Gary Clark and Lesley Knox to be honoured at Graduation
Published On Mon 11 Nov 2019 by Roddy Isles
The University of Dundee will honour Gary Clark, one of the city’s most successful musical sons, and Lesley Knox, former Chair of Design Dundee Ltd and a key figure in delivering V&A Dundee, at its Winter Graduation ceremonies on November 14 and 15.
Both Gary and Lesley will receive the honorary Doctor of Laws degree at the ceremonies in the Caird Hall in Dundee. Gary will receive his at the ceremony on the afternoon of November 14, and Lesley will receive hers the following morning.
An award‐winning and internationally successful songwriter, musician, record producer and celebrated Dundonian, Gary Clark is best known as the frontman of 1980s pop band Danny Wilson.
Born in Dundee in 1962, he attended St Saviours High School in the city and became a student at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design before leaving to pursue his musical career.
He has worked with, and had his songs recorded by, artists such as Natalie Imbruglia, Melanie C, Lloyd Cole, and K.D Lang.
Recently he has enjoyed great success as a movie and television soundtrack producer and composer, notably for the film `Sing Street’ and the new television series `Modern Love’.
He is currently writing the music for the `Nanny McPhee’ stage musical with Dame Emma Thompson and writing and producing songs for the forthcoming major label debut of the Scottish band Hyyts.
Lesley Knox has been one of the key figures in delivering V&A Dundee, the museum at the heart of Dundee’s redeveloped waterfront. She was appointed in 2010 as the independent Chair of Design Dundee Ltd, the Board which oversees V&A Dundee.
The idea to bring the V&A to Dundee originated at the University. Lesley became a powerful advocate for the project, and was instrumental in helping local partners and the V&A turn the museum into a reality.
The museum has had a transformative effect in bringing people to Dundee and projecting a new image of the city around the world. In its first year of operation from September 2018, V&A Dundee had over 800,000 visitors, far exceeding initial estimates.
Lesley is a previous Chair of Alliance Trust, the FTSE100 company headquartered in Dundee.
She qualified as a lawyer in the UK and the USA, and then joined Kleinwort Benson where she spent 18 years, first in corporate finance and then as Head of Asset Management. She has subsequently been the chairman or non-executive director of a number of companies. She was Chairman of Grosvenor Group Limited and Alliance Trust plc and she was a Trustee of the National Galleries of Scotland.
Her interest in design and the visual arts led her to take on the job of chairing Design Dundee Ltd, a role she held for nine years.
The Graduation ceremonies take place in the Caird Hall in Dundee’s City Square, and will see hundreds of students from Scotland and around the world receive their degrees, diplomas and doctorates.
For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head of Corporate Communications
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN
Tel: +44 (0)1382 384910
Mobile: 07800 581902
Email: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk