01-05-2025
Alisdair Drummond: Retired Dundee police chief dies at 84
Alisdair Drummond, a retired chief inspector with Tayside Police in Dundee and an active member of the Blairgowrie community, has died at the age of 84.
Alexander, known as Alisdair, was an advanced driving instructor at the Scottish Police College at Tulliallan.
He was also a former president of the Retired Police Officers Association Tayside branch.
Born and brought up in Callander, it was there he met his wife Margaret when she was holidaying with her family from Dunfermline.
The couple married in 1962.
After leaving McLaren High School in Callander, Alisdair worked as a motor mechanic in Dunblane.
He joined the police in 1964 and rose through the ranks, first serving as a 'bobby' in Dunblane, Kinross and Alyth.
Promotion took him to the Scottish Police College, where he was an advanced driving instructor.
He was a traffic sergeant in Perth then a traffic inspector in Angus before finishing his career as a chief inspector at Tayside Police HQ in Dundee.
Known for his strong project management skills, Alisdair dealt with everything from security for heads of state to policing industrial disputes.
He made media headlines for never being off sick during his 32 years in the police.
On retirement, Alisdair worked in security for Dundee United then St Johnstone football clubs.
He was a member and past president of the Retired Police Officers' Association Scotland (Tayside) and prominent in the community of Blairgowrie, to where the family moved in 1984.
A man of deep faith, Alisdair was active in the Church of Scotland at local and presbytery level.
He was a long-time elder and served for 26 years as session clerk of Blairgowrie Parish Church.
A keen gardener, traveller and golfer, he was a past captain of Blairgowrie Golf Club and helped host the 2014 Junior Ryder Cup.
He was integral in a residents' campaign to save Blairgowrie Cottage Hospital in 2010/11 and an active Round Table member.
Alisdair's son, Alex, said: 'When they visited him as youngsters, his grandchildren thought grandad knew everyone in the town because when he took the kids out, he spoke to so many people.
'He was extremely well-liked in the local community and definitely made his mark in Blairgowrie and beyond.'
Alisdair is survived by his wife Margaret, son Alex, daughter Gillian and six grandchildren.
