In The News

The information below is extracted from The Edinburgh Academy News Sheet. Visit the News pages of the EA website to read the latest issue (just click on 'Current News Sheet'), browse back issues and sign up to receive it by weekly e-mail.

Please click on the date heading for an entry to read the full 'In The News' for that week - there are currently 95 entries online.

In The News - May and June 2009
Obituaries have appeared for Roger Sheriff, the last headmaster of Melville College, and David Ross Stewart, retired managing director of John Bartholomew & Son. In the medical world, Alan Robertson was heard on the radio and Matt Cheesman appeared on a TV documentary series on BBC1. Earlier on the same channel, Nicky Campbell and Charlie Falconer had appeared back-to-back on two Sunday morning programmes. Tommy Macpherson and his wartime exploits were the subject of a Sunday newspaper feature and we are delighted to hear that Mike Blair has been selected for the Lions team touring South Africa. Letters to the papers have included contributions by Fenton Robb, David Hamill, Ranald Coyne, Sandy Macpherson, and Michael Romer.

In The News - April 2009
The Evening News carried an obituary for Jimmy Pryde, who died in February; Jimmy was the Academy's piping instructor from 1983 to 1999. Nick Keir is a member of the McCalmans, who have released a new album this month; another musician, Tom Bancroft, was in the press commenting on the Scottish Jazz Awards. And in the performing arts, a review by Moray Nairn was noted and Iain Glen was heard starring in Radio 4 play. Academicals who have written letters to the papers include Mike Pringle, Sandy Macpherson, Ronnie Sloan and John Edward. In sport, as well as the usual rugby personalities, we heard of Chukwuma Osazuwa who is returning from playing soccer to the gentlemen's game.

In The News - March 2009
Tributes to Mac Henderson, who had been Scotland's oldest rugby international, and Jimmy Campbell, erstwhile Pipe Major at the Academy appeared this month. Art features with three exhibitions by Jamie Primrose, John Brown and Kym Needle, all within a hundred metres of each other, together with one by Susie Johnston in Fife. Alex Hewitt, Keith Broomfield and Nick Ede featured in media-related stories while Harry Nimmo has received acclaim in the financial world. On the rugby scene, there is news of Mike Blair, Phil Godman, Paul Loudon, David Blair, Danny Teague and Tom Brown, the number of mentions almost topped by the artists but not quite.

In The News - February 2009
We start with late notification of mentions of Robert Louis Stevenson, Joseph Bell and Geoff Mawdsley in January. We note with sadness the deaths of Jim Galbraith and George Wilton, though the latter was in his 104th year, which is a good innings. Ronnie Sloan is commemorated in his lifetime by a gift of the Sloan Prize to the Faculty of Actuaries while in the letters pages, John Edward is encouraging us to vote at the European elections. In sport, Rob Durran is quoted in a Scotsman article on winter mountaineering and there is news of rugby players Mike Blair, Phil Godman, Paul Loudon, Tom Brown and Danny Teague.

In the News - January 2009
Late 2008 and January 2009 brought news of Accie financiers Dennis Stevenson and Roger Jenkins, with Buchan Scott adding to the debate. In the arts, musicians Nick Currie and Tom Bancroft had mentions in the press and Iain Glen appeared on the BBC. The letters pages saw contributions from Francis Roberts, Peter Laidlaw, Michael Bennett and Alexander Horsburgh. Michael Hunter and Alan Fyfe have Scouting awards and QC John Beckett has had his maths questioned.

In the News - November and December 2008
We start with music and the news that Peter Gregson has won the Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland Award for Music; Jonathan Pitkin and the words of Henry Marsh were heard on the radio and James Ingham interviewed for the press. On the legal scene, Simon Mackintosh, Drysdale Graham and Ian Turnbull were quoted in the papers and Lord Carloway, Colin Sutherland, received a mention too. To politics and a piece by Geoff Mawdsley and a letter by Mike Pringle appeared in the Scotsman while Tam Dalyell was heard on the radio. There were several letters to the Scotsman by the usual suspects and sports news of Andy Noble (skiing) and a host of professional and amateur rugby players.

In The News - October 2008
Two Academicals, David Munro and Robin Blair, appear in this year's Honours List and good news also for John Jeffcoat, who was mentioned in despatches and Robert Baxter has been made Master of Signals. Keith Miller and George Renouf have appeared in the business sections and two Academicals, David Ramsden and Peter Gregson are nominated for Glenfiddich Spirit of Scotland awards. Lastly, there is news of international golfer David Paterson and rugby men David and Mike Blair and Donald Snodgrass.

