Retirement and Later Life
After retiring from the Foreign Office in 1970, Gilchrist became the Chairman of the Highlands and Islands Development Board, a UK government quango which funded small start-up enterprises in what was a relatively poor region of the country.
In his retirement Gilchrist spent time curling, fishing and writing - in addition to his serious books on his time in Iceland, SOE's work in Siam and the fall of Malaya, he wrote a number of novels, including "Did Van Gogh Paint His Bed?" and some poetry. He was also a prodigious writer of letters to newspapers - principally the Times, the Scotsman and the Glasgow Herald. After his wife Freda died in 1987, he had a letter published in a British newspaper once a week on average until his death in 1993.
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by James Henderson |
UK Ambassador to Iceland 1956–1959 |
Succeeded by Andrew Stewart |
| Preceded by Sir Leslie Fry |
UK Ambassador to Indonesia 1962–1966 |
Succeeded by Terence O'Brien |
| Preceded by Geofroy Tory |
UK Ambassador to Ireland 1967–1970 |
Succeeded by John Peck |
Read more about this topic: Andrew Gilchrist
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