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Alan Gemmell

1913 – 1986

British botanist

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About Alan Gemmell

Lived 1913 – 1986 (aged 73). Alan Gemmell was a botanist and biologist.

Alan Robertson Gemmell (10 May 1913 – 5 July 1986 ) was Professor of Biology at Keele University and a regular member of the panel on the BBC Radio Home Service (later BBC Radio 4) programme Gardeners' Question Time from 1950 for some 30 years. Disagreements on the programme between Gemmell and fellow panel member Bill Sowerbutts became legendary.

Life Gemmell was born in Glasgow, the son of Alexander Nicol Gemmell, a cashier, and his wife Mary Robertson. He was brought up in Troon and educated at Ayr Academy followed by Glasgow University where he gained a first class BSc in Botany and later, on a Commonwealth Scholarship, the University of Minnesota

He was instrumental in establishing the course in biology at Keele University, which was not then offered in the UK. His career also took him to Tehran, Iran (then Persia) and Africa to establish similar courses.

On BBC Desert Island Discs he estimated he had appeared on over 1,200 Gardeners Question Time programmes.

Family

In 1942 he married Janet Ada Boyd Duncanson.

Publications Gardener's Question Time (1964) Developmental Plant Anatomy (1966) Hodder & Stoughton Penguin Book of Basic Gardening (1975) Sunday Gardener Fontana (1973) Practical Gardener's Encyclopaedia (1977) Collins,

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Important facts

Birth century
Occupation
Education
University of Glasgow, University of Minnesota, Ayr Academy
Employers
British Broadcasting Corporation, Keele University
Also known as
Alan Robertson Gemmell

People in Alan Gemmell's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Alan Gemmell's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Alan Gemmell?

British botanist (1913-1986)

When was Alan Gemmell born?

Alan Gemmell was born on 10 May 1913.

When did Alan Gemmell die?

Alan Gemmell died on 5 July 1986.

What was Alan Gemmell's occupation?

Alan Gemmell was a botanist and biologist.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Alan Gemmell

· Wikidata: Q4706692

· DBpedia: Alan Gemmell (botanist)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Alan Gemmell. https://biography.guide/alan-gemmell/

MLA: "Alan Gemmell." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/alan-gemmell/.

Chicago: "Alan Gemmell." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/alan-gemmell/.

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