Alumni News’

FP Creates Humorous ‘Official Map of Lockdown’

Annalisa Morrocco, 58, is the daughter of famous painter Alberto Morrocco. During lockdown, she produced a humorous vision of a ‘Lockdown Island’, gently poking fun at the rigours of everyday life in the face of coronavirus.

The Class of 1979 alum left the UK for a life in France approximately 30 years ago with her latest work allowing her to reconnect with her home. Upon moving abroad, Annalisa built a successful reputation as an Illustrator in the publishing and advertising industries.

Her father lived and taught in Dundee for much of his life and is seen as one of Scotland’s most important 20th century artists.

Her ‘Lockdown Island’ began as an assignment for the college class she teaches in Rennes, the capital of the French region of Brittany where Annalisa now resides. She loved the project so much that she felt she too had to get involved. The finished piece parodies stock piling, daily exercise, quarantine as well as the hunt for a vaccine.

In an article with The Courier over the summer, Annalisa mentioned how she wanted to introduce a little bit of humour during such an uncertain time. Painting the map, she says, brought back memories of growing up and attending school in Dundee.

FP Joins Volunteer Community Helping in Aftermath of Australian Bushfires

In August 2019, Class of 2016 Former Pupil, Benjamin Braid, decided to take a year out from his Sports Coaching degree to take up a coaching placement with BlueFit, a Leisure Facility Management Company in Sydney, Australia, moving between facilities in the New South Wales capital city and Newcastle.

In addition to his coaching commitments, Benjamin also trained as a Swimming Instructor and gained a Lifeguard qualification. When Covid-19 necessitated a lockdown of all sports facilities, the work stopped abruptly. As a result, Benjamin found a voluntary position working with BlazeAid, an organisation coordinating the bushfire recovery program in Australia. Being from a farming background himself, helping communities to rebuild after natural disasters held much appeal for Benjamin. He was fortunate enough to move to a camp in Wingham, NSW, just prior to complete lockdown. Despite enforced Covid-19 restrictions, the BlazeAid Teams were still able to operate on the farm sites in the Bush.

The Camp where they stayed however was locked down and they were not able to leave, with supplies instead being brought in. Each day they were driven to the site they were to work on, and in some cases, they could be on these sites for many weeks.

The team’s main tasks included cleaning, maintaining and organising all the equipment. Onsite they cleared the ground, debris, and burnt fencing. It was very important to save what they could from the fencing to be reused as all resources were vital. New fencing and strainer posts were put in and strung with barbed wire with any surplus wire rolled up to be used again. Any burnt posts not suitable for re-use were set aside for firewood.

The farmers were so very welcoming to the volunteers and made them feel at home. Benjamin was on one site for almost 6 weeks and the owners, Geoff and Marilyn Spence, wrote personally to the parents of each volunteer expressing their thanks and appreciation. Whilst at Wingham, Benjamin was also interviewed for the local newspaper, the Wingham Chronicle, and national radio about his involvement with BlazeAid.

Keeping the Music Playing

What do you do as a professional concert musician when the concert halls of the world have shut down due to a ferocious pandemic?

That was the question Class of 1992 alumna Christina Lawrie was uneasily asking herself on February 23rd as she was heading home following a solo piano recital for Dollar Music Society, in the lovely surroundings of Dollar Academy. Christina’s violinist husband Marcus Barcham Stevens had been performing chamber music that same day with fellow members of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra in the Queen's Hall in Edinburgh. Concert halls were full at that time and life was still relatively normal.

Just four weeks later, the UK was locked down. However, in the hope of bringing some joy and solace to isolated music-lovers, the duo launched their #ConcertFromOurLivingRoom series on Christina’s YouTube channel, the first of which was broadcast on Sunday 22nd March at 4pm. Marcus should have been performing with the SCO in Eden Court Theatre in Inverness that same day. The first concert coincided with Mothering Sunday, and so was a Mothers' Day gift from the couple and their daughter, Mairi-Anna.

The fortnightly concerts are free to tune into, but there is also an option to make a donation via PayPal. The repertoire is classical, along with some Scottish traditional music.

Christina says “It has been lovely to recapture the tradition of the Schubertiade in our own home (although Schubert was arrested for the dangerously revolutionary activity of performing in a house concert!) Performing from our living room has given us a reason to keep practising, stay focused and has maintained our identity as concert artists. Many of our listeners e-mail us after every concert and it has been a delight for us to get to know them. I can't wait for the day when I can meet these lovely people in person and perform a live concert for them. In these strange times, I really think music has the power to nourish our souls.”

