Magnus Magnusson KBE was born in Reykjavik in 1929 and came with his family to Edinburgh at the age of nine months. He has had a distinguished career in broadcasting, journalism, historical and archaeological research, Icelandic and Old Norse studies, and environmental affairs. He married his wife, Mamie Baird, in 1954, and they have four children and nine grandchildren.
Hermann Palsson was a Professor Emeritus of Icelandic Studies at the University of Edinburgh.