Robert Murray (S 1968) very kindly arranged the most enjoyable Annual Lunch on Sunday 3rd May at the Railbridge, a delightful restaurant in the lee of the iconic Forth (Rail) Bridge in Scotland which was built between 1883 and 1890 opening on the 4th March 1890. It was the first major steel structure in the UK and remains a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The first gathering of Scottish ODs was instigated by Brian de Kock, and a much-respected Member of the School Teaching Staff, and who served as OD Secretary for many years. He is a Vice-President of the OD Union and was a dedicated educator. He taught Latin from 1958 to 1996 and was Housemaster of Founders House. He has been closely associated with Bishops since 1943.

We had hoped to be a table of ten which is a remarkably good turnout for a very small OD group who live in Scotland but sadly, and at the last minute on Sunday morning, David Bowie and his wife Sally, were unable to attend.

David Bowie was of course one of the inaugral attendees with Peter McMorland, Robert Murray and Tim Rideout alongside Brian De Kock.

Interstingly, Tim Rideout’s Father started rowing at Bishops fifty years ago and he hopes to be in Cape Town to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Rowing at Bishops together, he hopes, with his nephew Nicholas McAdam. Nicholas rowed at Bishops and then from 2023 to 2025 at Princeton. In 2025 he led Princeton to wins over Yale and Cornell, Temple, La Salle and Georgetown. And in 2024, he rowed on the 2V that went undefeated in its regular season and for the first time in program History. And in the same year, his Princeton VIII came second in the Temple Challenge out of 32 University boats at the Henley Regatta. He was, and amongst other accomplishments, the 2019 Oarsman of the Year for Bishops and the Western Cape.

The attendees were (from left to right in the top row ) Terry O’Donovan (who was part of the Careers guidance staff) , Tim Rideout (1978), Charles McGregor (1968), Frans Kooy (1968) and Robert Murray (1968), and (from left to right in the front row) Dalene Swanson, Peter McMorland (1964), and Anja Gunderloch.

Dalene Swanson is, of course, a Member of the OD Union, and is now a Professor of Education at the University of Nottingham. She was a Mathematics Teacher from January 1987 to July 1996, and was a Member of Birt House, whilst at the School.

Charles McGregor

Convenor

The UK OD Union Branch 6th May 2026