David Ogilvy, the 13th earl of Airlie, who has died aged 97, was a reforming lord chamberlain who, as head of the royal household from 1984 until 1997, reorganised many time-honoured but not necessarily efficient royal practices.
Among his achievements, he persuaded Queen Elizabeth II to cut the number of royals financed through the civil list paid by the government and to rationalise the management of the royal palaces. He presided over arrangements following the 1993 decision by his employer to pay income tax. Following fire damage at Windsor Castle in 1992, he coordinated the public opening of Buckingham Palace in order to finance the castle’s restoration.
