List of people educated at George Watson's College
Former pupils of George Watson's College in Edinburgh are known as Watsonians, in memory of the school's founder, George Watson. They include the following individuals. See also The Category for Watsonians.
Notable alumni
- The Reverend David Arnott, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland for 2011–201
- Sir John Charles Fenton, lawyer, Solicitor General for Scotland
- Ian Frazer, Creator of the Human Papilloma virus and Australian of the Year 2006
- Robert Horne, 1st Viscount Horne, Chancellor of the Exchequer
- Martha Kearney, BBC broadcaster and journalist
- Paul Nuki Chief Editor at NHS Choices.
- Hugo Rifkind,journalist
- Sir Malcolm Rifkind, KCMG, QC, politician (Conservative Party)
- Henry Peel Ritchie, First World War Victoria Cross recipient
- Tun Dato' Sir James Beveridge Thomson, KBE, SSM, PMN, PJK, lawyer and judge, Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Malaysia.
Culture
- Sir Basil Spence, architect
- Jimmy Finlayson, actor
- Peter Baikie, Scottish comedian and composer
- Jack Docherty, Scottish writer, actor, presenter and producer.
- Jamie Drummond, Edinburgh-born Canadian sommelier and amateur dramatist.
- Donald Runnicles, noted conductor
- Malcolm Martineau, pianist and recital accompanist
- Myles MacInnes (known as Mylo), singer-songwriter, music producer, and DJ
- Keith McIvor (known as JD Twitch) music producer, and DJ
- Rebecca West, writer and campaigner
- Robin Williamson, musician with The Incredible String Band
James Finlayson (actor) Gordon Kennedy (actor) William Kininmonth (architect) James Craig (architect)
Artists
- Douglas Percy Bliss, painter
- Jo Fraser, Painter
Music
- Ian Anderson, musician with Jethro Tull
Writers – Poets, novelists, dramatists
- David Daiches, Scottish literary historian and literary critic
Lawyers and Judges
- Sir Robert Brown (Robin) Black, GCMG, Governor of Hong Kong, 1958–64
- Colin Boyd, Baron Boyd of Duncansby, PC, QC, Lord Advocate, life peer in the British House of Lords
- John Corrie, politician, MP, MEP
- David Maxwell Fyfe, Viscount Kilmuir, Barrister, Home Secretary and Lord Chancellor
- Frances Guy Diplomat (British Ambassador to the Yemen and Lebanon)
- Ronald King Murray, PC, politician and judge, (Labour Party)
Military
- Air Vice Marshal James Robb (RAF officer)
- George Pirie Thomson, naval officer and Britain's Chief Press Censor in WWII
- David Young (British Army officer)
Politics
- Malcolm Chisholm
- Ronald King Murray, PC, politician and judge, (Labour Party)
- Chris Smith, Baron Smith of Finsbury, PC, former British MP and Cabinet minister (Labour Party)
- Elizabeth Smith, MSP
- David Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood, KT, KBE, PC, politician (Liberal Democrats), MP, former leader of the Liberal Party
- William Wolfe
Science and academia
- Sir Eric Anderson, provost of Eton College
- Norman Davidson (biochemist)
- John Flett (geologist)
- Keith Moffatt, physicist
- Stan Paterson, glaciologist
- Ian R. Porteous, mathematician
- Gerald Russell, Professor of Psychiatry
- John Steele (oceanographer)
- Joseph Wedderburn, mathematician
Sport
- Martin Bell, skier, and four times participant of the Winter Olympics
- Neil McCallum (cricketer)
- Sir Chris Hoy, MBE, Six-time Olympic gold medal winning track cyclist
- Gillian Cooke, athlete and bobsledder
- Robin Smith, mountaineer
- Craig Sutherland, professional footballer
- Keith Fraser, Olympic Athlete 1992
Rugby players
- Gavin Hastings, OBE, rugby player
- Scott Hastings, rugby player
- Jason White, rugby player
- Ian Robertson (rugby player and commentator)
- David Johnston International rugby player and professional footballer (Heart of Midlothian)
- Marcus Di Rollo
- John Howard Wilson, rugby player