Clive Davidson of Scotland’s Champany Inn passes away aged 72
There will be a memorial service for Davidson, who died on 4 November, on Monday 16 January at St. Michael’s Church in Linlithgow.
Originally from South Africa, Davidson worked for five decades in hospitality, most notably during his ownership of the 16-bedroom Champany Inn and restaurant, which he bought with wife Anne in January 1982.
He was one of the first hoteliers to bring charcoal grill cooking – the ‘braai’ cooking of South Africa – to the UK, and expanded the Champany company to include the steak-centric Chop & Ale House, the inn’s 16 bedrooms, and the Champany Wine Shop, which opened 11 years ago.
Davidson was also a founder member of The Scotch Beef Club (part of Quality Meat Scotland) and an ambassador for the Shetland Salmon Farmers’ Association.
His family described him as "quite a character", and a “passionate supporter” of Scottish beef and salmon, as well as French and South African wine, and of the hospitality industry in general.
Clive was received into the Order of La Confrérie Chevaliers du Tastevin, Vin de Bourgogne in 1984, and was celebrated as an ambassador for Great Britain by L’Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne in 2005.
Champany Inn won a Michelin star in 2008 (although subsequently lost it). It also won numerous awards for the quality of its wine and meat.
On its own website, the Champany Inn featured a tribute from the family, saying: "A man of few words, [Clive's] friendships and opinions were strong and quickly formed, his taste levels were precise and he knew what he liked immediately. Food and wine were his passion...His dry wit and sense of humour was partnered by his enormous generosity and kindness...For his loyal staff, his friends and family, Clive’s spirit and legacy will always live on at Champany Inn."
