Paying his respects

Although only 14 years in business, Peter Murray undertaker (right) has decades of experience in the industry and reveals he sources his coffins from Finlays of Ardee.

Like most businesses, rising costs are a factor at present.

“There are a lot of expenses that people don’t see. For example, the hearse is an expensive vehicle to drive because it has to be taxed and insured all year round, but it can’t be used for anything except for work. My hearse is a 2003 registration and it has 40,000 miles on it. I moved it a few weeks ago and people were blessing themselves when I drove past,” he explains.

“There was an undertaker a few years ago who was a bit of a character and would feed cattle out of the back of his hearse and there would be bits of hay in the back of it,” he adds of an enterprising auctioneer some years back.

Peter wishes the people of Arva a happy Christmas and a good new year.