In The News - September 2008
September heard Niall Dickson on Radio 4 and saw a feature on Duncan Campbell. Letter writers have been active, including Ranald Coyne and Chad McCail, who was defending himself against a review last month. The critics were kinder to Nick Keir over his new album released last month. Nineteenth-century Academical Sir John Macdonald and his passion for early motoring were mentioned in the press, while we bring you up to date with twenty-first-century rugby stars, Mike Blair, his brothers David and Alex, Phil Godman, Dave Callam and Ross Rennie.

In The News - June to August 2008
The summer brought a number of Academicals including Nick Keir, Angus Tully and Tom Bancroft to Edinburgh fringe venues. It has been a busy time for others in the music scene as well and James Ingham, Guy Berryman and Paul Jones all get a mention. In the visual arts, Jamie Primrose and Chad McCail both had exhibitions of their work reviewed. Architecture and design pages featured John Macaskill, while food enthusiasts David Ramsden and Juliet Wilson also made the press. Lastly Dr Alan Robertson and Admiral Jock Slater appeared to talk about medicine and the sea respectively.

In The News - May 2008
We begin with news of the death of WWII bomber pilot Nicky Ross but move to happier news of the next generation with a team from the Junior School who won the annual Euroquiz competition. Ian Lutton had a letter to the papers concerning Gordon Brown and Charlie Falconer was quoted concerning Cherie Blair. Alan Robertson, chairman of the BMA's junior doctors' committee, had much to say on training and appointment of young doctors. Finally to sport and James Bryce's daughter featured as well as a host of rugby players.

In The News - March and April 2008
In March there was a tribute to veteran rugby internationalist, Donald Sloan who died in February. In the legal world, Colin Whittle and Richard Loudon featured in different ways and in the business world, Jake Millar was photographed in front of The Shore. In the spiritual world, Rev Laurence Whitley was quoted in an article on the Church of Scotland, while in entertainment, Phil and Tom Bancroft received critical acclaim and Sophie Wu was seen on BBC 1. Features on homes and gardens included George Burnet, Siggi Bennett and Mike Blair, who normally appears on our sports pages. Lastly we 've heard of two Accie marathon men - Andrew Wilmshurst and Tom Duff.

In The News - February 2008
There was a tribute to the late Billy Elliot in February but happier news for Duncan Campbell who was secretly married. Charlotte Gosling was seen recommending best places to but flowers and chocolates in The Scotsman and there was good news for Keith Miller who has ironed out the problems that have recently bedevilled his company. Angus Farquhar has another installation, this time in Edinburgh's Botanic Gardens and finally, in the rugby world, there was acclaim for Mike Blair, who captained Scotland, and mentions for Ross Rennie and Donnie Macfadyen.

In The News - December 2007 and January 2008
Obituaries for John Bartholomew, Michael Kennedy and John Young were published recently. In commerce, Lord Stevenson and David Reith featured in interview articles. Meanwhile, on TV, Richard Stirling and Iain Glen starred in a twenty-first century reality show and an eighteenth century dramatic series respectively. And on the rugby field, there were appearances for Mike and David Blair, Phil Godman, Ross Rennie and David Callam.

In The News - October 2007
October saw an eclectic mix of news, starting with Donald Allan retiring from medicine and Lord Stevenson talking on mental health. Viv Mackay is reported as a 'swag' and Robin Muir appears with Vogue in India. Mike and David Blair, together with David Callam, appeared on the sports pages and Fenton Robb and Nicky Campbell in the letters. In TV and radio, Tam Dalyell was heard discussing the West Lothian Question that just won't lie down and Magnus Moodie appeared on Mastermind.

In The News - September 2007
September saw the sad death of the ornithologist Jeff Watson at the age of 54. Other news includes Keith Miller commenting on the interim profits of the Miller Group, a profile of Nick Hooke and Alan Robertson's election to the BMA Junior Doctors' Committee. In the arts, there are reviews on the works of Iain Glen and Angus Farquhar, and an appearance for Nicky Campbell's on the BBC. Ninian Dunnett and John Scott Haldane are names that appear in the literary scene, with Mike Blair, David Callam and Gregor Paul in the field of rugby.