Great Scot 160 September 2020 | Page 86

The following obituaries have been written by family or friends ; except the obituary for Manson George Russel (’ 47 ), which was written by the Scotch Archivist , Paul Mishura .

FRATER , Alexander Russell ( Russ ) (’ 55 ) Russ ’ classmates , Harry Hearn (’ 55 ) who was Vice Captain of the School in 1956 , and John McFarlane (’ 55 ), who was a Prefect in 1956 , wrote : Alexander Russell ( Russ ) Frater was born in the New Hebrides on 3 January 1937 , the son of Dr Alexander Smaill Frater MBE ( born 1 September 1907 , SC 1921-26 , died 3 November 1972 ) and nephew of Alan Smith Frater ( born 11 May 1909 , SC 1921-25 , died 4 September 1965 ). He attended Scotch from 1946 to 1956 , boarding in McMeckan and Arthur Robinson Houses .

A regular contributor to The Scotch Collegian , Russ was a 1955 Co Editor . One notable short story was ‘ Shadow over Suva ’ ( 1953 ). Russ was 16 , but it demonstrated the literary skills that he later developed as a career journalist , author and television presenter .

A 1955 Prefect , Russ was 1955 Captain of Littlejohn House . He rowed in the 1955 1st VIII and was 1956 Captain of Boats . In the 1st XV ( 1954-56 ), Russ was 1955 Vice Captain and 1956 Captain . He was a CUO , and excelled in History and English Literature ( first class honours ). As 1956 School Captain , Russ ’ friendly , outgoing and cheerful personality made him many friends , and earned him great respect .

Commencing law at Melbourne University , but deciding it was not for

him , Russ moved overseas , studying at the University of Perugia in Italy , and at Durham University . He simultaneously submitted articles to the humorous / satirical magazine , Punch , eventually becoming Assistant Editor . In commenting on Russ ’ contributions to Punch , a colleague described him as ‘ the funniest man to write for a satirical magazine since the war .’

In 1964 Russ started contributing articles to The New Yorker . In 1966 he became Staff Writer at The Daily Telegraph Magazine ; and in 1977 became the Assistant Editor of Radio Times before moving to The Observer in 1979 where , in 1984 , he was appointed Chief Travel Correspondent . While with The Observer he also worked for the BBC as a freelance television presenter of travel documentaries . The British Academy of Film and Television Arts recognised his film , The Last African Flying Boat , as 1990 ’ s best single documentary .

In a stellar career , Russ was awarded British Press Awards Commendations in 1982 and 1989 , thrice winning the British Press Awards prize for Travel Writer of the Year ( 1990-92 ). He was also awarded first prize in the 2000 Travelex Travel Writers ’ Awards .

In all , Russ wrote five books and edited a sixth . His best-known book was Chasing the Monsoon : A Modern Pilgrimage through India , a remarkable book about the annual monsoon ’ s impact on India and its people . In print since 1990 , it was recently voted among The Guardian readers ’ top 10 travel books of all time .

Other books were Stopping-Train Britain : A Railway Odyssey ; Great Rivers of the World ( Ed .); Beyond the Blue Horizon : On the Track of Imperial Airways ; Tales from the

Torrid Zone : Travels in the Deep Tropics ; and The Balloon Factory : The Story of the Men Who Built Britain ’ s First Flying Machines .

A brilliant man with a fine intellect , Russ had millions of followers in the United Kingdom . Although living there throughout his career , Russ always regarded himself as an Australian .

While at Perugia , Russ met Marlis Pfund . They married at Zurich , Switzerland , on 27 April 1963 . Their children are Tania ( an administrator at Brunel University ) and John ( Professor of Medicine at Oxford University ). Marlis died in London on 19 October 2011 . Russ died at London , England , on 1

January 2020 .

GIBSON , Andrew Alexander (’ 65 ) Andrew ’ s brother-in-law , Robert Lloyd (‘ 65 ) wrote :

Andrew Alexander Gibson was born in Melbourne on 22 April 1948 , son of Old Boy Reginald Walter Alexander Gibson ( born 1913 , SC 1922-29 , died 1995 ). Andrew attended Scotch from 1959 to 1966 and was a 1966 Lawson-MacFarland House Prefect .

Andrew was a key member of the Cadets in the elite Assault Pioneers platoon and became a CUO in 1966 . He was a member of the squad of Cadets who did the famous march from school to Puckapunyal in 1965 . Andrew was also a pivotal member of the illustrious 4th XVIII , coached by our Physics

84 Great Scot Issue 160 – September 2020