Skip To Main Content

Our Honorary Fellow 2024

Lord Chris Smith with Captains, Azzam and Jedidah
  • Junior School
  • Senior School

Following on from the first Foundation Day in February 2023, this week we have celebrated the inaugural George Watson’s College Foundation Week to continue the evolution of our celebrations from a veneration of our founder to a celebration of what our school stands for and how we want those values to shape our future endeavours. 

The week has seen a different school value being focussed on each day, beginning with Aim High on Monday through to Ex Corde Caritas today (Friday 11 October).

The main focus of today was our Senior School Gathering where we awarded the second Honorary Fellowship of George Watson’s College. The Honorary Fellowship was introduced at the first Foundation Day and is awarded by the authority of the School’s Governing Council to those individuals who:

  • Have a close association with George Watson's College, for example as a former pupil, a parent or former member of staff; and

  • Have achieved distinction in a field of human endeavour, whether intellectual, professional, practical, civic or humanitarian; and who exemplify the School's values and motto, Ex Corde Caritas.

The Honorary Fellowship of George Watson’s College in 2024 has been awarded to The Rt Hon Lord Smith of Finsbury PC MA PhD (Class of 1969).

Born in Watford in 1951, Chris Smith moved to Edinburgh with his family at the age of ten. Educated at Watson’s and then Pembroke College, Cambridge, Chris achieved a double first in English (and later a PhD on Wordsworth and Coleridge) and was also a Kennedy Scholar at Harvard.  

Chris began his political career as a Labour Councillor for Islington Borough and became MP for Islington South and Finsbury in 1983.  When the Labour Government was elected in 1997, Chris was appointed Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, and Chairman of the Millennium Commission. During his four years as Secretary of State he restored free admission to national museums and galleries, established NESTA, the Film Council, Creative Partnerships for Schools, and the Foundation for Youth Music, expanded funding for the arts and sport, championed the creative industries across Government, and began the switchover process for digital television. 

He returned to the back benches in 2001 and played a leading role in opposing the Iraq War, standing down from the House of Commons in 2005. Elevated to the House of Lords the same year, he took on a variety of subsequent roles, including Chair of the Environment Agency from 2008 to 2014, Chair of the Advertising Standards Authority from 2007 to 2017 and Honorary President of the Wordsworth Trust. He was appointed Master of Pembroke College, Cambridge in 2015.

As a recently elected MP in 1984, Chris Smith gave a short impromptu speech at a rally in Rugby in support of gay council workers who were being discriminated against by their employer. By declaring in that speech that he was himself gay, Chris became the first ever openly gay Member of Parliament and he is thought also to have been the first openly gay Cabinet Minister anywhere in the world. His example helped to change social attitudes to LGBTQ+ people and he was a role model to LGBTQ+ people in all parties and in all aspects of public life. Chris has also been candid about living with HIV, again helping to change social attitudes and dispel prejudice.

As an active Watsonian and great supporter of the school, Chris Smith is a proud advocate of embodying our values: Aim High, Join In, Respect All and Be Kind. He lists mountaineering as one of his interests, having been introduced to the mountains on S3 Projects. He participated in the  Watsonian Munro Challenge which marked the 60th anniversary of S3 Projects last year and continues to connect with the outdoors whenever possible.

Not only that, Chris has always sought to seek out Watsonian connections and support those in our community whenever the opportunity may arise. A notion that was apparent just a few years ago when he connected with fellow Watsonian, Calum Rennie (Class of 2020) at an alumni event in Cambridge. At today’s Senior School Gathering, Calum was delighted to attend with his mother Mrs Sam Rennie and honour Chris' accolade. Calum remarked that it was, in fact, Chris who encouraged him to pick up his bagpipes again, having been prevented from playing during the pandemic. At the time, Chris was involved in a piping competition at Pembroke College and persuaded Calum to showcase his musical aptitude and enter. This led to Calum winning that competition in 2023 but, just as importantly, it also led to him securing many piping ‘jobs’ for Burns Suppers and other such events during his 2nd & 3rd year at Cambridge University. Calum also became the treasurer and one of the organisers responsible for getting the Scottish Society back up and running at Cambridge University. The Rennie family have a debt of gratitude to Chris who helped Calum in the midst of the tumultuous times of the pandemic in a hugely significant way.

At Watson’s we are delighted that such an inspirational figure, noted for being a ‘trailblazer’ in our society, has accepted the role of Honorary Fellow for 2024. Throughout Chris’ time at school and of course, his vast career, he has proved the importance of Ex Corde Caritas - a principle he reiterated to pupils when he encouraged them to embrace the Watson’s values both now and beyond the gates of Colinton Road.

Junior School Love from the Heart formation

 

  • Honorary Fellowship