotguns classified in the same way as rifles under the Firearms Act 1968, saying “it’s time we recognise that shotguns are the primary gun threat”.
Ms Marshall-Andrews was clear: “Gun laws have got to be kept up to date. They’ve got to reflect current reality. There are new kinds of guns.
“There’s a huge gun lobby that’s ready and waiting to roll back the legislation. You can’t be complacent.”
MPs are currently considering whether to tighten shotgun licensing laws to bring them into line with restrictions on rifles.