John McCarthy (journalist)

John McCarthy (journalist)

John Patrick McCarthy CBE (born November 26 1956) is a British journalist who was kidnapped by Islamic Jihad terrorists in Lebanon in April 1986, and held hostage for more than five years.

McCarthy, of Irish Catholic extraction,Fact|date=May 2008 was Britain's longest-held hostage in Lebanon, having spent over five years in captivity until his release on August 8, 1991. He shared a cell with the Northern Irish hostage Brian Keenan, for several years.

He was appointed a Commander of the British Empire in 1992. He sailed around the coast of Britain with Sandi Toksvig in 1995, making a BBC documentary TV series and a book of the experience.

He attended Haileybury College, a public school in Hertfordshire.

His former fiancée Jill Morrell had campaigned for his release and public expectations of a re-kindling of the romance between them were high. The couple wrote a book together about his ordeal but they separated amicably in 1994. McCarthy married Anna Ottewill in April 1999.

Miscellaneous information

* A Students' Union bar at the University of Hull is named after him, as he is an alumnus of the University.
*A critically acclaimed film version of the two men's kidnapping and incarceration was made in 2003. Titled Blind Flight, the British film was directed by John Furse starring Ian Hart as Keenan and Linus Roache as McCarthy.
* He is currently presenting episodes of the BBC Radio 4 travel programme "Excess Baggage".
* The Stiff Little Fingers song Beirut Moon was inspired by John McCarthy's ordeal. It criticized the government for not acting to free him and was subsequently withdrawn from sale. [http://www.vh1.com/artists/news/517060/08311999/jam.jhtml]
* In the first Christmas special of the British comedy programme "The Office", David Brent (played by Ricky Gervais) explains how he would like to be interviewed by Michael Parkinson. His agent then says that Parkinson only interviews people who have done things. To which Brent replies "He had that guy in Lebanon who spent years chained to a radiator, what did he do? Nothing! He was chained to a radiator!" Referring to John McCarthy.

Books

*"Some Other Rainbow" by John McCarthy and Jill Morrell (ISBN 0-563-39316-5)
*"Between Extremes" by Brian Keenan and John McCarthy (ISBN 0-552-14595-5)
*"A Ghost Upon Your Path" by John McCarthy (ISBN 0-593-04884-9)
*"An Evil Cradling" by Brian Keenan, (McCarthy is a main character) (ISBN 0-14-023641-4)

References

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/8/newsid_2492000/2492499.stm BBC: Beirut hostage John McCarthy freed]
* [http://www.jeremyhicks.com/johnmccarthy/biog.htm Bio at Jeremy Hicks Associates]
* [http://www.room54.co.uk/public_speakers.php?id=42 Brief biography at "Studio 54"]
* [http://www.independent.co.uk//eceRedirect?articleId=1215898&pubId=55 Article in 'The Independent' 6 August, 2006 - John McCarthy: Israel and the art of sophistry]
* [http://www.room54.co.uk/business_speakers.php?n=John_McCarthy&id=42 Room54 Guest Speaker Biography]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • John McCarthy — may refer to:;Government: * John McCarthy (ambassador) (b. 1942), Australian ambassador * John H. McCarthy (1850 ndash;1908), U.S. Representative from New York * John McCarthy (Nebraska) (1857 ndash;1943), Nebraska Republican politician;Science:… …   Wikipedia

  • McCarthy (surname) — See also: MacCarthy dynasty MacCarthy or McCarthy (Mac Cárthaigh in Irish), meaning Son of the loving one or loving , is a common surname that originated in Ireland. There are several forms extant, including Carthy and Carty. 60% of people with… …   Wikipedia

  • McCarthy — oder MacCarthy ist ein irischer Clan und daraus resultierend der Familienname folgender Personen: Inhaltsverzeichnis A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John Furse (director) — John Furse is a film and television director/writer/producer, son of Patrick and Elisabeth Furse (see Furse (surname) for family connections).Work* Blind Flight , the true story of the hostage ordeal in Lebanon of journalist John McCarthy and… …   Wikipedia

  • John Stewart Service — John („Jack“) Stewart Service (* 3. August 1909 in Chengdu, Provinz Sichuan, China; † 3. Februar 1999 in Oakland, Kalifornien, USA) war ein US amerikanischer Diplomat, dessen politische Karriere durch die Kommunisten Hatz der McCarthy Ära… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John Dos Passos — Born John Roderigo Dos Passos January 14, 1896 Chicago, Illinois Died September 28, 1970 (aged 74) Baltimore, Maryland Occupation novelist, playwright, poet, journalist, painter, translator …   Wikipedia

  • John Beecher — (1904–1980) was an activist poet, writer and journalist who wrote about the Southern United States during the Great Depression and the American Civil Rights Movement. Beecher was extremely active in the American labor and Civil Rights movements.… …   Wikipedia

  • John Gregory Dunne — (1989) John Gregory Dunne (* 25. Mai 1932 in West Hartford, Connecticut; † 30. Dezember 2003 in New York) war ein US amerikanischer Schriftsteller, Journalist, Literaturkritiker und …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • John T. Flynn — John Thomas Flynn (25 October 1882, Bladensburg, Maryland – 1964) was a U.S. journalist.CareerAlthough he graduated from Georgetown Law School, he choose a career in journalism, beginning at the New Haven Register but eventually moved to New York …   Wikipedia

  • John Bertram Oakes — (April 23, 1913 ndash;April 5, 2001) was an iconoclastic and influential U.S. journalist known for his early commitment to the environment, civil rights, and opposition to the Vietnam War. He was born in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, the second son… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”