Sir Malcolm Grant

Published: 26 September, 2013
by JAMES BURLEY and RICHARD OSLEY

A UNIVERSITY spent nearly £18,000 on a farewell party for its high-profile provost, booking the world’s best- known Abba tribute band, Bjorn Again, to perform and buying in a batch of 200 moustache-shaped cookies.

Sir Malcolm Grant, who received a pay package worth around £400,000 while the boss boss at University College London, was presented with the party in June before he headed off to become chairman of the NHS.

Like most universities, UCL receives a portion of public funding and how it spends its money has over the years been scrutinised by campaigners concerned by cutbacks in higher education and the low wages received by the cleaners.

Sir Malcolm has noted the opening of the UCL Academy school in Swiss Cottage, the first secondary in Camden to use new powers to break away from council control and influence, as one of his chief achievements during his seven-year spell.

Details of his send-off, held in the open-air courtyard in Gower Street, Euston, were uncovered through a Freedom of Information request returned this week.

A spreadsheet of spending shows:
• £4,725 booking of Bjorn Again, plus £96 for refreshments for the band. A further £3,500 for the act was paid for by a private donor

• £650 on a VW Beetle which doubles as a photo booth

• £600 on hiring two opera singers and a pianist

• £260 on a batch of moustache-shaped cookies

• £200 on T-shirts with a “70s Malcolm look-alike photo”.

The moustache cookies are a reference to Sir Malcolm’s famously clean-cut appearance with rarely a hair out of place and a finely cropped ’tache.

So famous was his facial hair, which he recently said was originally inspired by Frank Zappa, he once raised money for charity by shaving it off.

Bjorn Again are one of the world’s most successful tribute acts, having sold out the Royal Albert Hall in the past, and played at big music festivals at Glastonbury and Reading. A string of famous fans include Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Photos of the event show a large stage was constructed and Sir Malcom dancing, happily, to the musical entertainment.

A UCL spokesman said: “This was the first all-staff UCL party in many years and it was attended by hundreds of UCL employees.

"The entertainment was partly funded by a donor, and the total cost was less than £5 a head.

"All those who attended received a complementary 20cl alcoholic or soft drink and a souvenir cookie, so I don’t think you could call it extravagant by any stretch of the imagination.”