I was born in Glasgow in 1944.
I attended my local primary and secondary schools, and subsequently Glasgow University,
After graduating with a degree in French and German, I had various jobs – manual labour, proof reading dictionaries for a publishing firm, and latterly for a whaling company looking to diversify into other fishing-related activities. Then I found real job satisfaction when I qualified as a teacher, and spent the rest of my working life in Secondary schools in Scotland.
When I retired from teaching, I started attending an adult education class in 2007, run by Dundee University. The class was entitled ‘Learning to be a writer’, and was tutored by Esther Read.
When Esther retired in 2015, the class became an autonomous writing group, and took the name Nethergate Writers. For the next couple of years, I was the chairperson of this new incarnation.
I write short stories, and my work has appeared in all of Nethergate Writer’s anthologies from 2008 onwards. One of them was made into a film as part of the Ties to the Tay project of Dundee University;and two monologues have been recorded by actors of Pitlochry Festival Theatre. I have also had work published in Northwards Now.
The friendly feedback and constructive criticism provided by members of Nethergate Writers is typical of the supportive atmosphere within the group.
I enjoy hillwalking, cycling and, back in the day, squash.
I am married to Anna, and we have three daughters and eight grandchildren.