John Fitzsimmons
Encyclopedia
The Reverend John Fitzsimmons (born Paisley
2 December 1939 - died Gourock
17 May 2008) was a Scottish
Roman Catholic priest and radio presenter who presented The Greetings radio program on BBC Radio Scotland
for many years.
John Fitzsimmons was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire
, in 1939. He was ordained priest of the Diocese of Paisley
in Rome
in 1963. Involved in broadcasting for more than 40 years, he had also served as the rector
of the Pontifical Scots College in Rome
. In addition to his work at BBC Scotland
, Fitzsimmons was known for his sometimes controversial criticisms of the Catholic Church hierarchy.
After a long illness, John Fitzsimmons died in his sixty ninth year on May 17, 2008, in Gourock. Maggie Cunningham, the director of programmes for BBC Scotland
, said of Fitzsimmons, "He was a big man with a big personality, erudite and compassionate, and anybody who met or worked with Father John would benefit from his life-enhancing qualities."
Paisley
Paisley is the largest town in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland and serves as the administrative centre for the Renfrewshire council area...
2 December 1939 - died Gourock
Gourock
Gourock is a town falling within the Inverclyde council area and formerly forming a burgh of the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It has in the past functioned as a seaside resort on the Firth of Clyde...
17 May 2008) was a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
Roman Catholic priest and radio presenter who presented The Greetings radio program on BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland
BBC Radio Scotland is BBC Scotland's national English-language radio network. It broadcasts a wide variety of programming, including news, sport, light entertainment, music, the arts, comedy, drama, history and lifestyle...
for many years.
John Fitzsimmons was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfrewshire, the others being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east...
, in 1939. He was ordained priest of the Diocese of Paisley
Diocese of Paisley
The Diocese of Paisley is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in Scotland. Erected on 25 May 1947 from the Archdiocese of Glasgow the diocese covers the historic county of Renfrewshire and is in area making it the smallest diocese by area in Scotland...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
in 1963. Involved in broadcasting for more than 40 years, he had also served as the rector
Rector
The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...
of the Pontifical Scots College in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. In addition to his work at BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who...
, Fitzsimmons was known for his sometimes controversial criticisms of the Catholic Church hierarchy.
After a long illness, John Fitzsimmons died in his sixty ninth year on May 17, 2008, in Gourock. Maggie Cunningham, the director of programmes for BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland
BBC Scotland is a constituent part of the British Broadcasting Corporation, the publicly-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. It is, in effect, the national broadcaster for Scotland, having a considerable amount of autonomy from the BBC's London headquarters, and is run by the BBC Trust, who...
, said of Fitzsimmons, "He was a big man with a big personality, erudite and compassionate, and anybody who met or worked with Father John would benefit from his life-enhancing qualities."
External links
- Father John Fitzsimmons, The ScotsmanThe ScotsmanThe Scotsman is a British newspaper, published in Edinburgh.As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 38,423, down from about 100,000 in the 1980s....
- Father John Fitzsimmons, Outspoken and scholarly Scottish priest popular with his parishioners but often at loggerheads with his superiors, obituary, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
- http://www.theherald.co.uk/search/display.var.2282364.0.father_john_fitzsimmons.php, obituary, The HeraldThe Herald (Glasgow)The Herald is a broadsheet newspaper published Monday to Saturday in Glasgow, and available throughout Scotland. As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 47,226, giving it a lead over Scotland's other 'quality' national daily, The Scotsman, published in Edinburgh.The 1889 to 1906 editions...
- http://www.theherald.co.uk/search/display.var.2309765.0.fr_john_fitzsimmons_an_appreciation.php, an appreciation, The Herald