The Master of Balliol College, Professor Sir Drummond Bone, has announced his intent to resign at the end of 2017, having served as Master for just over six years.
Bone studied at Balliol himself from 1968 to 1972 after obtaining an MA from Glasgow University. He went on to lecture in English literature at Warwick and Glasgow universities, before serving as Vice Chancellor of Liverpool University.
In 2011 he returned to Balliol as Master, and according to the Oxford Student was hailed by students as “an absolute lad” and “a massive pimp, but in a good way” for his relaxed approach towards smoking and drinking in college in comparison to his predecessor, Dr Andrew Graham.
In a statement he said: “‘After six-and-a-bit very happy years back at Balliol, I have informed the Fellowship that I intend to retire from College at the end of December 2017…
“After the excitement of my first year as Master followed by Balliol’s 750th year, more recently we’ve been able to think about the future.
“Largely thanks to the support we’ve received from alumni, but also through more efficient use of our buildings to bring in additional resource, we’ve increased our tutorial strength considerably – something like seven new Career Development Fellows will have joined us by the time I leave, with more to follow in our current plans.
“We’ll also, subject to planning permission, be beginning to build some 212 new student rooms, crucially allowing us to accommodate all our undergraduates for all their time at Balliol, in early summer this year.”
