Chris Baur
Born: May 28, 1942;
Died: January 23, 2026
Chris Baur, who has died aged 83, was an accomplished and well-regarded figure in business and political journalism. In the mid-1970s he was BBC Scotland’s political correspondent; he presented a weekly political programme for Radio Scotland, Order, Order! and made two documentaries, Does Scotland Mean It? and Power of Scotland. The former dealt with the devolution issue and the latter with Scotland’s financial and business strength on the world stage winning the Royal Television Society’s award for the UK’s best current affairs documentary in 1978.
Other prestigious posts included managing director of the Insider Group and editor of its flagship magazine Scottish Business Insider, chairman of Editions Publishing company whose magazine he also edited and Scottish political correspondent for the Financial Times. Chris was also editor of The Scotsman between 1985 and ’88 having begun as a humble copyboy in 1960.
During his career he received several awards. In 1982 he won Journalist of the Year for his articles on the controversial Royal Bank of Scotland takeover, in 1980 he claimed Specialist Journalist of the Year for articles on the European elections, and in 1983 the Wincott Award for Financial Journalism. He was widely considered to have encyclopaedic knowledge of Scottish industrial and business affairs as well as an admirably clear and concise writing style. Lifelong friend and former colleague Arthur Anderson commented, “Chris was much admired by his peer group, took his job very seriously and his rise up the tree was achieved on merit, a great wordsmith and great guy.”
Christopher Frank Baur was born in Oxted, Surrey to Marty Sigg and Frank Baur, both of Swiss descent. As Frank was away on active service, Marty decided to relocate when Chris was very young to friends in Glenesk, Angus where he initially attended the local primary school. Later he boarded at Dalhousie Prep. School, Cupar and then Strathallan School, Perthshire. After the war Frank worked as a horticulturalist with ICI but the marriage ended in divorce. Marty remarried to a journalist Will Stewart, an editor with Northcliffe Newspapers, with whom she had two sons, Will Jr. and Angus, half brothers of Chris.
On leaving school he embarked on a career in journalism, influenced to an extent by his stepfather’s role and his own keen interest in reading and language. Aged 18 he began at The Scotsman as copyboy/teaboy before undertaking a three-year journalism indenture on the newsdesk, winning the Fowler Memorial Prize finishing top in his final exam.
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Soon he began fashioning a reputation in industrial and financial reporting which led to his appointment as the newspaper’s Scottish political correspondent. Spells at the Financial Times and BBC as Scotland’s political correspondent followed before becoming The Scotsman’s assistant editor in 1978 specialising in political writing and deputy editor in 1983. And in 1985 he became the newspaper’s editor, a post in which he continued till January 1988. As he was keen to spend more time writing he resigned and resumed contributing to the Financial Times.
In the early 1990s he joined the Insider group which published a portfolio of business oriented magazines, becoming managing director. Later he joined Editions Publishing, a business communications agency and one of Scotland’s leading contract publishing firms. Appointed chairman, he was also designated ‘Chief Storyteller’ in their Financial magazine, reflecting his editorial role as “the company’s principal wordsmith”, retiring from professional work aged 72.
The Scotsman also made a significant contribution to his personal life as it was where he met colleague and future wife Jackie Gilchrist, then employed as a copytaker. They married in 1965 and had four sons.
A man of many interests and talents, he enjoyed gardening, cooking, DIY especially carpentry, reading, travelling in Europe and to New Zealand to visit family. He also maintained contact with Swiss relatives.
Once when son Peter asked him what words he would like to have on his gravestone, after initial faux offence at the question he responded, “The Humble Wordsmith”.
Chris is survived by his wife, sons Mark, Paul, Peter and David, 11 grandchildren and one great-grandson.
JACK DAVIDSON
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