Professor Ted Cowan

I am conscious of the fact that I don't "do" portraits very often. Perhaps it is because I don't often get time to set up such a shot , with all the right lighting and a subject relaxed by conversation.

This is not such a portrait. I took it very quickly, with Ted's consent, at the end of of a debate we had taken part at the Crichton in Dumfries this morning, where Ted was latterly the Director of the Glasgow University part of the campus as well as being the Professor of Scottish History at Glasgow.

We were both contending that Bruce's murder of the Red Comyn was a "good thing" for Scotland in an unusual , fascinating and very well attended event organist by the Bruce Society. Historian Dr Alan Young and retired head teacher Stuart McCulloch were attempting to prove the the opposite, under the expert chairmanship of former Scottish Parliament Presiding Officer and present MSP for Galloway, Alex Fergusson.

Ted & I managed to win the audience vote (he talking with great historic learning, me focussing on aspects of contemporary politics) and as we finished I asked Ted if I could take his picture. I suspect he agreed only because I have known him for 40 years and he was my tutor in my first year of studying Scottish History.

Since then our paths have crossed often and I have a huge admiration not just for his scholarship (which is immense) but also for his passion for Scotland, for his great good humour and for his unquenchably combative nature - and all those things were well in evidence today.

(Added later - my foray into portraiture was not inspired by Joe's example from Thursday which I saw after posting this. - but thanks for a good chat with you both and - unusually - a pic of me that I don't shudder at.....)