DISCLAIMER
@Dave7 : As with what bike/tyre/saddle questions, this is a question of personal taste in the extreme, how I or anyone else experience a whisky is not necessarily how you will and its akin to asking us to tell you your favourite colour based on you saying you don't like things too black and you enjoy Monet paintings.
Generally you will be looking more at Speyside Whiskys to fit your bill, they tend to have a lighter palate than many of the other areas.
McCallan, yes it is nice but a special buy? much in the same way that Glenmorangie & Glenfiddich are nice & drinkable but not really 'occasion' whiskys being as ubiquitous as they are. Any of these would fit your taste requirement.
Someone suggested Highland Park, yes I love it, and it is one of the softer of its type but the coastal and maritime whisky's generally may be also a bit robust for someone that has discounted Islay peaty types.
A couple that I think you would get on with and a little different to the norm :
Cardhu is a very pleasant easy drinking whisky, it is the single malt base for a lot of the Johnny Walker blends, it is becoming more mainstream and can be found more readily nowadays in its own right.
A bit off the beaten track but I would suggest a
Bladnoch ticks all of your boxes, It is beautiful light colour and flavour whisky and one that will slip down nicely on its own or as an accompaniment to food. One you'd find online or in a more Whisky oriented shop rather than regular off licence or supermarket shelves, The distillery was mothballed some time ago now and it is one that appears more often as connoisseur bottlings than own label nowadays, as well as I think hitting all of your taste requirements, it will have that cachet of being a bit different and special.
Depending on when it is needed by, I would suggest you find your local whisky buffs shop or pub for a tasting session or buy miniatures for a home tasting to narrow down your ideas and preferences with a bit of your own nose and palate in the mix
I'm not au-fait with Cheshire for Whisky outlets but the Fishermans Retreat in Ramsbottom just north of Bury is not far off your patch I suspect & has a huge selection to consider and knowledgeable staff to advise,
http://www.fishermansretreat.com/whisky take a driver or book a taxi & a B&B tho.
Irish whiskey can be quite smooth and mellow too.