Lederer made OBE in Queen's Honours

PETER Lederer, managing director and general manager of the Gleneagles hotel, has been made an OBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours, announced last weekend.

For Mr Lederer (left) the award is recognition of 10 years spent not simply running Gleneagles, but waving the flag for Scottish tourism generally. His efforts earned him last year's Tourism Catey award.

He is also chairman of both Tourism Training Scotland and the Master Innholders, a director of Scottish Enterprise Tayside and a founder member of Connoisseurs Scotland, the marketing consortium.

Another to be made OBE is the Royal Navy's most senior caterer, Commander Brian Purnell, who is due to retire as naval catering adviser in September after 36 years in the service.

Although most of the Queen's Birthday Honours emanate from 10 Downing Street, two awards to the industry, both Royal Victorian Medals, have a direct link to the Royal Family.

Horace Matthews is senior sous chef at Buckingham Palace, while Betty Kirby, a supervisor with caterer Ring & Brymer, has looked after the royal box and directors rooms at racecourses such as Ascot, Epsom and Newbury for 40 years.

Heading the list of those made MBE are Mary Irwin, school cook supervisor since 1973 at Ballykelly Primary School in County Londonderry and Marjorie Ravensdale, catering liaison officer for the past five years at the Kent police headquarters in Maidstone.

Other industry MBEs include Doris O'Brien, catering assistant at the Government Hospitality Fund, which handles state visits to the UK, and Alexander Kirby, a trustee of the International Flight Catering Association and former managing director of Forte Airport Services.

Elsewhere, there was a life peerage for Sir Allen Sheppard, chairman of Grand Metropolitan and non-executive deputy chairman of Pavilion Services and BrightReasons.