Firrhill
High School

Edinburgh

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UK

Scotland

Edinburgh

Stuart is a highly successful pianist and composer who still lives and works in Edinburgh. He is best known for his Seven Wonders Suite (2001) which has been recorded by the Prague Symphony Orchestra and performed in The Dvorak Hall in Prague. This major symphonic work helped Stuart enter the Classic FM Hall of Fame in 2010 and is regularly requested by the station's listeners. Stuart's musical interests are wide and varied embracing jazz, electronic and avant garde, but classical music has always been his first love.  His primary influences of Mozart, Chopin and Debussy have inspired much of his work. His recent classical compositions have also been inspired by his passion for nature and geometry. (more)

When Ellen first tried rugby she quickly grew to love it.  She also found she had a real talent for the sport.  This plus a lot of hard work, brought Ellen a regular place in one of Scotland's top women's rugby teams, Murrayfield Wanderers. This was followed by a Scotland call-up with the result that Ellen soon became a regular in the national team.

Life often fails to work out the way you think it will when you are at school.  At Firrhill High, Craig was determined to become a rock musician.  He joined a band and continued to perform throughout school and university.  Despite all the hard work, he failed to make it in the UK music industry and so set off busking around the USA for a few months. On his return, Craig enjoyed a spell as a tour guide in Scotland and volunteered to make a promotional video for the tour company.  He loved the experience, decided this was where his future lay, and within a few years had become a highly successful documentary film-maker.  His work has since been broadcast by the BBC and many other TV stations, and Craig has also won an award from the Royal Television Society.

Louise realised a childhood dream when she qualified as a nurse. Now as a ward sister in a busy A&E department of a major hospital, she works very hard and has a great deal of responsibility. After all, she makes life or death decisions every day. However, Louise loves her work. She is not rich or famous but she gains great satisfaction from helping people when they are in real need.

(representative profile)

Ian graduated with a law degree from Dundee University in 1984 and has since gone on to become a highly successful lawyer.  He is an Advocate specialising in professional and clinical negligence as well as an expert in commercial law and property law.  Ian has been appointed a Queens Counsel (QC), one of the top ranks advocates and solicitors can achieve.

Tom is a natural athlete who became one of Scotland's top young runners while competing for Edinburgh Athletics Club.  Before long he was breaking records and winning titles at both Scottish and UK levels.  One of Tom's proudest memories was carrying the Scottish flag ahead of the Scottish team at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Youth Games in 2011.

Sara always wanted to run her own business but rather than simply talk about it, she was prepared to take the risks and put in the hard work necessary to make it happen.  Sarra is the founder of Smart PA Group which meets the secretarial and administration needs of other companies.  Although she works incredibly hard, Sarra greatly enjoys the satisfaction and independence which can come from being your own boss.

Firrhill has produced many talented students over the years.  Katie is a good example.  In 2010 she scored top marks in Scotland in her Advanced Highers for both Chemistry and Physics beating 1000 other students in the process.  Katie went on to study Maths at Durham University but returned to the school for a special presentation from the Royal Society of Chemistry and The Institute of Physics in Scotland in recognition of her remarkable achievement.

Gavin may have performed in front of more people than any other Firrhill High former pupil.  As Pipe Major Gavin Stoddart, he became known to millions of television viewers around the world as the lone piper who played a lament from the ramparts of Edinburgh Castle to see in the New Year.  Gavin also co-ordinated the massed pipes and drums at twenty Edinburgh Military Tattoos until he retired in 2000.

Calum was a talented young footballer at school who also played for one of Scotland's top boys clubs, Hutchison Vale BC.  He was then signed by Hearts and has enjoyed a long spell at the club.  Calum also represented Scotland at under 19 level.

Science now plays an important role in professional sport so it is good to know that the grounding provided by science teachers at Firrhill High School helped Andrew go on to become a Senior Exercise Physiologist at sportscotland Institute of Sport.  Andrew studied Sports Science at Glasgow University and worked with athletes from a range of sports before becoming the sports scientist supporting the footballers at Heart of Midlothian FC.  In his current role, Andrew still works closely with the Scottish Football Association.

Scotland has a proud history in the world of engineering and many Scots have used their skills in countries throughout the world.  Derek studied at Napier University where he gained the qualifications he needed to build a successful career in the USA.  He is now the Technical Director of American High Performance Seals Inc. in Cleveland, Ohio.

John was one of many whose great achievement was to help Britain and its allies win the First World War. Sadly, he paid the ultimate price as a report in a local newspaper in 1916 tells: "Corporal J. Watson has been killed in action near Somme in France.  He was educated in the local school and before being called up was a farm labourer. He was 19 years of age."

(representative profile)

Mark is one of many Firrhill pupils to have shown real promise in sport.  His talent for golf not only impressed his fellow players but also won Mark a scholarship to study and play golf at university in the USA.  While some may have been tempted to stay in Scotland at such a young age, Mark decided to make the most of a wonderful opportunity to experience life in a different country.

John was inspired by his Drama teacher at Firrhill and went on to study Drama at Queen Margaret University.  Since then he has worked as a theatre director as well as an actor (musical theatre), and has also qualified as a Drama teacher.  A few years ago John set up a theatre company along with some friends.  This was a great achievement, particularly when it was hailed as an ‘exciting and up and coming theatre company’ by The Scotsman.

Even at a young age people can take action and make a difference.  Many young people feel strongly about smoking and the dangers it poses for the health of smokers and those around them ... but few do much about it.  Shona, Simon and Lea decided that they should ... and before long, they were sitting in front of the group of MSPs who make up the Health Committee of the Scottish Parliament, answering questions and giving evidence on why it was time for the government to act.  The three highly impressive Firrhill High pupils cannot claim to be responsible for Scotland introducing a smoking ban ... but they no doubt played their part. (more)

This page carries profiles of talented sportsmen and women who attended Firrhill High School but there are many, many more.  Just some who went on to represent Scotland in their chosen sports are John McGhee & Ray Stevenson (squash), Lisa McKenzie (fencing) Martin Campbell (badminton), Shona Hogg (hockey), Dougie Fife (rugby) and Karin Eggar (table tennis).

Firrhill High has had more than its fair share of teachers who have gone on to achieve a lot, and in the process become well-known.  They include top Scottish actor and comic Elaine C Smith who taught Drama at the school, as well as Margot Wells who taught PE and helped train some of Scotland's top athletes, including her husband Allan who won the 100m Olympic Gold Medal in Moscow. Meanwhile, Romana D'Annunzio who taught English, presented the BBC programme Blue Peter for two years.