26 May 2008

Dundee graduates return for honorary degrees

Two prominent alumni of the University of Dundee will make a return to Graduation this year to be presented with Honorary Degrees.

High Court judge Lord Turnbull and Journalist Alan Johnston will be honoured at the graduation ceremonies for the College of Arts and Social Sciences on June 18th and 19th respectively.

Alan Johnston is a graduate of the class of 1985 when he gained an MA Hons in English and Politics. Lord Turnbull gained his Law degree at Dundee in 1979.

As a journalist and documentary maker, Alan Johnston has reported from some of the world’s most volatile areas including the Gaza Strip and Afghanistan. Posted as the BBC’s correspondent in Gaza for three years from 2004, he was kidnapped just two weeks before his contract was due to end and held for nearly four months by a Jihadi organisation called the Army of Islam. The BBC mounted a major international campaign to try to secure his release, and he was eventually freed unharmed on 4 July 2007.

Lord Turnbull was appointed a Judge of the Court of Session and High Court of Justiciary in February 2006, becoming Scotland's youngest judge at the age of 47. He had previously been engaged as Principal Advocate Depute, Scotland’s top prosecutor, and worked on some of the country’s most notorious and difficult criminal cases, including those of William Beggs, Luke Mitchell and Nat Fraser.

NOTES TO EDITORS
The University of Dundee has previously announced that Dame Vivienne Westwood and best-selling author William Boyd will be among the Honorary Graduands this year.

Full details of the summer Graduation programme including times of ceremonies, photocalls etc will be issued later.

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk