This year, the GROGS Xmas Lunch was thrice blest, with the quality of the Christmas fayre, the jollity of the community carol singing and the frivolity of the top table speakers. Chairman Roy Dingwall was at his outrageous best, guest Howard Haslett from EROS, our brother club in Edinburgh, was in fine form with yet another fine Grace and the Guest Speaker was a revelation. Over the almost 15 years of the GROGS existence, successive Committees have trawled far and wide to bring the best speakers available to entertain or enlighten the Members at over 120 lunches. Of course, not always were the best speakers available! Where the current Committee hadn’t previously looked was right under its collective nose. If they had, they would have found Ken Mitchell - able, willing and available. Ken has been a member of GHARFC for a long time (a Director in fact) and is already a GROG, with a rugby pedigree ranging from the lower echelons of the erstwhile Clarkston Rugby Club to offering medical advice to the British Lions on tour. Unfortunately, for the merry band of 114 revellers at the lunch, medical confidentiality prevented him telling “Lions” stories and modesty prevented him telling Clarkston RFC 2nd XV stories. So Ken was left with a number of his medical experiences and anecdotes with which to entertain his festive audience …… and entertain them he did! One group was heard agreeing that he ranked as “one of the best yet”. Much of Ken’s medical career was described by way of doubtful stories about doubtful patients to an audience which was clearly delighted to hear about such things as fake Santas; deeply imbedded aubergines, residents of the criminal underbelly of Barrhead and a wee Paisley wifie who clearly was familiar to one or two GROGS present! Throughout his talk Ken was very lighthearted but he ended on a more sombre note reminding the GROGS that not everyone would be having such an excellent meal this Christmas or enjoying such pleasant company and he made an appeal for those less fortunate to be remembered at this time. Chairman Roy expressed the Club’s warm appreciation to Ken and presented him with one of the few remaining bottles of GROGS’ whisky.