It was the one and only time the King of Rock n’ Roll ever set foot on Scottish soil – and 66 years later Anne Murphy can recall her meeting with Elvis Presley like it was yesterday.
On 2 March 1960 the music legend was on his way back to America from military service in Germany when his flight stopped over to re-fuel at Prestwick International Airport.
The flying visit to the Ayrshire town only lasted about 90 minutes and saw the singer pose for pictures with adoring fans.
Among them was 16-year-old Anne, who told the BBC’s Witness History programme how she made a frantic dash along with a friend to catch a glimpse of Elvis after being tipped off by a soldier she used to babysit for.
She recalled how Elvis promised fans that he would return in the future – but, of course, he never did. The singer never performed in the UK during his career.
Elvis served with the US Army between 1958 and 1960
However, for the dedicated fans who rushed to Prestwick Airport – at that time being used as an American military base – on that March evening, simply seeing the man in person was enough to leave them all shook up.
“I was an office girl with a firm of solicitors and my mother phoned me,” says Anne, who lived in Prestwick.
“We didn’t have a phone so my mum had to run down to the telephone box and she phoned me just at 10 to five, just before I finished for the day.
“She told me that Sgt Phelps, who I used to babysit for, had just been at the door and that Elvis was arriving between six and seven.”
Anne had adored the King’s music since she first heard him on the radio, and jokingly called him her first boyfriend.
“I just loved his looks, I loved his music – I loved all of him, really.”
Anne instantly jumped on a bus home, grabbed a quick tea and borrowed her mum’s bike.
She then started pedalling as fast as possible to get to the airport, excitedly telling anyone she met that she was off to meet Elvis. The response was usually laughter and being told it was all just a rumour.
However, her friend Muriel was up for the adventure and hopped onboard, only for the pair to just as quickly fall off.
So the duo ran the rest of the way instead, encountering a large crowd when they arrived at the airport, filled with fans, military personnel and local dignitaries.
The plane was already there. At that time, the airport’s runway was also in use as a road.
“When a flight was coming into Prestwick over the sea, there was traffic lights, so that the traffic couldn’t get over the road until the airplane landed at Prestwick.
“It was well lit at both sides, so we ran across that. I mean, you shouldn’t have done it, but we did. We were out of breath by that point.”
The steps were already up at the plane and the aircraft door was open, so she asked the military policeman at gates: “Have we missed him? Have we missed Elvis?”
“He said no but he’s just ready to come out and he ushered us into the front of all these crowds right next to the steps where the barrier was, and Elvis appeared.”
Elvis was also surrounded by fans when he arrived in German to do his military service
Upon arriving the singer asked where he was, prompting cries and screams of “Prestwick” in response.
It was at that point that a photographer snapped an image of Anne, gazing up adoringly at the music icon.
“He looked handsome, he always did, but I thought I was dreaming”, she laughs.
“I was so close to him. He had beautiful skin, lovely skin, beautiful teeth, and, I just, I was in awe with him. I couldn’t believe Elvis was standing next to me.
“He said he would be back, but he never came back.”
Her friend Muriel’s excitement went even further.
When the singer was escorted to two waiting cars, she jumped a barrier and climbed on to the bonnet of the car to try and get a last look at him, before being hauled off the vehicle.
The following week Anne was back on babysitting duties and made sure to thank Sgt Phelps and his family for the kind tip-off.
However, her Elvis connections did not end there. She remained a devoted fan, and her husband Andy was even an Elvis impersonator.
Like many she was stunned when he died aged 42 on 16 August 1977.
In the 1990s Anne visited America and saw the legendary Graceland mansion, where Elvis had stayed for many years.
Anne still lives in Prestwick, and the memory of being inches away from one of music’s most famous performers always brings a smile to her face.
“I thought it was a dream, and it wasn’t a dream, it was reality. It was unbelievable.”
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