Back in October 2015, Christina returned to the High School of Dundee to perform with the eminent British baritone Stephen Varcoe. The programme included Purcell's haunting Music for a While, the first line of which Christina says came back to her recently; “Music for a while shall all your cares beguile”.

To access the concerts, please visit bit.ly/35GEKXZ

Alternatively, you can access the concerts via Christina’s Twitter account, where there is also information on how to donate in lieu of a ticket: www.twitter.com/piano_christina

The photograph of Christina and Marcus was taken by their young daughter, Mairi-Anna, who has an avid interest in the world of photography!

FP’s Round the World Challenge From Home to Raise Money for the NHS

Mark Beaumont, world renowned cyclist and Class of 2001 Former Pupil, jumped into the saddle of his bike to fundraise for front line staff in the NHS.

From 23rd April to 14th May 2020, each Thursday, a group of cyclists and rowers formed a ‘virtual peloton,’ to raise money for NHS Charities Together. The aim was to #donateyourmiles and raise over £18,000 a week – for the 18,000 mile distance for cycling around the world – but they smashed that target with a total of over £230,000.

More than 400 people joined Mark for the World In One Day challenge, including Paralympians Steve Bate MBE and Mel Nicholls, as well as female round-the-world record holder Jenny Graham.

150 rowers led by ocean adventurer John “Mad Giraffe” Davidson also joined Mark’s plight, covering a combined 3,000 miles, the same distance as crossing the Atlantic.

Mark said the response to the initiative, which raised £167,000 in its first two weeks, was “overwhelming” with participants clocking up 36,000 miles for charity – the equivalent of travelling twice around the world.

Before the challenge commenced, Mark encouraged people of all abilities to take part and to nominate friends and other family members. He said “Many of us feel powerless right now. So, let’s show the world the difference we can make and show our appreciation for the tremendous sacrifices our frontline healthcare workers are making.”

Congratulations to Mark and all who took part on their fantastic fundraising efforts for the NHS!

You can read the article published in The Courier here: bit.ly/35EAgB6

Or visit the World In A Day website here to read more: www.worldinaday.com

FP Stays Local, Goes Global

Elisabeth (Liz) Blackburn (Class of 1982) graduated from the University of Dundee with a Bachelor of Administrative Studies degree (B.Admin) and has worked for a number of blue chip financial services organisations in financial control and risk roles in Dundee and Edinburgh.

Liz has been a member of the ACCA – the world’s largest accountancy qualification with 227,000 members and 544,000 future members – since 2000 and was elected by fellow members to the ACCA’s Global Council (their governing body) in November 2017.

Liz serves on the Remuneration Committee and chairs the ACCA’s Accountants for Business Global Forum – a practical forum with 25 CFOs from around the world discussing a wide range of topics, and which informs the ACCA’s Professional Insights research work. Liz is also an ex officio member of the ACCA Scotland Committee.

Prior to being elected to Council in 2017, Liz chaired both the ACCA’s UK Financial Services Member Network Panel and the Edinburgh & East of Scotland equivalent. She was awarded ACCA UK Advocate of the Year 2016 in recognition of her 'contribution made to promote the profession and to actively inspire the accountants of tomorrow'.

“I love the global perspective that ACCA membership brings,’” said Liz. “I now have close colleagues and friends all over the world as a member of ACCA’s global community. Whilst it’s fantastic on a personal level, it’s also really powerful for the ACCA too. I’ve spoken at a number of events and mentored future members. I’m always keen to talk about the difference that the ACCA qualification can make to someone’s life, just like it did for me.

“I’ve seen so many people gain their qualification, and then experience a surge of self-confidence. It transforms lives. That is wonderful to witness.”

FP Publishes Creative and Colourful Children’s Book

I attended HSD between 1982 and 1987, leaving after fifth year to go on to Duncan of Jordanstone. I loved being up in those bright airy art studios in the rafters of the main building. For me, art was always my only career choice.

