Alastair Davidson had married (Mildred) Valentine Blomfield, daughter of Colonel Frederick William Osborne, Royal Australian Artillery, of Sydney, Australia.

[4] Davidson retired from the navy in 1954, in which year he succeeded his uncle Duncan as head of the family, inherited Tillychetly and its farmlands, and married Katherine, secretary to the Canadian chargé d'affaires[5] and daughter of William Jamieson, of Ontario, Canada.

[10] Davidson was Liberal spokesman on foreign affairs and defence issues in Parliament, a particularly important brief given the ongoing war in Vietnam and the arguments over Britain's role East of Suez.

[12] In February 1967,[13] he took a leading role in the opposition to the government's plans to raise fees for foreign students at British universities and introduced a Bill to give the people of Scotland and Wales referendums on devolution.

Although the overall strength of the Liberal Party in the House of Commons after that election plummeted from 13 to just six MPs, had Davidson stood again he may nonetheless have retained the seat, possibly even with an increased majority, based on his record as a strong and popular local MP.

[16] Despite Davidson's campaigning alongside Mrs Grimond, the seat was gained for the Conservatives by Colonel Colin 'Mad Mitch' Mitchell formerly of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, who had proved his bravery serving under fire in Aden.