Alumni

A cheerfulness* of Agricultural Chemists

A little over a year ago, through a conversation on that ‘accurate window on the world of work’ that is LinkedIn, it occurred to me and Munro-hopping Billy Herron that 2026 would mark the 40th anniversary of our graduation. What followed was a fantastic detective trail of discovery that managed to bring a good group of us together for a delightful night of reminiscence and updating.

Of course, none of us have aged one bit, and we did some homework beforehand by sharing potted biographies against four headings (great idea, Edward Ferguson): work, personal, travel/locations, and health. Can’t say we weren’t well briefed to pick up conversations from 1986 as we gathered for drinks at the Last Bookshop and strolled in the typical Glasgow August sunshine to Ardnamurhcan to eat (inadvertently piped in by a band practising for the World Pipe Band Championships at the nearby National Piping School).

The years fell away and the time evaporated and shared stories about our variously wiggly career paths, overlapping in some cases, emerged: contaminated land, agrochemicals, teaching, research, policy and more.

A common conversational theme was the continued respect and regard we had for the people who taught and developed us as undergraduates – the inestimable Harry Duncan, Michael Beglan, Hugh Flowers, Mike Jarvis, and Iain Pulford and the effect (good, all good!) they had on our futures. At least one toast was made…maybe more…but a genuine and heartfelt thank you to you all.

We didn’t quite manage to get everyone from our group, and there are connections to follow-up amongst the people we knew in years above and following ours, so we’re not going to wait for another forty years for a reason to get together. If that idea appeals, Agricultural Chemists of the 1980’s, let me know. You won’t (I think) regret it.

Simon Gallacher (sgallacher65@gmail.com)

*Internationally recognised collective noun for Agricultural Chemists

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First published: 15 September 2026