The idea for my book Tumshie formed during walks to school with my youngest son, Elliot. I’d loved Halloween when I was wee, and now as a dad the responsibility fell to me to create costumes for my own kids. While it was easy enough buying a ready-made costume, I wanted to show them that you could have fun making your own using a load of corrugated cardboard, some Scotch tape and a bit of imagination. A robot? The Empire State Building? Even a tornado? Elliot was full of ideas.

Elliot asked what Halloween was like when I was a kid in ‘the olden days’ (that’s the 1970s, folks). Things were much simpler, I told him. You made your own costume; you went guising, not trickor-treating; and you earned your Halloween by ‘doing a turn’. Most importantly, you carved a turnip or ‘tumshie’ lantern — not a pumpkin. You couldn’t even find pumpkins in shops back then.

We thought that this could make a fun book — showing little folk how sometimes simpler ways are better, and to remind bigger folk of how things used to be. Working in publishing, I had the good fortune of being able to pitch the idea to my own employer, Waverley Books. Fast forward a few years and Tumshie was published, in the teeth of a global pandemic — amidst talk of Halloween being cancelled!

Having my drawings appear in the school magazine was probably my first taste of the excitement of being published. The joy of the printed page — so much more evocative than a screen. That excitement of seeing your own creation out in the world is indelible, even after twenty-odd years of designing and illustrating in publishing. Now, with Tumshie, it’s not just a pride of ownership but also, in promotion, a responsibility to ‘do right’ by it. It’s like having yet another child!

Mark Mechan, Class of 1988

To see more of what Mark has been up to you can visit his website here: redaxedesign.jimdofree.com

You can also visit his publisher’s website here: bit.ly/3kEs0ax

Life in the Metropolitan Police

Class of 1967 FP, Gordon Aitken, joined the High School of Dundee in 1958 but relocated to Glasgow in 1963 after his father received a promotion. Leaving Kelvinside Academy, Gordon then joined the team at Clydesdale Bank’s Campbeltown branch where he remained until 1972 when he made the decision to change career paths and joined the Metropolitan Police.

Reflecting back on his very early days in the police force Gordon recalls “On my fifth day at training school, in early February 1972, I had to throw myself from a high diving board into a pool below. My fear of heights allied with an always wimpish pool-entry via the steps led to a stalemate. All the eyes of my fellow classmates were firmly fixed on me and so the only solution to save face was to jump! After surviving 16 gruelling weeks at training school I was assigned to my first post in Acton, West London”.

No two days were the same for Gordon, who regularly dealt with crimes and accidents including sudden, unexpected deaths and fatal accidents, such as the Ealing Train Disaster of 1973. He regularly appeared in both the Magistrates and Crown Courts.

By 1980, Gordon had passed his Promotion Exam and was then assigned to work in West Hendon, Golders Green and Finchley.

Gordon recalls many highlights from his time working in the Metropolitan Police saying “you learned to adapt to the different scenarios you were faced with and particularly the darker side of the job. A sense of humour was paramount”.

From nearly being killed in his first tour of duty as Sergeant when the van he was a passenger in lost control on a bend to controlling the crowds following Margaret Thatcher’s successful election in 1987, Gordon certainly has many memorable moments in his police career to look back on.

The year 1989 led to a momentous change in his career when Gordon was appointed as Youth Liaison Officer where he was responsible for supervising six officers providing talks to senior school pupils. This opened up an opportunity to join Barnet Youth Offending Team whose work primarily focused on deterring youth offending. His final posting saw him working with two Probation Officers and thirty offenders, visiting them in prison, at court or in their homes, travelling up and down the country in order to do so.

Following his retirement from the police force in 2011, Gordon became a Magistrate in St Albans. There he met a fellow Magistrate, a fellow HSD Former Pupil from the Class of 1968.

High School Sweethearts

Claire Scanlon and Kenny Ross first met at the High School of Dundee, both joining at the same time in 1985, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that they properly reconnected and fell in love.

Claire is currently living and working in America at the moment and Kenny is hoping to move there and join her in the New Year once the borders reopen. Kenny had a fiancé visa from the US authorities but plans were forced to be put on hold when the USA closed its borders due to the pandemic.

The pair got engaged on Christmas Day in 2018 and plan to get married in 2021 and are excited at the prospect of a new life together in the States and what the future holds.

FP Sinks Competitors and is Awarded the Warden Berry Prize for Reservists

Cameron receiving the Warden Berry Prize for Reservists.

