Alan Ross McWhirter (12 August 1925 – 27 November 1975) was, with his

twin Twins are two offspring produced by the same pregnancy.MedicineNet > Definition of Twin Last Editorial Review: 19 June 2000 Twins can be either ''monozygotic'' ('identical'), meaning that they develop from one zygote, which splits and forms two ...

brother, Norris, the cofounder of the 1955 ''Guinness Book of Records'' (known since 2000 as ''

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...

'') and a contributor to the television programme ''

Record Breakers ''Record Breakers'' was a British children's TV show, themed around world records and produced by the BBC. It was broadcast on BBC1 from 15 December 1972 to 21 December 2001. Format The programme was a spin-off series from '' Blue Peter'' wh ...

''. He was assassinated by the

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

(IRA) in 1975.

Early life

McWhirter was the youngest son of William McWhirter, editor of the '' Sunday Pictorial'', and Margaret "Bunty" Williamson. He was born at 10 Branscombe Gardens, Winchmore Hill, in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In 1929, as William was working on the founding of the Northcliffe Newspapers Group chain of provincial newspapers, the family moved to Aberfoyle, in Broad Walk, Winchmore Hill.Ayrshire Notes – Norris McWhirter
Ref used to confirm only that "Aberfoyle" is house name in Winchmore Hill, rather than town name in Scotland or Ireland Ross McWhirter was educated at Chesterton School, Seaford,

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

and

Trinity College, Oxford Trinity College (full name: The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity in the University of Oxford, of the foundation of Sir Thomas Pope (Knight)) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in E ...

. Between 1943 and 1946, Ross served as a sub-lieutenant with the

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Roya ...

aboard a

minesweeper A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping. History The earliest known usage of ...

in the Mediterranean. McWhirter maintained his home and Guinness Publishing business in the Middlesex area as it became the Municipal Borough of Edmonton, then

London Borough of Enfield The London Borough of Enfield () is a London boroughs, London borough in Greater London, England. The main communities in the borough are Edmonton, London, Edmonton, Enfield, London, Enfield, Southgate, London, Southgate and Palmers Green. Enfi ...

, and finally as part of

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

in 1965.

Career

Ross and Norris both became sports journalists in 1950. In 1951, they published ''Get to Your Marks'', and earlier that year they had founded an agency to provide facts and figures to

Fleet Street Fleet Street is a street in Central London, England. It runs west to east from Temple Bar, London, Temple Bar at the boundary of the City of London, Cities of London and City of Westminster, Westminster to Ludgate Circus at the site of the Lo ...

, endeavouring "to supply facts and figures to newspapers, yearbooks, encyclopaedias and advertisers." While building their business, they both worked as sports journalists. They knew and covered runner

Christopher Chataway Sir Christopher John Chataway (31 January 1931 – 19 January 2014) was a British middle- and long-distance runner, television news broadcaster and Conservative politician. Education Chataway was born in Chelsea, London, the son of James Deny ...

, a

Guinness Guinness () is a stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at Guinness Brewery, St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in the 18th century. It is now owned by the British-based Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic bever ...

employee who recommended them to Hugh Beaver. After an interview in 1954 in which the Guinness directors enjoyed testing the twins' knowledge of records and unusual facts, the brothers agreed to start work on the book that would become '' The Guinness Book of Records''. In August 1955, the first slim green volume, 198 pages long, appeared at bookstalls, and within four more months it had become the UK's number one nonfiction bestseller. Both brothers were regulars on the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

show ''

''. They were noted for their encyclopedic memories, enabling them to provide detailed answers to questions from the audience about entries in ''The Guinness Book of Records''. Norris continued to appear on the programme after Ross's death. In 1958, long after the legend of

William Webb Ellis William Webb Ellis (24 November 1806 – 24 February 1872) was an English Anglican clergyman who, by tradition, has been credited as the inventor of rugby football while a pupil at Rugby School. According to legend, Webb Ellis picked up the bal ...

as the originator of rugby had become engrained in rugby culture, Ross managed to rediscover Ellis's grave in a cemetery in

Menton Menton (; in classical norm or in Mistralian norm, , ; ; or depending on the orthography) is a Commune in France, commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera, close to the Italia ...

in Alpes Maritimes (it has since been renovated by the

French Rugby Federation The French Rugby Federation (, ; FFR) is the governing body for rugby union in France. It is responsible for the French national team and the Ligue nationale de rugby that administers the country's professional leagues. History Before the FFR ...

