Horror legend Stephen King keeps Scottish club afloat with 'fantastic' donation

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FT Desk

Highland League side Buckie Thistle aren't in a great place financially at the moment but they have been helped to remain afloat for the time being thanks to a generous donation by none other than horror legend Stephen King.

An unlikely connection indeed, but it all came about after King included a reference to Buckie Thistle in his book, If It Bleeds. In the story, two American boys start supporting the Moray side after becoming penpals with pupils from a school in Scotland.

When the book was first released in 2020, King donated two signed copies to be auctioned off to raise funds for the club and he's helped out again with Buckie Thistle facing an uncertain financial future.

Buckie Thistle interim president Daniel Farquhar told BBC Scotland: "It is fantastic. We reached out and we are just really grateful for Stephen to take the time to donate something.

"We don't want to disclose the sum but it is a nice little figure that will keep us going. It will help pay for players and operation costs and things like that.

"The response we got back in the email from him was 'hopefully this donation inspires others to get involved and put their hands in their pockets as well', so we are eternally grateful and we just hope it does inspire others to help us."

The club was previously bankrolled by former president Garry Farquhar but after he had to step away due to health reasons, the money has started to dry up.

His son Daniel said: "Our operating costs of around £20,000 per month are far outweighing the money coming in at the moment, so we are undergoing a big task just now just to look at expenditure, try and reduce that.

"We have had in the region of £55,000 worth of donations in the last five or six weeks, so it is phenomenal."

When King made his initial donation six years ago, Buckie Thistle posted a picture of the writer wearing their kit and scarf. He was proclaimed a "fully fledged Jags fan", while the club also extended him an invitation to come to a match.

Buckie Thistle are from Buckie on the Moray coast of Scotland. The club was founded in 1889 and play their home matches at Victoria Park. They have traditionally been one of the stronger clubs in the Highland League and are known for their long history in Scottish non-league football.

One of the biggest matches in the club's history came in 2024 when they faced Celtic 5-0 in the Scottish Cup, though they lost 5-0 against the Hoops.