Interview - John MacMillan

So, John, what is your connection to Eric Liddell?

The Eric Liddell Community was established in 1980, in a converted former church building at Holy Corner in Bruntsfield Edinburgh. Holy Corner is so called as there is a church on each corner of the crossroads. Our neighbouring church, Morningside United Church was Eric Liddell’s church when he lived in Edinburgh, where he regularly taught bible classes, and an image of him running is depicted in the stain glass windows on Chamberlain Road.

When The Eric Liddell Centre, as it was previously called, was established, Trustees reached out to Eric Liddell’s family to ask if they would allow the charity to use his name. They agreed and Eric’s daughters in Canada and niece in Edinburgh have been involved in the charity ever since.

Whilst the charity is not a religious charity, it aims to reflect Eric’s values in our work.

So knowing that 2024 was the centenary of Eric Liddell's triumph at the Paris Olympics, when did you first decide to organise something to commemorate the anniversary?

As the CEO of a charity named after Eric, I always felt that we had a duty to ensure his amazing story and legacy live on. Around 5 years ago, I discussed the opportunity of the centenary, and the fact the Olympics were again to be in Paris, with partner organisations that also have a strong link to Eric: the University of Edinburgh (where he studied), Scottish Athletics (who he ran for), Scottish Rugby (he was capped seven times).

How easy was it get the artefacts together?

The way Eric lived and died (in an internment camp in China), actually means that not many of his belongings remain. We work closely with the University of Edinburgh, who look after Eric’s Olympic medals on behalf of the family, and we engaged with National Galleries Scotland at an early stage about the only existing portrait of Eric which is usually displayed at the National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh. All the other items on display are held by The Eric Liddell Community, some having been donated to the charity, others on behalf of the Liddell Family.

Whose idea was it stage the exhibition at the Scottish Parliament?

The Eric Liddell 100, a programme of events and activities to secure and celebrate Eric Liddell’s legacy, was launched in 2022, in the lead up to the centenary year. We established 3 key workstreams – education, culture and sport and set up working groups with experts and partner organisations to provide advise and guidance. The Eric Liddell Community is a small care charity so did not have experience of developing online education resources or a large scale exhibition. We are very grateful to the amazing partners that have supported our work!

Having explored a number of venues, we felt that the Scottish Parliament would provide a fantastic option for an number of reasons including security, profile and being at the heart of Edinburgh. We were particularly delighted when we were offered a slot which coincided with both the Olympics and the Edinburgh Festivals.

How easy was it to make that happen?

Not having developed a large-scale exhibition before, I had no idea of the amount of preparation and development work involved. I would not describe it as ‘easy’, there were a number of challenges, but we had fantastic support from our Exhibition Partner, Nomad Exhibitions to guide us through the whole process and also the Exhibitions Team at the Scottish Parliament who were very supportive.

To most people Eric Liddell is most famous due to the Oscar winning film "Chariots of Fire". When did you last watch it?

I have watched the film on numerous occasions, before and after I joined the charity in 2018. We are also honoured to have David Puttnam as one of our charity’s patrons.

I was astounded to discover that Eric was actually born in China. What fact that you unearthed surprised you the most?

Of those that know about Eric Liddell, most know him for his sporting achievements and the story depicted in Chariots of Fire. But in many ways, the story that followed his 1924 Olympic win, is the most remarkable and has been relatively untold. He gave up fame and fortune to dedicate his life to teaching and caring for others, and when held in an internment camp, brought joy to others in the most challenging of circumstances.

I will admit that I was quite emotional walking around the exhibition. Do you find that is that a normal reaction?

The fact that he stayed in China while his family went to Canada, he never met his youngest daughter and he died just a few months prior to the end of the war, are very sad and yes, do make the exhibition touching and poignant.

I have been putting DARKCHAT's itinerary together for a few years now and I like to create " themed" days. The day we saw the exhibition was part of my "Free" day theme to try and keep costs down. How important to you was it that the exhibition was free to all?

Our key aim has been to raise awareness of who Eric Liddell was and the values he lived his life by. We want to make his story accessible to as many people as possible. Through the Eric Liddell 100 we have developed educational resources for schools and an online course for adults which are freely available on our website. So having a free exhibition accessible to as many people as possible was key.

What does being CEO of The Eric Liddell Community involve?

I oversee the running of The Eric Liddel Community, our mission is to bring people together in their local communities to enhance health and well-being and have a positive impact on their lives. We do this through three strategic programmes:

• · our programme of support for people living with dementia, including our flagship Day Care service;

• · our wellbeing programme for unpaid carers, and

• · through our Community Hub programme, including our community café, ran by our fully trained chef and a team of dedicated volunteers, and providing office spaces for social enterprises and other local charities.

For Eric spirituality and missionary work was more important that his sporting achievements. Do you think he should be better known inside Scotland & beyond?

Our main aim for The Eric Liddell 100 is to ensure people know about Eric Liddell, his life, values and achievements. We have been delighted to work with partners in Scotland, the UK, and across the world. In China, Eric is celebrated as a hero, and we have worked with partners there and in Hong Kong to celebrate the centenary, and links between the two countries.

Finally, what are the plans for the exhibition when it closes at the Parliament next month?

We are working hard to secure Eric’s legacy beyond the centenary year and Our Olympic year appeal includes fundraising for a permanent exhibition to be located at The Eric Liddell Community. We would love for our building to continue to tell his story, in the neighbourhood in Edinburgh where he once lived.

Thanks to John for taking the time out to speak to us, you can find out more about the work of the Eric Liddell Community and the Eric Liddell 100 here.