IT'S never much fun being in hospital, but at least these guys at Glasgow's Royal Infirmary had the daily delights of the mobile tuck shop to look forward to.

With three of them wrapped up in their regulation tartan dressing gowns, and one fellow sporting a rather natty Paisley-patterned number, it was time to decide what to buy.

Run by volunteers, and operated by the archaic sounding Dorcas Society and Almoners Fund, these ladies pushed their trolley around all the hospital's wards, dispensing sweet treats, bottles of juice and words of comfort.

The society was formed in 1863 by Miss Beatrice Clugston, the daughter of a wealthy Glasgow businessman, to provide food, care and clothing for patients from the poorest strata of Glasgow society.