Tributes have been paid to a young contractor who died after an accident in a film studio partly owned by owned by Jason Connery, son of legendary James Bond actor, Sir Sean. Philip Ross is believed to have been fatally injured following an incident with a scissor lift at First Stage Studios in Leith, Edinburgh, last month.
The 30-year-old is believed to have been working on the set of a production when the accident, on Thursday June 30, happened. Emergency services attended the scene but Philip, who was known as Pip, died at the scene.
His devastated mum, Karen Ross, wrote on social media that she was heartbroken at the tragedy. She said: 'I am totally heartbroken, I have no words for my pain right now."
Dozens of family and friends attended a memorial for the Paul Walker fan last week at Portobello Beach and let off 120 purple balloons in his memory. Michael Frost, who organised the event, said: 'As most of you may know we sadly lost Philip Ross (Pip). He touched so many people’s lives and he’ll be sadly missed by all that knew him.'
Friend Claire Kelly said: 'What an an amazing turn one for the one and only PIP. Michael Frost you did Philip proud bro.
'And thanks to everyone who signed the book we made. If you never signed it there's plenty time. It is an amazing keepsake for Karen Ross and the family! We did Pip proud guys. Shine bright Pip going miss you.'
Another friend took to social media to pay tribute to Philip, who was described as a "true legend." Jene Walker wrote: "Such a tragedy and so young. RIP Phillip.
Another friend has organised a fundraiser for Philip's funeral as she said he suffered ill-health and wasn't able to get health insurance.
Janis McCourt wrote on GoFundMe: 'As many of my you know we sadly lost Phillip on Thursday the 30th of June in a tragic accident. We are all completely devastated by this as he was so loved by many and was such an amazing loyal, caring and kind person.
'Phillip didn't have the easiest of lives and suffered many health problems and because of this life insurance was impossible to get and unfortunately Pips family are not in the financial position to give him the send of they want and he deserves. So any contribution would be greatly appreciated to give this absolute legend the farewell he so deserves.'
The studio is on the site of a former wave power plant and has already been used in the Marvel franchise. It was a filming location for ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ in 2017 before being officially converted into a production facility last year.
Earlier this year Amazon announced it was spending more than £50million on three new shows being exclusively made in Scotland. The company said more than 750 jobs had been created due to the shows - The Rig, Anansi Boys and Good Omens 2 - all of which have gone into production over the last year.
Connery and his business partner Bob Last secured a £1million funding deal with the Scottish Government and its screen agency to take over the development.
A spokesperson for FirstStage said: "FirstStage Studios was devastated to learn of the tragic death of a contractor working for one of our production customers. We understand an investigation is under way so cannot comment further save to offer our condolences to the contractor's family and colleagues."
Anyone wishing to donate can do so here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/phillip-ross-pip
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