The Wartime History of Turnberry Airfield

We were treated to an excellent talk by guest speaker Tony Morrell on the history of Turnberry aerodrome. Here was the husband of the late Margaret who evidently had all the important facts at her fingertips having spent much of her adult life engaged in meticulous research to uncover the many untold stories of this ... More

The History and Symbolism of National Flags

Ayr Rotary recently welcomed as their guest speaker, Douglas Brown, who presented on the subject of ‘Vexillology’.   Douglas embraces a rich and varied life of interest and community involvement with many hobbies, including of course, Vexillology. So what is Vexillology? It is dedicated to the fascinating ... More

Famed Biographer of Samuel Johnson

At a recent meeting, Ayr Rotary welcomed as their speaker for the evening Peter Kennerley who gave a presentation on ‘James Boswell (famed biographer of Samuel Johnson) and the Boswell Trust’ Peter a Solicitor by profession, is a founding trustee and active Director of the Boswell Trust, a Scottish charity ... More

Magic Malky was Magnificent

Ayr Rotary had the pleasure of hosting the local celebrity “Magic Malky” recently. He amazed and engaged his audience with illusions and cheeky banter, at times choosing an unsuspecting person to “help” with his professional, well-honed act. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the fun evening and President Howard ... More

Recycle, Reuse, Repurpose

On 16 September 2025, Ayr Rotary enjoyed a joint presentation from Frances Brown who runs Recycle AYR and Fiona MvAvoy, headteacher at Newton Primary School. Frances explained the crucial role of Recycle Ayr, who work closely with Newton Primary and indeed use their hall to collect and store items. They have a ... More

Ken Ireland’s Career History

New member (Captain) Ken Ireland delivered an exciting and most interesting presentation on his seafaring experiences, He was born and raised in Glasgow, and after leaving school, joined the Merchant Navy in 1975. During his career of over 44 years, he has worked for numerous shipping Companies, rising to the ... More

History & Future of the Whisky Industry

Ayr Rotary Club’s guest speaker, Andrew Hogarth, delivered a talk on the ‘History and Future of the Whisky industry’. Andrew is currently William Grant and Sons’ ‘Operational Readiness Team Leader’, responsible for execution of the company’s operations and business objectives for their three distiller... More

Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA)

Julia Callizo and Jack Henson Belmont Academy pupils were chosen as suitable candidates and sponsored by Ayr Rotary Club for Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA) which is an intensive leadership experience organised by Rotary clubs and districts where skills as a leader are developed, while having fun and making connect... More

Watt Nicholl

The inimitable, ebullient Watt Nicoll, provided a talk entitled ‘The Dream is much better than the Memory’ with reference to ‘Centre-Stage Kilmarnock. Watt’s formative years were spent in Dundee and Glasgow, when during the 60s and 70s he was mainly known as a songwriter and folksinger recording several LPs and ... More

John Walker on the MacLaurin Trust

Ayr Rotary Club welcomed as guest speaker, John Walker, who kindly agreed to provide a talk entitled ’The Maclaurin - A philanthropic love letter’ in relation to ‘The Maclaurin Trust’, of which John is the Trust’s current Chairman. He is an Ayrshire man, a law graduate of The University of Aberdeen, and now ... More