Education
Macklin studied at Queen"s University Belfast in Belfast, Northern Ireland, graduating with first class honours in French and Spanish (Bachelor) and with a Doctor of Philosophy in 1976 on the works of Spanish writer Ramón Pérez de Ayala.
Macklin studied at Queen"s University Belfast in Belfast, Northern Ireland, graduating with first class honours in French and Spanish (Bachelor) and with a Doctor of Philosophy in 1976 on the works of Spanish writer Ramón Pérez de Ayala.
He held posts at a number of British universities, and from 2001 to 2005 was Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Paisley (now the University of the West of Scotland). At the time of his death he was Professor of Hispanic Studies at the University of Glasgow and Head of the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, and a Visiting Professor at the University of Ulster. Macklin began his teaching career at the University of Hull as a Lecturer in Hispanic Studies in 1973, being promoted to Senior Lecturer in 1985.
He was appointed Professor of Spanish at the University of Strathclyde in 2006 and in 2010 became Professor of Hispanic Studies and Head of the School of Modern Languages and Cultures at the University of Glasgow.
He was a Visiting Professor at the University of Ulster from 2007.