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Alastair Bruce of Crionaich, OBE
Alastair Bruce of Crionaich, OBE, a descendent of Robert the Bruce, is the National Event Commentator for Sky News and the BBC. He is a documentary maker with 'Days of Majesty', 'Nicholas and Alexandra' and 'Victoria and Albert' to his name. He is a Member of the Queen's Body Guard for Scotland (The Royal Company of Archers).
Alastair Bruce, OBE was educated at Milton Abbey School in Dorset and joined the British Army in 1979. Commissioned into the Scots Guards (one of the Queen's Household Regiments), he served a four-year term. This include a number of Royal Duties at all the principle royal residences; a term as Equerry to Her Majesty's Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly in Scotland (Lord Elgin); peace keeping duties in Northern Ireland (1980); finally his regiment was went to war to the Falkland Islands in 1982. He is now a Lieutenant Colonel in the Territorial Army (Reserves) as a specialist media operation handler/advisor.
As a writer and broadcaster his publications include 'Keepers of the Kingdom' a highly illustrated book of portraits showing holders of all the ancient and odd sounding titles of Britain, which was the first book project for which all the Royal Family agreed to be photographed - the stories of the book and its creation are fascinating. He has also written 'History of the British Coronation' and 'Days of Majesty', and he worked on the documentary about Tsar Nicholas II, presented by HRH Prince Michael of Kent, and also wrote a book about Syria.
His informed amusing lectures include- Britain's Strange and Hilarious Customs
- Keepers of the Kingdom, the strange titles of Britain
- Amazing Stories from British History
- Robert The Bruce and The Struggle for Independence
- Scotland's Monarchy
- Clans, Chiefs and Clearances
- The Papacy, its history and how it works
He is the perfect celebrity at any celebration with a Haggis as he can also recite the famous poem, naturally dressed in the traditional manner. He is also an inspiration to audiences, from a recent high society sorority function in Dallas Texas to students from wide ranging schools, including Eton College.
In the picture Alastair Bruce of Crionaich, OBE is shown wearing the uniform and 'tabard' of his appointment as a herald, called Fitzalan Pursuivant of Arms Extraordinary - an Officer of Arms to The Queen. Tabards were worn over armour in mediaeval times to identify the wearer in battle, so that troops could recognise and rally round their knight. The garment became known as a 'Coat of Arms'. This tabard is richly embroidered with The Queen's Coat of Arms. This consists of the three golden lions on red, which has been used by the English kings since Richard the Lionheart; the red lion rampant on a golden background for Scotland's kingdom and the Irish golden harp on a blue background. The Wand of Office is used to direct and marshall processions in Parliament and at coronations. At its head, the blue bird that identifies the College of Arms, where all heralds work.
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