Dr Julian Patrick Bryan Lovell was born in Bath on 10 February 1942, grew up in the village of Swettenham, Cheshire, and passed away in Hertford on 20 September 2024. His father, Bernard, was a scientist who, in 1945, founded the Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire, establishing the new science of radio astronomy. His mother, Joyce, was a teacher and writer.
Left: Bryan Lovell. Image courtesy of Bryan Lovell.
After completing school in Macclesfield, Bryan gained a master’s in geology at the University of Oxford. His research project focused on the Bude Sandstones of Cornwall, supervised by Harold Reading. He moved to Harvard University for a PhD supervised by Raymond Siever and further developed his sedimentology skills and love of fieldwork. Returning to the UK in 1968, Bryan became a lecturer at the University of Edinburgh.
BP and the Challenge Programme
In 1979, Bryan joined BP as their first Chief Sedimentologist. He later became Exploration Manager for Ireland and subsequently the Middle East. Bryan received an OBE in 1989 for "Services to British Commercial interests in Ireland and to Anglo-Irish relations". His impact on an evolving BP increased during the 1990s when he became Head of Recruitment for BP Exploration. In that role, he devised the Challenge Programme, a 3-year training scheme for new employees. It remains the core development programme for new petrotechnical employees into BP, with other companies following suit – a testament to and long-lasting record of Bryan’s success. Bryan continued to lead and teach the Challenge Programme for BP globally until 2009; his passion for broadening the perspectives of geology and STEM graduates was strong.
Cambridge and research
In 1996, Bryan retired from full time work with BP, only to take up a senior research fellowship at Bullard Laboratories, University of Cambridge. Alongside Nicky White, Bryan suggested that the sedimentary record could be used to measure the pulse of a mantle plume. They proposed that the well-documented discrete episodes of sand deposition in the Paleogene of the North Sea basin reflected hot pulses in the early Iceland plume.
Climate campaigner
Bryan was committed to addressing climate change and believed that carbon capture and storage was essential if we are to hit net zero by 2050. He lobbied and advised governments and businesses alike to research carbon capture and storage and scale up the technology. He worked with the Geological Society to promote climate discussions, notably leading the BP and ExxonMobil debate at Burlington House in 2003. In 2010, Cambridge University Press published Bryan’s
Challenged by Carbon: The Oil Industry and Climate Change. During Bryan’s term as President of the Geological Society (2010-2012), the Society became the first such organisation to promulgate the geological case for concern about human-induced climate change.
Profound impact
Bryan is survived by wife Carol, three children, James, David, and Heather, and seven grandchildren. Bryan and Carol celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary in June 2024.
The sadness of Bryan’s passing is balanced by the many memories of the profound impact he had on many individuals and more broadly to geology. His deep sense of integrity, ethics, and values combined with a sharp wit, sense of fun, and strong geoscience background are things we will never forget. Bryan is a great loss to UK geology and beyond, but his achievements and impact will stand the test of time.
By Jon Gluyas, Mike Bowman, and Andrew Mackenzie (with input from Carol Lovell)
The full version of this obituary appears below - Editor.
Bryan Lovell (1942 – 2024)
A pioneering geologist, inspirational leader and passionate climate advocate
Dr Julian Patrick Bryan Lovell was born in Bath on 10 February 1942 and passed away in Hertford on 20 September 2024. His father, Bernard, was a scientist who, in 1945, founded the Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire, establishing the new science of radio astronomy. His mother, Joyce, was a teacher and writer. Bryan was the second of five children and grew up in the village of Swettenham, Cheshire.
Education
After completing school in Macclesfield, Bryan gained a master’s in geology at the University of Oxford. His research project focused on the Bude Sandstones of Cornwall, supervised by Harold Reading. He moved to Harvard University for a PhD supervised by Raymond Siever and further developed his skills in sedimentology and love of field geology.
Returning to the UK in 1968, Bryan was appointed as a lecturer by the University of Edinburgh. However, it was not only rocks that interested Bryan, but also politics. He stood for Parliament in 1979, contesting Edinburgh South as a Liberal. Out of five candidates, Bryan came third. The winner was former Conservative Deputy Leader, Michael Ancram, who passed away just 11 days after Bryan, and second was former Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown – exalted company!
