A FATHER’S life story has been republished by his son – more than 20 years after his death.

Chris Fraser’s autobiography Christie Boy: A MacBrayne’s Man was released in 1994.

Now his son Kit, who lives in Belhaven, has released a new version of the tale which looks at Chris’ 30-year career with the company, its characters and ships.

The company, which provides a link to many of the Scottish islands from the mainland, dates back to 1851 and has become famous for the red and black funnel, complete with the Lion Rampant, on its ships.

Kit said: “We self-published it the first time and having, finally, persuaded him to write down all the stories I found a way of getting it published.

“We printed about 400 copies and the punchline is, despite him giving a few away, we got enough money back to cover the publication cost.

“As far as I know it is sold out – I have got a copy and so do both my sons but I think that is about it.

“The reason we published it in the first place was, certainly to us, the highly entertaining stories about MacBrayne.

“There was a lot in it about his army service and, after coming back to it after all those years, the reason for publishing it again was just to make sure those reflections on a way of life long gone did not die with him.”

Kit – who last year released The Triumph and Tragedy of the Bantams, which focused on a band of “brave but largely forgotten soldiers” – has added his own stories of being a ‘MacBrayne Child’.

He added that his dad was known as the ‘storyteller’ in the family and he wanted to make sure the stories were available to a new generation.

As well as his time with MacBrayne, the book looks at Kit’s dad’s time in the Armed Forces, as well as becoming a sub-postmaster in Aviemore as the town evolved from a “sleepy former railway junction” into its present skiing and outdoor pursuits centre.

Kit, 66, who previously worked as a BBC correspondent, told the Courier he had “half an idea” for another book but was still considering whether to put pen to paper once again.

The new book is available on Amazon and Createspace for £8.