Cameron Tisshaw (Class of 2013) was awarded the Warden Berry Prize for Best Essay by a Royal Navy Reservist for 2019. The competition challenges reservists of the Royal Navy to produce a defence writing piece related to current maritime affairs topics, with the winning article published in the Naval Review. The publication is read widely within the UK maritime defence community and provides authors with a platform to discuss key security issues.

For his entry, Cameron wrote an essay titled ‘The Future Role of the Royal Navy in Africa,’ which looked at how UK defence can maximise its impact on the African Continent. As the UK approaches the uncertainty of Brexit, establishing new trading partnerships will be important to future success. Arguably one of the most important of these links is Africa given that Britain is investing significant amounts of trade and security assistance to various African states. The recent deployment of British troops to Mali – Britain’s first significant return to an active war zone since Afghanistan – has highlighted the increasing focus which the UK defence leadership is placing on Africa.

At the Estonia NATO Conference with the British Ambassador to Estonia Theresa Bubbear (left) and the former Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Rõivas (right).

In addition to security assistance, Britain has worked to enhance trading opportunities. For example, Prime Minister Boris Johnson invited a delegation of African leaders to London in January 2020. Cameron’s essay argued that the Royal Navy should aim to work alongside private companies to establish a more effective British strategy for Africa. This argument was inspired by his work as the Head Africa and Eastern Europe Security Analyst for the multinational bank Citi. In this role, he advised the bank on major operational threats such as terrorism, kidnapping and civil unrest for these regions.

Cameron is currently studying his master’s degree in Russian and East European studies at Tartu University in Estonia after winning a prestigious EU Erasmus scholarship. This two-year degree will also take him to Glasgow University and Kyiv, Ukraine for a further year.

Neil Stevenson

24 years after leaving the School, Neil Stevenson (Class of 1996) still cites Irene McGrath and Tom Durrheim as major influences. Neil recalls how, as debating coaches, they brought him out of his shell, taught him analysis, to read widely, to construct a logical case, and to make it persuasive. They taught him confidence to present and to think on his feet.

Now a Chief Executive of one regulator (the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission) and Non-Executive Director of another (the Advertising Standard Authority), Neil leads teams undertaking complex and technical work, but also must represent these organisations to stakeholders, government and the media. Looking back to the 90s, Neil says how his parents weren’t convinced the new ‘media studies’ course, led by Mr. Ilsely, would really be good for his CV. However, Neil credits these skills as being just as useful as his Law degree, which he obtained from Edinburgh, and his Masters in Quality Management, which he studied at Birmingham.

In terms of personal interests, Neil claims a passion for ancient history was inspired by Mrs. Collie and Mr. Meehan, an interest in ‘modern’ history stemmed from the teachings of Mr. Wilson and Miss McAslan (now the School’s current Rector, Mrs. Hudson) and an interest in economics and the regulation of markets by Mr. McCulloch. Neil claims many of his interests link back to great experiences at the High School of Dundee. He admits he didn’t necessarily realise it at the time, but the huge focus on variety and on finding things you were good at, rather than having one definition of ‘good’, was something he believes was truly special about the School’s approach.

Attitudes in the 90s were a little different to modern day, but in his sixth year Neil also said he found the school community largely supportive as he came out as gay. Speaking about this, Neil said “I do wish there had been some more role models to look up to, and hope there are now more for LGBTI+ pupils, but I’m glad I didn’t have the negative experiences that many did”. Neil’s interest in equality has led him to chairing a national charity, Changing the Chemistry, which supports senior people from diverse backgrounds to move into non-executive roles in the Boardroom.

Neil recalls his best single lesson from school days as being Miss Holloway firmly telling him if he was bored in class it was his fault, not hers. He now has a love for poetry and has also learnt that throwing yourself into things and getting involved, rather than being a passive observer, means you are never bored. Something which he cites as a great life lesson.

Scott Brothers Supporting Students Self-Isolating in Dundee

When Scott Brothers heard that hundreds of students living in halls of residence across the city had been ordered to self-isolate in October, we immediately knew that we wanted to help in any way that we possibly could. Being a locally based, family-run business for over 80 years now, we are deeply rooted in our community and so it was natural that we would act to be supportive to those choosing to live, work and study in the city.

We had recently supported Dundee’s Champions Awards, sponsoring the Business Champion category. This particular category aimed to acknowledge local firms that have gone above and beyond to help vulnerable people in our communities, and so we were inspired to react similarly to help the people of the city through this troubled time.

