[5] The Gaelic name Taobh a Deas Chas Chaolais means "[the] Southern Side of [the] Steep Strait".

The queen referred to is Saint Margaret of Scotland who is believed to have established a ferry at this point for pilgrims on their way north to St Andrews.

His ability to bend his arms or sit down is very restricted during the long day and his progress is a slow walk with frequent pauses.

Two attendants in ordinary clothes assist him throughout the ordeal, helping him hold the staves, guiding his route, and fortifying him with whisky sipped through a straw, whilst enthusiastic children go from door-to-door collecting money on his behalf.

The name "Loony dook" is a combination of "Loony" (short for "lunatic") and "dook", a Scots term meaning "dip" or "bathe", and is an event whereby people dive into the freezing waters of the Firth of Forth on New Year's Day, often in fancy dress.

A proposal to charge people to participate in this event was introduced in 2011, the proceeds of which benefit RNLI Queensferry.

It has grown to become part of the official Edinburgh Hogmanay celebrations although originally organised solely by locals who utilised facilities at the Queensferry Arms Hotel (now Orocco Pier) for many years for access and changing before and after the event.

As the popularity of the event grew participants later paraded ahead of the dook from the Moorings pub (now the Inchcolm) but from 2011, due to factors such as increased crowds, safety issues and popularity, the event has been handled by the organisers of Edinburgh's Hogmanay, with the parade now starting from the Hawes Promenade at the other end of the town.

Up to 2016 two of the original Dookers, James MacKenzie and Ian 'Rambo' Armstrong, have the distinction of taking part in every Loony Dook and the two wore specially designed T-shirts with 30yrs to celebrate the achievement.

[7] The event has inspired similar, though smaller in scale, annual New Year Loony Dooks, such as in North Berwick in East Lothian and Kirkcaldy in Fife, both also on the Firth of Forth.

[13] When the original owner, a sea-captain, was lost at sea, his maid was accused of paying a beggar-woman to cast a spell.

[14] The Hawes Inn, dating from the 17th century, lies east of Queensferry, almost under the Forth Bridge on its south side.

Opposite the Hawes Inn is the pier which served the ferry (from which the town derives its name) until the opening of the Forth Road Bridge.

Modern day Orocco Pier, latterly named the Queensferry Arms Hotel, has been a local inn and place of refreshment since 1664.

[17] Queensferry is served by bus services operated by: Lothian Country and Stagecoach East Scotland.