After years of standing solitary guard over the ladies' toilets on the ground floor of the building that bears his name, Sir Carruthers yesterday found himself invited to a party. The guests were local luminaries, and they enjoyed their visit so much they decided to stay.
The new residents have already had a fair number of admiring visitors, and little wonder: few would not pass up the opportunity to pay court to Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, or Ray Alexander. And with the semesterly influx of Grad Overflow in the Beattie Theatre, the stream of visitors looks set to sustain itself.
The only concern that onlookers expressed yesterday was the relocation of Sir Carruthers. While the Arch took up Sir C's vigil outside the ladies' - eyes decorously averted across the foyer, as befits a man of the cloth - Sir C was shifted slightly to welcome visitors to his theatre instead. Locals were just slightly apprehensive about whether this change of view had been appropriately negotiated with Sir C, or whether parties up at the Tennis Club would be disturbed by a violent spinning emanating from his grave.