One of my favourite functions is to go along to a debate in Lower Parliament Hall and present the Rector's Award at the end of the evening for whatever contribution has caught my imagination. I really enjoyed tonight's Magistrands' debate in which shortly-to-be-departed old hands had a chance to show off their rhetorical flourishes, cutting interventions and, so far as I could tell, to settle old scores. Great fun and I want to thank outgoing Debates Convenor Jessica Siegel for her encouragement this year and to wish Owen Wilton, her successor, good luck.

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St Andrews students' reputation for being top charity fundraisers has been reinforced by the amazing total raised for 2008/9. Will Wright tells me that this amounts to c.£220,000, which he calculates as an average of £36.67 for every full-time student - and Mhairi Jennifer McGaan proudly claims that Rag Week 2009 accounted for 10% of the total. I was delighted to be asked along for the award ceremony in Lower College Hall where individual recognition certificates were awarded by Dr Chris Lusk to Stephen Gamble, Will Elsby, Will Wright, David Haines and Mhairi Jennifer McGaan.

Brilliant night at the Half Cut Film Festival - the New Picture House hosted a red carpeted gala of the best of student films, and I had a front row seat as a judge, along with award making film maker Robert Sproul-Cran and Dovi Anderson and Rich McKain - the Hollywood animators behind films such as WALL-E, and The Matrix Revolutions. Top prize went to St Andrews' finest, Naysun-Alae Carew, of Rogue Productions, the St Andrews University Film-Making Society. Enjoyed the celebrations at McKays afterwards. Thanks to Naysun and to Charlotte Walsh, Katherine KK Kennedy and crew who put together a sparkling event.