Honorary Presidents

Lord Offord of Garvel CVO

Lord Offord of Garvel CVO

The title of Honorary President is given to the person who has proposed the Immortal Memory at our Annual Celebration.
The Hon. President is an ambassador and figurehead of the club.

This year’s Honorary President is a proud son of Greenock: Lord Offord of Garvel CVO.

Malcolm Offord was born in Greenock and educated at Ardgowan Primary School and Greenock Academy. After graduating in Law from the University of Edinburgh he pursued a successful career in the City of London before returning to Scotland to develop his private equity firm in Edinburgh: Badenoch & Co.

He was enobled in October 2021 and under the last Conservative government, held the Offices of Under Secretary of State (Minister for Exports) and Under Secretary of State for Scotland.

The club is proud to have Lord Offord as our Honorary President for 2024.

1886 - 1956

1886    Lt. Col. W.O. Leitch
1887    Rev John Barclay
1888    Sheriff Nicolson
1889    Professor Blackie
1890    Lord Pearson
1891    Andrew Lang
1892    Provost David Masson
1893    Lord Blythswood
1894    Sir J.M. Barrie
1895    Professor Sir H. Jones
1896    Rev. John Watson (Ian MacLaren)
1897    Rev. Hugh MacMillan
1898    William Jacks
1899    Sir Thomas Sutherland
1900    William Wallace
1901    Robert Laird
1902    Sir James Sivewright
1903    Neil Munro
1904    T.P. O'Connor
1905    Professor William M. Dixon
1906    Rev. John Hunter
1907    Sir Hugh Shaw Stewart
1908    Sir John Ure Primrose,
1909    Principal Sir D. Macallister
1910    Sir Hugh Shaw Stewart
1911    Bishop of Glasgow and Galloway, Rt. Rev. A.E. Campbell
1912    Hugh P. McMillan
1913    Rt.Hon. Sir G.H. Reid
1914    Professor R.S. Rait
1915/18      FIRST WORLD WAR
1919    Lord Glenconner
1920    Rt.Hon. Robert Munro
1921    Professor Charles A. Martin
1922    Lord Sands
1923    General Sir I. Hamilton
1924    Earl of Elgin and Kincardine
1925    Sir Robert Bruce
1926    Rt. Rev. John White
1927    Principal A.M. Williams
1928    Rev. A. Boyd Scott
1929    Professor Charles Sarolea
1930    E.R. Mitchell
1931    Sir Joseph Dobbie
1932    Very Rev. Charles L. Warr
1933    Rev. Canon J. Wilkinson
1934    Rt. Hon. Sir G. Collins
1935    Professor J.L. Morison
1936    Sir Thomas Oliver
1937    Sir Thomas Oliver
1938    Ex-Provost J. Drummond jun.
1939    Rev. Adam Burnett
1940    D. Templeton.
1941    Rev. R.D. Langlands Seath
1942    John S. Clarke
1943    Sir Patrick Dollan
1944    The Earl of Rosebery
1945    Compton Mackenzie
1946    Eric Linklater
1947    Douglas Young
1948    The Earl of Selkirk
1949    Thomas B. Goudie
1950    Rev. Arthur Robertson
1951    Lt. Col. T.M. Riddell
1952    Rt. Hon. Thomas Johnston
1953    Lord Glentanar
1954    Professor John D. Mackie
1955    Rev. Dr. H.C. Whitley
1956    Ivor J.C. Brown

1957 - 2023

1957    Sir Robert Boothby
1958   
Walter Elliot
1958   
W.D. Cocker
1959   
Professor David Daiches
1960
Ian MacArthur
1961
Lord Bruce
1962   
C.M. Grieve
1963   
George S. Fraser
1964   
William McL. Dewar
1965   
Professor Andrew Kay
1966   
Sir Ian Moncrieffe of that Ilk
1967   
Sheriff Francis Middleton
1968   
Maurice Lindsay
1969   
Dr. Hugh Gillies
1970.
Rev. Robert Paterson
1971   
J.E.T. Thompson
1972   
Professor W. Barclay
1973   
The Hon. The Lord Birsay
1974   
Sir Donald Liddle
1975   
George Johnston
1976   
Rt. Hon Lord Barnetson
1977   
Very Rev. R. Leonard Small
1978   
Rev. J.T. Runciman
1979   
Thomas G. Anderson
1980
Very Rev. Peter P. Brodie
1981   
Shedden Alexander
1982   
Rev. John W. Cook
1983   
Dr Ian Grimble
1984   
Lord Ross of Marnock
1985   
Farquhar MacIntosh
1986   
Sir Kenneth Alexander
1987   
Dr. James Connor, President, The Burns Federation
1988   
Grant Carson
1989   
D. Wilson Ogilvie
1990   
Dr Andrew Noble
1991   
Joe Campbell
1992   
Professor David Purdie
1993   
Drew Cochrane
1994  
  Rt. Hon. Earl of Elgin & Kincardine
1995   
Professor Edward Cowan
1996    Leonard Murray
1997    Rev. Melville Schofield
1998    John Htet Khin
1999    Murdo Morrison
2000   Ronald Munton
2001   Carl McDougall
2002   Lord Steel of Aikwood
2003   Peter Kormylo
2004   David Sibbald
2005    James Bowes
2006   Sheena Wellington
2007   Rev. Fraser Aitken
2008   Dr. Archibald Fleming
2009   Dr. Ken Simpson
2010    John Shirkie
2011   
Jack Glenny
2012   
Alasdair Hendry
2013   
Dr. Kirsteen McCue
2014   
Jane Brown
2015   
Angus Middleton
2016   
Joe Gatherer
2017   
Jim Thomson
2018   
Moira Hansen
2019
Bobby Kane
2020
Baron Wallace of Tankerness QC, FRSE
2021
Professor Gerard Carruthers FRSE
2022 Andrew S. McKenzie
2023 Alan D. Beck
2024 Lord Offord of Garvel CVO