CUMBRAE has made its 55th royal appointment - and the island's new queen says she is ready to rule with a firm hand.

Taking this year's throne is Molly McKiggan, 11, who already has a few plans in mind to better the community.

Molly's royal succession was revealed after her name was drawn from a hat containing the Cumbrae Primary P6 girls.

The official crowning will coincide with the classic car rally on Saturday May 11, where Molly will immediately begin her royal duties by awarding the trophies to the car winners.

Her dad Geoff says his daughter is 'absolutely thrilled' to have been selected and can't wait to get started.

He joked the News: "It is all she has talked about since she was picked.

"She has a notebook of the rules she wants to enforce once she has been crowned.

"Molly says she wants to stop people smoking around children and have no dogs in shops, so she is definitely excited to get started I would say.

"She was always quite quiet but she has been getting more confident in the last year. This will be absolutely great for her.

"Like most 11-year-old girls she is into her make up now and I am sure will be looking forward to getting her dress fitted for her big day."

Gala organiser Andrea McLachlan said: "It's good to keep these traditions alive. It's rare nowadays that towns still have a Gala Queen but I think it's a great thing to keep going.

"Molly was really excited when we made the announcement at the school. It was great to see that the honour still means so much to the children.

"We have paired it the event with the classic car rally over the past few years and this has worked really well.

"It means that we get the crowds from that also enjoying the crowning, so it makes for a really nice and exciting day."

Crowning Molly will be Margaret Duffy, a town elder who the committee felt was the 'ideal candidate' to keep the tradition alive thanks to her extensive knowledge of the island's history.