BP and the Challenge Programme
Not long after the 1979 election, Bryan changed career, joining BP as their first Chief Sedimentologist, where he presided over the growth of this area in support of BP’s global activities until the 1980s. He later became Exploration Manager for Ireland and subsequently the Middle East. Bryan received an OBE in 1989 for "Services to British Commercial interests in Ireland and to Anglo-Irish relations". His wider impact on an evolving and growing BP increased significantly during the early 1990s, when he became Head of Recruitment for BP Exploration. In that role, he devised the Challenge Programme, an intense 3-year training scheme for new employees. At the time, the success of the Challenge Programme reflected Bryan’s passion and commitment to supporting people’s progression. It remains the core development programme for new petrotechnical employees into BP – a testament to and long-lasting record of Bryan’s success. In time, other companies followed suit and created similar programmes, giving further credit to Bryan’s understanding of what is needed to sustain and develop workforces, by ensuring they are fit for both today and tomorrow’s challenges.
Bryan continued to lead and teach the Challenge Programme for BP across the globe until 2009. Bryan’s passion for young people, skills development, and broadening the perspectives of geology and STEM graduates was strong – and he made sure it was key to BP’s strategy.
Cambridge and research
In 1996, Bryan retired from full time work with BP, only to take up a senior research fellowship at Bullard Laboratories, University of Cambridge, a move that reawakened Bryan’s research interests. Alongside Nicky White, Bryan suggested that the sedimentary record could be used to measure the pulse of a mantle plume. They proposed that the well-documented discrete episodes of sand deposition in the Paleogene of the North Sea basin reflected hot pulses in the early Iceland plume.
Climate campaigner
During his continued work on BP’s Challenge Programme, Bryan progressively introduced material on human-induced climate change and the responsibility of fossil-fuel companies to control carbon emissions to the curriculum. He also began working with the Geological Society of London to promote climate discussions, notably leading the debate at Burlington House between BP and ExxonMobil in 2003. In 2010, Cambridge University Press published Bryan’s Challenged by Carbon: The Oil Industry and Climate Change. During Bryan’s term as President of the Geological Society (2010-2012), the Society became the first such organisation to promulgate the geological case for concern about human-induced climate change. He also promoted many cross-disciplinary meetings, including bringing together geology and poetry, an ongoing area of interest by the Society and its affiliates.
Bryan’s commitment to addressing climate change was foundational to the last years of his life right to the end, especially his belief that carbon capture and storage was essential if we are to hit net zero by 2050. He lobbied and advised governments and businesses alike to research carbon capture and storage and scale up the technology.
Supportive colleague
The help that Bryan gave to early career geoscientists was admirable. The advice and support he gave over many, long dinners as he tried to put the world to rights will be missed. Bryan’s enthusiasm, energy, and wit were shown by his response to an email from Jon Gluyas, reporting on the successful signing of the 999 year Burlington House lease secured by the Society, just a week before his death on 13 September 2024: “Yes, you are right that I am housebound, but I am so far matching the more favourable predictions of mortality by the medics and in good shape to mark the occasion here in Hertford today.” Such words were typical of Bryan, in good times or bad. He was always excited by what lay ahead and how he could contribute to new discoveries and a better world. More often than not, he would then make it happen – always with a joyful and infectious sense of humour and great comic timing that put a smile on everyone’s face.
Profound impact
Bryan is survived by wife Carol, three children, James, David, and Heather, and seven grandchildren. Bryan and Carol celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary in June 2024.
The sadness of Bryan’s passing is balanced by the many memories of the profound and positive impact he had on many individuals and more broadly to geology, corporations, societies, and legislators. His deep sense of integrity, ethics, and values combined with a sharp wit, sense of fun, and strong geoscience background are things we will never forget. His drive to do the right thing, slightly naughty but disarming grin, and personal warmth make Bryan such a great loss to UK geology and beyond. Bryan’s achievements and impact will stand the test of time, more than footprints in the tide, and the memories he leaves behind are something many will celebrate and keep close forever.
By Jon Gluyas, Mike Bowman, and Andrew Mackenzie (with input from Carol Lovell)