Molecular virologist and founder of Scientists for Labour

Born: August 9, 1930;

Died: October 31, 2018

WILLIE Russell, who has died aged 88, was a renowned molecular virologist, Emeritus Professor of Virology at St Andrews University and the founder of Scientists for Labour through which he campaigned for adequate funding for scientific research and education.

Born inxto a working-class background in a tenement block in Glasgow, Willie lost his father when he was seven. His mother, who was initially a cleaner at the Kelvingrove Museum and eventually in charge of the publications desk, had a passion for knowledge and education that she passed on to her son, who gained a scholarship to attend Allan Glen’s School, Glasgow. From there he went on to graduate with a BSc degree and PhD in organic chemistry from Glasgow University.

In 1959, following national service as a chemist working in Royal Ordnance factories and the research laboratories of J&P Coats in Paisley, he took the bold step of returning to academia and the even bolder step of changing fields from chemistry to the expanding discipline of virology.

Joining the newly formed Medical Research Council and the University of Glasgow Unit of Experimental Virus Research, he used electron microscopy to investigate the structure of herpes viruses. In 1963 he moved to the Ontario Cancer Unit in Toronto, working on bacteriophage biology, structure and genetics, and in 1964 he became the first non-medical researcher in the division of bacteriology and virology at the National Institute for Medical Research in London.

Whilst there he became interested in a wide variety of topics, which he continued to work and publish on throughout his career. These included such diverse subjects as the structure and replication of adeno viruses, the association of paramyxo viruses with chronic diseases such as multiple sclerosis, phosphorylation and the control of protein function, and the molecular biology of mycoplasmas.

In 1977 Professor Russell became editor of the Journal of General Virology, in the same year in which he was appointed head of the virology division, a position he occupied until 1982.

He moved back to Scotland following the sudden death of his first wife, Dorothy, as a result of a subarachnoid haemorrhage. She was working as a GP in Edgware at the time and her loss had a big impact on everyone who knew the family, and especially on their teenage children, Lucy and Iain.

Professor Russell was appointed chair of the department of biochemistry at St Andrews, in which he established the virology unit that continues to thrive to this day. As well as continuing his own research, he also mentored many PhD students who went on to have successful careers in science. In 1987 he became a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and Member of Council of the Society for General Microbiology.

From his youth he was a committed Christian Socialist but it was not until he was living in London that he joined the Labour Party. He was active in the Hendon North Constituency Party, standing for Barnet Council (in a safe Conservative ward) and being nominated by the Labour Party as a school governor. He was a keen supporter of the Campaign for the Advancement of State Education.

After his move back to Scotland he was twice chair of North East Fife Constituency Labour Party, rescuing it from the brink of extinction in time to fight a vigorous campaign in the 1992 general election. A dedicated internationalist, Professor Russell was also chair of the Mid Scotland and Fife European Constituency Labour Party, where one of his colleagues recalls his skill at holding together a disparate body: “He was authoritative and gentle in dealing with individuals – but he was in charge!”

In the 1990s Professor Russell’s energy and leadership were of critical importance in founding Scientists for Labour. He was the organisation’s first chair, holding the post until 2010, which involved him in repeated journeys to London. His wisdom and common sense, and the wide respect in which he was held within both the scientific community and the Labour Party, were invaluable in advancing the claims of science within the party. He lobbied for adequate funding for scientific research and education, encouraged fellow-scientists to contribute their specialist expertise, and courageously argued that Labour’s policies on nuclear power and animal experimentation should be based on scientific evidence. In 2016 he called on the Scottish Labour Conference to adopt an evidence-based approach to the issue of genetic modification in agriculture.

In addition to his professional career, Professor Russell had a wide range of interests, not least the Boys’ Brigade. In 1942 he joined the 227th Glasgow company, known for its fine brass band. There, he soon learned to play the cornet, then the tenor horn and finally, the euphonium. It was inevitable that he should become an officer in the company, then band officer and thereafter company captain. Over 40 years he served the BB movement, at local, battalion and national level.

On retirement in 1995 Professor Russell became Emeritus Professor and continued to develop his many research interests. Moving to the village of Crail, he was an enthusiastic participant in church and festival activities, while retaining his membership of the St Andrews Chorus. HE had always been a truly competitive participant in sports and it was no great surprise that at the age of 80 he should join Crail Bowling Club where, characteristically, he became president for two and half years.

Willie Russell is survived by his second wife, his step-children, Maggie and Willie, his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and by his two children, Lucy and Iain.