Biography

Angus MacDonald, Aonghas Ruairidh Eòghainn, was born in Cluer, Harris, on the 11th of September 1948. His mother was Mòrag Aonghais Dhòmhnaill from Cùl na h-Àirde, in Ardhasaig, and he had a sister, Jessie, who is today married in Collam. Angus's father, Ruairidh Eòghainn, was good at singing and very knowledgeable about the songs of the area. He often sang at weddings and ceilidhs and was recorded by the School of Scottish Studies and the BBC. Angus learned songs of the Harris bards from his father.

Angus went to Kyles Stockinish Primary School and from there to Sir E. Scott School in Tarbert. After leaving school he went to Agricultural College in Balmacara for three years. Angus returned to Harris and worked for a while with a company building council houses in Tarbert. After that he worked alongside another man as a painter and maintained schools in Harris. He then went to work in Inverness, where he was a vending machine salesman.

By this time, Angus was much in demand at ceilidhs all over the Highlands and in the big towns. He was often heard on radio and appeared on the television programme 'S e Ur Beatha. He had a powerful, musical voice and every word in every song was as clear to his audience as they would have been were they written on paper in front of them.

Angus died in Raigmore Hospital in Inverness on the 20th of February 1976, aged 27, after being in a car accident. He was greatly mourned, even by those who did not know him, and he is remembered as being a kind person.