
CHAIR
A prominent actuary, Ronnie Bowie spent most of his career at Hymans Robertson, including a fifteen year stint as Senior Partner between 2002 and 2017. As well as leading the strategic growth programme which established the firm as the UK’s leading actuarial consultancy, he also spearheaded the merger of the UK’s two actuarial bodies,
creating the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries; subsequently becoming its first President. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, he also serves as the Chair of the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice in Glasgow, and is involved in the current work to bring the Eden Project to Dundee.

Francesca Hegyi OBE is Executive Director at the Edinburgh International Festival. She has worked in culture, the arts and major events for more than 25 years. Most recently as Executive Director of Hull 2017 UK City of Culture which reached over 95% of Hull residents, created over 800 jobs and added more than £300 million to the local economy. Francesca was awarded an OBE in the New Year’s Honours list 2018 for this work. She began her career in the museums sector before becoming Head of Regions and International at the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. In 2005, she joined the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Here she was responsible for the framework for the UK-wide cultural programme, leading fundraising and commercial partnerships for the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival, a £126m programme which worked with more than 40,000 artists. Having previously studied and worked in Edinburgh, Fran returned to the city to join the International Festival in February 2019. She takes up the role of Chief Executive on 1st September. Fran became Deputy Chair of the Creative Industries Council in March 2021.

Colin Liddell was educated at Balliol College Oxford and Edinburgh University, is a retired solicitor, and was the first solicitor in Scotland to be accredited as a specialist in Charity Law. He has been Chair and/or Trustee of a number of charities, including being former Chair of Pitlochry Festival Theatre, former Convenor of Scottish Grantmakers, former Trustee of Foundation Scotland, and current Trustee of Dunard Fund, the Royal High School Preservation Trust, and Perth & Kinross Heritage Trust. He is Patron of Pitlochry Highland Games and previously the Games commentator for 35 years. He is also Patron of the Pitlochry & Moulin History Society, author of ‘Pitlochry – A History’ and co-author of ‘A Practical Guide to Charity Law in Scotland’.

Donald MacDonald CBE has 45 years’ experience in corporate finance and investing in and founding a wide range of businesses. Both he and his wife Louise have been dedicated supporters of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra – Donald serving on both boards and having been Chair (now Life President) of the Orchestra for over 25 years. Donald and Louise were joint founders of The East Neuk Festival in 2005 and also recipients of the Prince of Wales Medal for Arts Philanthropy in 2009.

Professor Dorothy Miell is Vice Principal and Head of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at The University of Edinburgh where she has responsibility for the support of Education, Research, External Relations and Estate developments for more than 20,000 students and 4,000 staff. Dorothy is by background a Social Psychologist, working on relationships and communication and especially how these are involved in the process of collaborative working across disciplines. She specialises in how different groups work together on creative projects such as composing and performing music. Dorothy became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2015. She is a member of the Board of Governors of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and convenor of their Fair Access Committee, is Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Scottish Opera and served as President of the British Psychological Society where she remains a Fellow. She was awarded an OBE in 2019 for services to higher education and psychology.

Louise Mitchell was appointed in 2011 as Chief Executive of the Bristol Music Trust, an independent charitable trust set up that year to drive forward music in Bristol and to help secure a sustainable future for Bristol Beacon. Previously, Louise was the first Director of Glasgow UNESCO City of Music, a position taken up after being at the head of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall for 13 years where she spearheaded the regeneration of two of Glasgow’s most revered venues: the City Halls and the Old Fruitmarket. Louise is Chair of National Children’s Orchestras, a Trustee of the British Paraorchestra, A South West Regional Council Member for Arts Council England; and also a past Board Member of International Society for Performing Arts and the Association of British Orchestras. In 2017 Louise was awarded the Patrick Hayes Award by the International Society for Performing Arts, recognising exceptional transformative leadership in the performing arts.

James Naughtie, special correspondent and books editor for BBC news, has presented arts programmes for radio and television for many years, including the Proms and opera for BBC Radio 3. He is the author of The Making of Music, based on a 60-part history of classical music for Radio 4, and a columnist for BBC Music Magazine. He was a presenter of Today on Radio 4 for 21 years, is Chancellor of the University of Stirling, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Gavin Reid is Chief Executive of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Born and educated in Edinburgh, he began his career as a trumpet player, spending over a decade performing and teaching, before moving into management. He was General Manager of Manchester Camerata, becoming Director of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in 2006. He is currently a Fellow and former Governor of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and a Fellow of the Clore Leadership Programme, and has served as Chair to the Association of British Orchestras.

Professor Michael Thorne CBE has always combined his academic life with music: playing, teaching and conducting. He has led a number of successful university, college, school and economic-development inspired new building projects and is a former Vice Principal of Edinburgh Napier University and Vice Chancellor of Anglia Ruskin University. Mike has served on the boards of the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra and a number of theatres, on the Scottish Further Education Funding Council and the Scottish University for Industry. As a board member of the London Thames Gateway Development Corporation and chair of its Planning Committee Mike has experience of working with property developers and local authorities. He is a member of the board of the Royal High School Preservation Trust in Edinburgh.

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