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Bill Muir remembered

By The Drum, Administrator

November 2, 2007 | 2 min read

A great Thinker Bill Muir, co-founder of Adpartners and former creative director of Rex Stewart

BILL MUIR, Advertising Agent (August 1942 - October 2007)

William George Anderson Muir, his given name; or Billy to his family and Bill to his business friends. Perhaps it should not be me writing this. Because writing, especially advertisement writing, was his art.

To many outside the advertising business, the title creative director implies the ability to create the visual product. Bill was "Words" not "Pictures"; but he was also a great advertising thinker.

During a career spanning 50 years, he worked with several talented "Pictures" people, creating advertising that worked.

When he and I co-founded the Adpartners advertising agency in 1989, we were both at least 20 years older than the accepted "norm" for going it alone in this "young man's" business.

But Bill had the enthusiasm, energy and stamina of someone much younger than his years.

I would describe him as tireless? and a hand's on perfectionist!

(I once urged Simon, Bill's son, to give his Dad some precious home time by mowing his lawn for him. Simon said he'd do it willingly, but Bill would just mow it again anyway!)

Not content with working a 15-hour day, Bill threw himself into the voluntary work of the Yorkhill Children's Trust, latterly becoming its chairman. This led to the raising of over ?1m for the purchase of an MRI Scanner; an achievement surely worthy of public recognition.

But Bill was simply not a self-publicist...a shy, diffident man, choosing to beaver away in the background in order to make things work or get things absolutely right.

In a business where egos abound, he was a rarity and honest to a fault.

I doubt if there is anyone in advertising in Glasgow who did not hold anything but respect for him.

This was reflected in the attendance at his funeral on Saturday.

Bill will be greatly missed by many, especially by his wife Margaret, his three sons and their families who have been deprived of sharing the retirement, which Bill surely earned.

Norman Lawson, co founder, AdPartners

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