It was decided that we would deliver more than 200 food parcels containing freshly prepared microwavable ready meals to halls of residence across the city where students were self-isolating.

We could more than understand the students' frustrations at being cooped up in student accommodation and being unable to have immediate access to locally sourced, fresh and tasty food. To make things a little bit easier for them, we wanted to provide free ready meals that can be heated up in the microwave. Convenience food, but with real quality, great-tasting ingredients. Each meal was individually portioned for easy heating and storage – ideal for student living.

Our ready meal range is a popular choice with our customers, both in-store and on our online shop, so we knew that they would go down well with the students too.

It has, of course, been an incredibly tough time for many businesses and we have been very thankful for how our new and loyal customers have supported us and our local suppliers through these tough times. It’s important for us that we continue to provide a high level of service to our community, even against the most difficult of backdrops.

Scott Jarron, Class of 1985 Owner of Scott Brothers Butchers

HSD FP’s Achievements Hit the Headlines

The achievements of John Gardiner, Class of 2020, were featured in the local news back in August. The Courier newspaper shone the spotlight on John's journey to become School Dux and soon-to-be Astrophysics undergraduate!

John, who failed his fourth-year maths test, scoring just 13% in one test, left the School this summer with six A-grade Highers and Advanced Highers along with a selection of prizes, which included the Harris Gold Medal for Dux of the School.

He has recently started studying Astrophysics at Edinburgh University, which could lead him into a career with the likes of NASA. His performance at school was described as outstanding by former Rector, John Halliday, and stunned his parents Derek and Evelyn.

After learning at a parents’ night that John was underperforming in maths, his parents tried to steer him towards other subjects he was better at, such as art and history. But John was determined, and they hired a tutor, which commercial manager Derek said was a turning point. He also developed a good relationship with his school maths teacher and began testing himself with past papers.

Shortly after his National 5s maths prelim, John excelled in the real exam, scoring 96% and earning the prize for most improved student. John credits his maths teachers, Mrs. Craig and Mr. Middleton, and physics teacher, Mr. Darby, for their support.

John also added three band one As in Advanced Higher maths, physics and mathematics of mechanics to his impressive list of qualifications in his final year.

Image credit: The Courier

You can read the full Courier article here: bit.ly/2G8e6OU

Career Planning – More Luck Than Judgement – in My Case!

There were three virtual certainties at the end of my 13 years of HSD education – I would not be a scientist, a sportsman, or an artist, as my great teachers of the day would have testified.

Journalism, following in my late Dad’s footsteps, or ‘something to do with cars’, would have been more accurate predictions.

Fortuitously, I won a motor industry scholarship, in support of my degree studies, spending the ensuing ten or so years, in increasingly responsible positions with Jaguar, Citroen, and latterly Land Rover.

A couple of logical progressions followed, into FMCG and Utilities companies, and subsequently into a successful career finale, in business consulting around the world, with a range of large highly-respected corporate clients.

Thus far then, nothing to indicate what would grab my attention and passion in retirement, when I hung up my well-worn passport, and my array of travel loyalty cards! “Why would you want to do that?”, asked my incredulous wife, as I applied to become a voluntary Community First Responder (CFR) for the Ambulance Service, providing basic life support as ‘first-on-scene’ local resource for my semi-rural area of Yorkshire.

Trained and kitted out with the required equipment, so commenced my retirement volunteer career, requiring me to attend over two hundred 999 calls, including 8-10 cardiac arrests, during 60-80 hours per month of dedicated on-call time.

As I write, I am sadly side-lined from the role by Covid-19, which I am not equipped or prepared to handle as a non-clinical and veteran volunteer – I can’t wait to return when I can be protected by reliable vaccination.

Meanwhile I reflect happily and proudly on finding a role that gives something back directly to my community, as I support patients, sometimes neighbours and friends, in their most frightening initial moments until an ambulance crew arrives to take over from me.

The CFR role exists, in normal times, across the UK – I commend it to anyone who is willing to spend time ‘on-call’, with no real idea of the nature of the next call, and with the ability to follow strictlydefined process, providing calm reassurance and immediate support to people who put their lives in your hands.

Who would ever have predicted that my many happy years at HSD and in subsequent business life would have led me here?

Iain Stewart, Class of 1974