Notable former pupils of the high school have included two
prime ministers, the founder of the
University of Aberdeen, the current and most recent
principals of the University of Glasgow and numerous judges and
law officers, including two former
Lord President of the Court of Session, as well as politicians, businessmen and academics.
Academia •
Ross Anderson, professor of security engineering,
University of Cambridge •
Duncan Inglis Cameron, secretary of
Heriot-Watt University • Sir
Ian Heilbron, professor of organic chemistry at
Imperial College London • Sir
Joseph Dalton Hooker, botanist, president of the
Royal Society •
John Horne, geologist • Professor
Sheila McLean, director, Institute of Law and Ethics in Medicine,
University of Glasgow School of Law • Sir
Mungo William MacCallum, vice-chancellor of the
University of Sydney •
Sir Anton Muscatelli,
economist,
Principal of the University of Glasgow •
Sir Muir Russell,
Principal of the University of Glasgow • Professor Sir
Thomas Smith, general editor, The Laws of Scotland: Stair Memorial Encyclopædia •
Bernard Wasserstein, historian
Arts •
Thomas Campbell, poet •
Norman Fulton, composer •
Avril Gibb, artist and calligrapher •
Graeme Kelling, guitarist with
Deacon Blue •
Edwin Morgan OBE,
poet,
The Scots Makar •
Eric Woolfson, songwriter and musician
Business •
John Bannerman, Baron Bannerman of Kildonan, farmer and
Liberal Politician •
William Beardmore, 1st Baron Invernairn, industrialist •
John Elder, shipbuilder •
Norman Macfarlane, Baron Macfarlane of Bearsden KT, industrialist and
life peer •
James Mavor, economist •
William Smart, economist
Law •
Hazel Cosgrove, Lady Cosgrove, first female
senator of the College of Justice (retired) •
Charles Dickson, Lord Dickson,
Lord Justice Clerk and
Lord Advocate •
George Emslie, Baron Emslie,
Lord President of the Court of Session •
David Fleming, Lord Fleming, senator of the College of Justice and
Solicitor General •
Arthur Campbell Hamilton, Lord Hamilton, Lord President of the Court of Session •
Harald Leslie, Lord Birsay,
chairman of the Scottish Land Court •
Alexander Philip, Lord Philip, senator of the College of Justice •
Harold Sheppard, solicitor and public notary in Singapore •
Henry Wilson, Baron Wilson of Langside, Lord Advocate • Roddy Dunlop, Dean of the Faculty of Advocates from 2020
Media •
Muriel Gray, journalist and broadcaster •
Fyfe Robertson, Scottish television journalist •
Katharine Whitehorn, journalist and feminist •
Susan Calman, comedian and panellist
Military •
Field Marshal Colin Campbell, 1st Baron Clyde, senior British Army officer •
Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore, senior British Army officer •
Surgeon Vice Admiral Alasdair Walker, senior Royal Navy officer and
Surgeon-General Politics •
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman,
prime minister •
Bonar Law,
prime minister •
James Bryce,
British Ambassador to the United States •
John Annan Bryce,
Liberal Party UK MP •
Sir Henry Craik, 1st Baronet, MP for
Glasgow and Aberdeen Universities •
Barry Gardiner,
Labour Party UK MP •
James Gray,
Conservative Party UK MP •
Iain MacCormick,
Scottish National Party MP •
Professor Sir Neil MacCormick, jurist and SNP
MEP •
Anna McCurley,
Conservative Party UK MP •
John Macdonald,
Liberal Party UK MP • Sir
Walter Menzies,
Liberal Party UK MP •
Anne Pringle,
ambassador to Russia •
Steve Rodan,
Speaker of the House of Keys •
Sir Teddy Taylor,
Conservative Party UK MP •
Charles Gray, HM Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco and latterly Marshall of the Diplomatic Corps
Religion •
William Elphinstone,
Bishop of Aberdeen and founder of the
University of Aberdeen •
Robert Reid Kalley, physician and missionary to Portuguese-speaking territories •
David Lacy,
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, 2005 •
David Lunan, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, 2008 •
R Guy Ramsay, Baptist minister and president of the Baptist Union of Scotland, 1948–49 •
Very Revd Dr John R Gray, minister of Dunblane Cathedral and Moderator of the General Assembly
Science •
Fergus Campbell FRS, Professor of Physiology • Sir
James Hough FRS, physicist, leader in the discovery of
gravitational waves •
Halliday Sutherland, physician and author
Sport •
John Christie, cricketer •
Bobby Clark, Aberdeen FC and Scotland goalkeeper •
Walter Coulter, amateur footballer • Frank Deighton, golfer •
Alison Sheppard, Olympic and Commonwealth swimmer •
Harold Sheppard, cricketer •
Charlie Telfer, footballer In addition, 29 one-time pupils of the High School have represented Scotland at international level in rugby union. They include John Bannerman, Angus Cameron, Donald Cameron, Jimmy Docherty, John Dykes, George Frew, Jimmy Ireland, Hamish Kemp, Ian Shaw and Robert Wilson Shaw.
Other •
Temple Moore, architect •
Ian McDonald, civil servant, spokesman for the
Ministry of Defence during the
Falklands War ==Notable staff==