). In 1965, Ross and Norris were guests on the American panel game show '' I've Got a Secret'', where they exhibited their memorisation of the ''Guinness Book of Records''.

Politics

In the early 1960s, McWhirter was a Conservative Party activist and unsuccessfully fought the seat of

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

in the 1964 general election. Following his killing, his brother and others founded the National Association for Freedom (later the Freedom Association). His views were on the right-wing of the political spectrum.

Controversy

Ireland

McWhirter advocated and lobbied for various restrictions on the freedom of the Irish community in Britain, such as compulsory registration with the local police and a requirement for signed photographs when renting flats or booking hotel rooms.
The Road To Balcombe Street: The IRA Reign of Terror in London
'' by Steven Moysey (), pages 116 to 117 In 1975, McWhirter offered a £50,000 reward () for information leading to a conviction for several recent high-profile bombings in England that were publicly claimed by the

(IRA). In doing so, McWhirter recognised that he could then be a target himself. This was described as a bounty by McWhirter, and considered a bounty by the IRA Army Council, a view that led directly to the events that followed. However, the idea was not originally his but that of John Gouriet.

Capital punishment

McWhirter advocated capital punishment for terrorism offences. During a press conference on 4 November 1975, he proposed that terrorism be classified as treason and as a result carry the death penalty.

Alleged links to British intelligence

In his 1981 book, former counterterrorism operative Gordon Winter of the South African Bureau of State Security recalled a briefing with his London-based handler Alf Bouwer warning him to be wary of McWhirter, who he claimed was a British intelligence operative and member of the right-wing, anti-immigration

Society for Individual Freedom The Society for Individual Freedom (SIF) is a United Kingdom-based association of libertarians, classical liberals, free-market conservatives and others promoting individual freedom. It has links to the British intelligence community. Earl ...

, which he described as a "front" for "disseminating Establishment-type propaganda."

Assassination

On 27 November 1975 at 6:45 p.m., McWhirter was shot and killed by

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

Volunteers Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergenc ...

Harry Duggan and Hugh Doherty, members of the Active Service Unit (ASU), later dubbed the Balcombe Street Gang, for whose capture McWhirter had offered a reward. McWhirter was shot at close range in the head and chest with a .357 Magnum revolver outside his home in Village Road, Bush Hill Park. He was taken to Chase Farm Hospital but died soon after being admitted. Duggan and Doherty were apprehended following the Balcombe Street siege and charged with murdering McWhirter in addition to nine other victims. They were sentenced to life imprisonment in 1977 but released in 1999 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement.

Selected bibliography

Sports and general encyclopædia * ''Get to Your Marks'' (1951, with Norris McWhirter) * ''The Guinness Book of Records'' (1955–1975, with Norris McWhirter) * ''Ross: The Story of a Shared Life'' (Norris McWhirter) , * ''Ross Was Right – The McWhirter File ''(Covenant Pub., 29 September 2014) ,

References

External links

TV presenter Ross McWhirter shot dead
@

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, ''On This Day'', 27 November 1975. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mcwhirter, Ross 1925 births People murdered in 1975 20th-century English journalists Alumni of Trinity College, Oxford Assassinated British journalists English identical twins Burials at New Southgate Cemetery Conservative Party (UK) parliamentary candidates Deaths by firearm in London English male journalists English murder victims English people of Scottish descent English terrorism victims English twins Murdered British journalists People educated at Marlborough College People from Enfield, London People killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army People murdered in London Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Royal Navy officers of World War II Rugby union journalists People assassinated in the 20th century Almanac compilers Guinness World Records