Merlin Hay, 24th Earl of Erroll
The Earl of Erroll | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2018 | |
| Member of the House of Lords | |
| as an elected hereditary peer 11 November 1999 | |
| Election | 1999 |
| Preceded by | Seat established |
| as a hereditary peer 16 May 1978 – 11 November 1999 | |
| Preceded by | The 23rd Countess of Erroll |
| Succeeded by | Seat abolished |
| Lord High Constable of Scotland Chief of Clan Hay | |
| Assumed office 16 May 1978 | |
| Preceded by | The 23rd Countess of Erroll |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay 20 April 1948 |
| Spouse |
Isabelle Astell
(m. 1982; died 2020) |
| Children | 4 |
| Parents |
|
| Residence(s) | Woodbury Hall, Sandy, Bedfordshire |
| Occupation | Programmer |
Merlin Sereld Victor Gilbert Hay, 24th Earl of Erroll (born 20 April 1948), is a crossbench member of the House of Lords, chief of the Scottish clan Hay, and hereditary Lord High Constable of Scotland.[1]
Early life and education
[edit]Lord Erroll, elder son of Diana Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll and Sir Iain Moncreiffe of that Ilk, was a Page to the Lord Lyon in 1956. He was educated at Eton College before going up to Trinity College, Cambridge.[2]
Earl of Erroll
[edit]Succeeding his mother, the Countess, in 1978 as Earl of Erroll, and in 1985, his father as a baronet, Lord Erroll now serves as a member of the Council of the Hereditary Peerage Association.[3] Whilst Lord Erroll inherited Chieftainship of Clan Hay via his mother, their father's Chieftainship of Clan Moncreiffe devolved to his younger brother Peregrine.
Marriage and family
[edit]He married Isabelle Jacqueline Laline Astell Hohler (Brussels, 22 August 1955 – 13 January 2020), daughter of Major Thomas Sidney Hohler and his wife, heiress to the Astell family, of Everton House, Bedfordshire,[4] in 1982. The Countess was a Patroness of the Royal Caledonian Ball[5] and served as High Sheriff of Bedfordshire in 2015.[6]
The Earl and Countess had two sons and two daughters:
- Harry Thomas William Hay, Lord Hay (b. Basingstoke, 8 August 1984); married Clementine Travis in 2017.[7]
- Lady Amelia Diana Jacqueline Hay (b. Basingstoke, 23 November 1986)
- Lady Laline Lucy Clementine Hay (b. Basingstoke, 21 December 1987); married Major Jeremy Sudlow in 2017.[8]
- Hon. Richard Merlin Iain Astell (b. Basingstoke, 14 December 1990); took the surname "Astell" by Royal Licence in 2015.[9][4]
Military and business career
[edit]The Earl of Erroll became a Lieutenant at the Atholl Highlanders since 1974,[2] and is a Member of the Royal Company of Archers.[10] He served in the 21st SAS Artists Rifles (V) Territorial Army from 1975 to 1990, and was an Honorary Colonel of the Royal Military Police (Territorial Army) from 1992 to 1997.[11]
Lord Erroll has worked as a marketing and computer consultant,[2] is a Freeman of the City of London,[2] and Prime Warden of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers (2000–01).[12] He continues to head the Puffin's Club, founded by his father.[13] He is President of ERADAR, an e-business consultancy,[14] and is President of the Digital Policy Alliance (EURIM).[15]
He was a director of LASSeO, a not-for-profit technical standardization and interoperability membership organisation for smartcard technologies.[16]
Politics
[edit]Lord Erroll was one of 90 excepted hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords following the House of Lords Act 1999.[17] A programmer and system designer by trade,[18] he sits as a crossbencher and usually speaks on matters relating to cybersecurity and information technology. He was a member of the Science and Technology Committee and criticised Gordon Brown's government for what he said was a failure to curb cybercrime after four government agencies, including the Ministry of Defence and HM Revenue and Customs, reported massive losses of data in 2008.[18] Most recently he was a member of the Information Committee from 2007 to 2012.[17]
Lord Erroll served as Lord High Constable of Scotland at the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in 2023.[19][20]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Tomlinson, Richard (20 December 1992). "They also serve, who only ush". The Independent. Archived from the original on 12 May 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Who are Scotland's present day clan chiefs?". www.scotsman.com.
- ^ "Hereditary Peerage Association - Notices". HPA. 2 February 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2009.
- ^ a b Kingsley, Nick (20 May 2016). "Landed families of Britain and Ireland: (217) Astell of Everton House and Woodbury Hall".
- ^ "Patronesses". Royal Caledonian Ball. Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
- ^ "Baden Powell's granddaughter opens road". Biggleswade Today.
- ^ "Lord Hay engaged to Clementine Travis". Peerage News. 18 March 2016.
- ^ "Major Jeremy Sudlow and Lady Laline Hay's wedding". Tatler. 18 March 2016.
- ^ "Warrants Under the Royal Sign Manual". thegazette.co.uk.
- ^ "Patrons of the Society". Keepers of the Quaich.
- ^ "Honorary Colonels - Royal Military Police" (PDF). Regimental Headquarters Royal Military Police.
- ^ "The Earl of Erroll - Registered Interests". Parliament of the United Kingdom.
- ^ "Our top 10 of some of Scotland's strangest clubs". Scottish Field. 13 December 2019.
- ^ "Welcome to E RADAR". Archived from the original on 24 January 2012.
- ^ "About Us". Digital Policy Alliance. 18 December 2014.
- ^ Earl of Erroll; Dr John Gill; Geoff Doggett; Mick Davies. "About LASSeO". LASSeO. Archived from the original on 9 November 2009. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
- ^ a b "40 Years a Chief". www.royalcelticsociety.scot.
- ^ a b "One lord leaping on the government's IT flaws". The Guardian. 10 April 2008.
- ^ "Roles to be performed at the Coronation Service at Westminster Abbey". The Royal Family. Retrieved 27 April 2023.
- ^ "Coronation order of service in full". BBC News. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
External links
[edit]- Burke's Peerage & Baronetage
- Hansard 1803–2005: contributions in Parliament by the Earl of Erroll
- Official Profile on the Parliament website
- Earl of Erroll Open Rights Group
- Leigh Rayment's list of baronets
- 1948 births
- Living people
- People from Sandy, Bedfordshire
- People educated at Eton College
- Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge
- Special Air Service officers
- Crossbench hereditary peers
- Earls of Erroll
- Scottish clan chiefs
- Members of the Royal Company of Archers
- Artists' Rifles officers
- Royal Military Police officers
- 20th-century British Army personnel
- Prime Wardens of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers
- Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999