A Profile of Derek Law - Director of Information Strategy University of Strathclyde, Glasgow

It was a pleasure to meet, once again, Derek who has been a supporter of the UKSG since its early days. He was also a regular attender at the famous (?infamous) Blackwell’s late night parties (now no more), where he enjoyed a dram or two. Born in 1947, he spent his early days in Arbroath (famous for smokies) north of Dundee. A town which has gone down in history for a record football score ± 36 nil against Aberdeen Bon Accord. Perhaps that is why Derek has been a football fan from an early age. After attending the local primary school, he graduated to the High School. As a devoted user of the public library, he was able to feed his voracious appetite for reading. At that time his parents ran a boarding house, so family holidays were off season, mainly in Spain and France. He also has pleasant memories of holidays with relations on a farm in the Cotswolds and, in complete contrast, Butlin’s at Filey. Another regular event was potato picking every October. On the more energetic side, he also enjoyed badminton. His father was somewhat peripatetic by nature, and when Derek was sixteen the family moved to Edinburgh, where his father became a Church Administrator and he changed schools to George Watson’s College for Boys. With History, French, Latin and English under his belt, the time had come to move on to higher education. Almost by accident he was accepted by Glasgow University to read Medieval History ± a four-year course; a period of his life that he thoroughly enjoyed. Unable to find accommodation in a hall of residence ± he unfortunately applied to live in a women only building and was turned down ± he ended up living with a large Irish family, which gave him a whole new slant on life, and where he caused some consternation, in this devout Catholic family, by using the holy water container as an ash tray. It is not surprising that someone with so much exuberance and enthusiasm should live life to the full, both at work and play. A football star for the History Faculty, his finest hour was when he kicked three university professors, all in the same match. As graduation drew near, he concluded that librarianship was the career for him. In 1969 he moved down the road to the School of Librarianship, University of Strathclyde, where a year later he gained his Dip. Lib. Holiday jobs were varied, and his enthusiasm knew no bounds. While working for the Metal Box company, he created a world record by producing the largest number of fish cans in one shift ± which must have made him very popular with the trade union! Less high powered, but very useful, were his stints as a hospital porter. Job applications brought two offers from the University of Glasgow (£980 p.a.) and the University of St Andrews (£990 p.a.). On pure financial grounds the choice was obvious. He started work at St Andrews in July 1970 as an Assistant Librarian Cataloguer. Fortunately, this only lasted two weeks before he became Serials Librarian. St Andrews seems to have been a breeding ground for future distinguished librarians, as Ian Mowat and Mel Collier were both contemporaries. With one assistant, the department ran on traditional lines, using a Cardex for checking in about 2,500 titles. Although user surveys were routine, there was no shortage of funds. At this time he became A Profile of Derek L aw Director of Information Strategy University of Strathclyde, Glasgow