Jock's Tale

This is the story of a contemporary Celtic hero and man of the world, who inspires the design and selection of products that reflect the traditions of the Celtic peoples and which appeal to those of Scottish, Irish and Welsh heritage.

Jock McDuff was born in the latter half of the last century, in a wee crofter's cottage in the highlands of Scotland to well educated but impoverished hippy parents. His great uncle, Hamish Campbell, died a year later leaving Jock's father a large estancia (cattle ranch) in Argentina.  There Jock was raised and educated by his parents, the many wonderful families that were employed on the estancia and the stream of his parents' friends, who visited from all parts of the world and often stayed for months, and some for years.  He has shared many stories of his youthful adventures, riding the pampas with gauchos (cowboys), skiing in Bariloche with a chalet full of relatives and hiking in Patagonia with his mother. In the tradition of Great Uncle Hamish, his family hosted the annual gathering of the clans and the highland games at their estancia in the early Autumn for the many families of Scottish heritage in that part of Argentina.

This marvelously liberal, diverse and eclectic upbringing changed when Jock was eleven and his parents decided to send him to St. Andrew's Preparatory, a British-style school for the sons of wealthy Argentines and expatriates, in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. The headmaster and his wife were Welsh and had arrived at the school some thirty years before, straight from attaining their M.A.s in the classics from Oxford University. They had both taught at St.Andrew's ever since and it retained it's pre-war British traditions.  Jock survived the frequent canings for breaking rules he hardly understood and lived for the three holidays, when he could return to the love of his family and the freedom of the estancia.  Jock recalled the usual family Christmas, with a huge tree, large open fires, even though it was Summer-time, and dancing Scottish reels in the great hall.

At thirteen, Jock passed his entrance exams and after long and tearful farewells, he left Argentina with an older boy for the long flight and then train ride to Gordonstoun School in Scotland.  He had an aunt and two of his father's cousins who lived in Scotland, but they visited Jock infrequently. Jock studied hard, made lots of friends and continued to stay in trouble with school rules. He visited his family only during the long Summer holidays, because of the great expense, although his parents came twice for the Christmas holidays, until his mother died from over-exposure on a hike in the Andes. At eighteen, Jock won a scholarship to Cambridge University, where he too studied the classics.

Jock has not described the next eighteen years of his life, although we know he was promoted rapidly in the British Foreign Service. Speaking a number of European languages fluently, although serving at posts in Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and probably as the youngest British High Commissioner in Asia, he eventually transferred to the United Nations. While posted in Hong Kong, he fell in love with the seventeen-year old daughter of a local business tycoon of Scots ancestry. There are lovely photographs of their classic Scottish wedding at her family's home in the Scottish highlands, where the family now lives, although within three years of giving birth to their twin daughters, Jock's young wife died of cancer. 

The girls are now in boarding school, and their devoted Chinese amah acts in place of their mother.  Jock travels frequently and for long periods for his work on mine clearance, family planning and UNICEF, but manages to spend most of the holidays with his daughters. They usually spend much of the Summer with his ancient father, who sold the estancia nearly twenty years ago and retired to a cottage on a river in South Devon, England.  Knowing that Jock's projects are always under-funded, his father encouraged a group of his friends to create opportunities that would support his work. This Jock McDuff ® website, that carries Celtic inspired products, is one of the new ventures, as a portion of the annual surplus is donated to his favored projects around the world. 

You are encouraged to support these global projects directly and can read about them at the following websites:

www.unicef.org/support/
www.unfpa.org/support/
www.landmines.org.uk/

Wherever in the world Jock is working, he always meets people of Scottish, Irish or Welsh heritage, and those who share his love for the Celtic traditions. He spent the last Burns Night with a group of engineers, clearing mines in the Balkans. Someone played the pipes, a few wore their kilts, and most everyone shared a wee dram or two, to help them recite their favorite poems.  

Jock was in Hong Kong when Britain handed back the Crown Colony to the People's Republic of China. When shown the photograph below by his Chinese friends, he had to explain that although the Scots are careful with their money, they could now afford to buy underwear. Those Chinese friends arranged for the first Jock McDuff® product line to include a range of Scottish-style underwear.

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