Ian Leslie Stewart Watson (born

Carlton, Nottinghamshire Carlton is a town in the Borough of Gedling, Nottinghamshire, England. It is to the east of Nottingham. The population at the 2011 Census was 6,881. It was an urban district until 1974, whose wards (Carlton Hill, Carlton, Cavendish, Colwick, Ge ...

17 September 1950) was

Archdeacon of Coventry The Archdeacon of Coventry is a senior ecclesiastical officer in the Church of England Diocese of Coventry. The post has been called the '' Archdeacon Pastor'' since 2012. History The post was historically within the Diocese of Lichfield (formerl ...

from 2007 until 2012.

Biography

He was educated at Westdale Lane Primary School, Mapperley, Nottingham until 1962, and then was awarded a Bursary to study at Nottingham High School (1962–69) before being commissioned in the Royal Marines in September 1969. He did formal, further studies to Interpreter level (French-English) during his service career and, as an Ordinand, theology at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. As an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

in the

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

from 1969 to 1979 serving at CTCRM (1969–70), 41 Cdo (1970–71), BRNC Dartmouth (1971–72), 42 Cdo (1972–74) MOD London and Glasgow (1974–75), HMS Nubian (1975–77), Templar Barracks, Ashford, (1977), Army Staff College (1978) and 40 Cdo (1978–79). During his service, he served in the UK, (including service in Northern Ireland), Berlin, Scandinavia and 'at sea'. In 1977, he was the youngest officer to be awarded the Silver Jubilee Medal by HM Queen Elizabeth II. He studied for

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

Wycliffe Hall, Oxford Wycliffe Hall () is a permanent private hall of the University of Oxford affiliated with the Church of England, specialising in philosophy, theology, and religion. It is named after the Bible translator and reformer John Wycliffe, who was mas ...

and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

in 1981 in Exeter Cathedral. After a

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' () of souls of a parish. In this sense, ''curate'' means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy who are ass ...

at St Andrew's,

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

he was

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English p ...

Matchborough Redditch is a town and Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Worcestershire, England. The town is divided into separate districts. All street-name signs in Redditch have the street name in white lettering on a blue background a ...

from 1985 to 1989 and led the building of Christ Church, Matchborough, in 1987. He was Vicar then Team Rector of

Woodley, Berkshire Woodley is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Wokingham, in Berkshire, England. Woodley is east of Reading and adjoined to Earley which is to the west of the town and Woodley is from Wokingham. Nearby are the villages of Sonning, T ...

from 1989 to 1995 where he led the 'planting' of both Emmanuel and the Airfield churches; the

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

from 1995 to 2001; and

Chief Executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the

Intercontinental Church Society Intercontinental Church Society (ICS) is a global Anglican mission organisation. ICS is a voluntary Evangelical society, a full member of the Partnership for World Mission, and therefore a recognized agency of the Church of England for overseas w ...

from 2001 until his appointment as

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denomina ...

in 2007. He was made Archdeacon Emeritus of Coventry in 2012 and Canon Emeritus of Gibraltar in 2007. During his time in Plymouth, he used to present religious programmes for Westward TV, TSW and the BBC. He married Denise (née Macpherson) in 1972 and has two children, Hannah (1974) and Adam (1975). A keen cricketer, he now plays and coaches wheelchair basketball at National League level (after the amputation of his left leg in 2014 as the result of a war injury incurred in Northern Ireland in 1973). He is currently the Chairman of the Society for the Relief of Poor Clergy LinkedIn
/ref> and the Steelers Wheelers Sports Club. Additionally, he was the President of the Welton British Legion. He is also the President of the Rotary Club of Brigg. A former member of the Plymouth Lifeboat Crew, he received an award for his part in the rescue of the crew of the ''Saint Simeon'' trawler in 1985.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Ian 1950 births Living people People from Carlton, Nottinghamshire 20th-century English Anglican priests 21st-century English Anglican priests Alumni of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford Royal Marines officers Archdeacons of Coventry Military personnel from Nottinghamshire 20th-century Royal Marines personnel People educated at Nottingham High School