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July 22, 2004updated 22 Nov 2022 1:43pm

Trevor Walls: editor of The Glaswegian and former Daily Record executive

By Press Gazette

Walls: knack for making close friendships

A climber died on a solo hike up a mountain to leave a surprise bottle of champagne for a friend.

Trevor Walls, 51, editor of the Daily Record’s sister paper The Glaswegian and a former Record executive, fell while climbing Buachaille Etive Mhor in Glencoe on 9 July.

A search was launched for Trevor, an experienced climber, after he failed to return from the early-morning trek.

His body was found in Easy Gully on the mountain.

His mum Jean, 71, said last night that Trevor had died doing what he loved.

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She said: “Just two weeks ago, we talked about the risks of his climbing.

“He said: ‘If I go off a hill, then I’ll go happy.’ He loved the hills and we are getting comfort from the fact he died doing something that meant so much to him.

“He had climbed a lot of mountains in the UK and in France, but this one was his favourite.”

She said Trevor had headed up the 3,350ft hill in advance of a Daily RecordMountain Club walk planned for the following day to celebrate a friend’s 50th birthday.

He intended to leave a bottle of champagne at the summit to be found the next day. Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team members found the bottle smashed inside his rucksack near his body.

Friends and family plan to scatter his ashes on the mountain.

His dad John, 75, of Monymusk, Aberdeenshire, said: “Trevor always wanted to make people happy and we weren’t surprised when we heard what he was doing on the mountain. It was just like him.”

The Daily RecordMountain Club is organising a collection among Trevor’s colleagues at One Central Quay in support of Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team.

WHOEVER coined the term lust for life couldn’t have known how well those words would sum up Trevor Walls.

His death as he carried out a dawn climb on Buachaille Etive Mhor in Glencoe to hide a bottle of champagne as a 50th birthday surprise for a friend who would be walking there the next day, stunned his many friends and colleagues.

And yet, the circumstances of the tragedy – dying on a mountain he loved as he sought to spring a risky surprise to please a pal – seem somehow appropriate for the guy we all knew as Wallsie.

He enjoyed his 51 years at a fast and furious speed, indulging in his passions – among them music, motorbikes, fine wines and food.

He loved theatre, he loved books, he loved the outdoors. But the essence of Wallsie’s life was his interest and concern for the people he loved and cared about – and they were many.

He was a consummate communicator with a knack for making close friendships wherever he went. The sense of loss that his death has brought is felt not only among his editorial colleagues but in every department in the building.

His wicked sense of humour and unquenchable thirst for fun brightened up the dullest day.

He was a prankster, a natural wit and a mischievous livewire – but life was not one big laugh.

Wallsie was rarely afraid to express his opinions, particularly where he saw injustice.

After training as a junior reporter with The Press and Journal in Aberdeen, he made swift progress and within a few years had landed a job with the Daily Express in Manchester – the youngest news sub in the office.

He joined the Star at its launch, before returning to Scotland to work with the Evening News in Edinburgh. Later, he moved to the Daily Record before joining the company’s free newspaper, The Glaswegian, as editor.

Author Andrew Morton was a colleague and friend for 26 years. He summed up his sense of loss by saying: “People say you can count the number of close friends on the fingers of one hand. This week I have lost one of those fingers.”

A walking club member and long-time friend of Trevor said: “His death will leave a huge hole in all of our hearts.

“Trevor was the life and soul of every trip away, laughing and joking his way up every mountain.

He loved cooking and it was always a blast to see him serve up a five-course gourmet meal for 16 people in a hut in the middle of nowhere.

“Trevor would have wanted us to carry on in the same vein and we went ahead and did the Saturday walk in his honour.”

Denise West, advertising director of The Glaswegian, remembered Trevor’s passion for his job. She said: “He was a passionate and committed journalist who took great pride in his role as editor of The Glaswegian.

“In his 18 months as editor he has made a significant contribution to the strengthening of the title and a significant impact on the journalists – many of them young trainees – who worked as part of his very happy team.

“Our thoughts are with his family at this time.”

Malcolm Speed, managing editor at the Scottish Daily Record and Sunday Mail Ltd, said: “Trevor was a fine journalist who, as the editor of The Glaswegian, was keen to advance the careers of the young journalists who worked for him.”

Trevor leaves behind his wife, Lindsey, and his 15-year-old son, Peter.

Wallsie is sadly missed by all at One Central Quay and particularly by his team at The Glaswegian.

Gerry Cassidy, Daily Record supplements, and Ross McKinnon, reporter, The Glaswegian

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

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