Belfast house mural immortalises legendary SAS officer Blair 'Paddy' Mayne
A mural commemorating the legendary Army officer Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Blair "Paddy" Mayne, who was one of the founding members of the Special Air Service, has been unveiled in Belfast.
The larger-than-life Irishman, a highly decorated rugby player, was renowned for his extraordinary bravery, battlefield intuition and a fierce independence, meaning he rarely bowed to authority.
Artist Johnny Hamilton, who goes by the name Jossiepops, told the Belfast Telegraph he was over the moon to have been asked to create the piece for a figure he looked up to.
The Northern Ireland-based street artist said: "After binge-watching the recent BBC series about the SAS, I felt compelled to paint the legend. I felt he deserved the recognition."
After trying for over a year to get funding for the piece, Mr Hamilton found he kept hitting "the usual brick walls".
He was then approached by Alternatives Restorative Justice, a programme offering young people in Belfast an opportunity to avoid the formal justice system for minor offences, to paint their next re-imagining project - an opportunity he jumped at.
The mural depicts Lt Col Mayne wearing the iconic sand-coloured beret. During the North African campaign in the Second World War, it was worn exclusively by members of the SAS to distinguish them from other regiments.
In 1944, the SAS was brought under the command of Airborne Forces, and its men were forced to adopt the maroon beret.
In a symbol of defiance, it was said that Lt Col Mayne and his men would wear their original berets whenever they were out of sight of the top brass, determined to preserve the unique identity of this special unit.
It wasn't until 1956 that the beige beret was officially re-adopted, following clearance by the Regimental Association. By 1958, it became the standard headdress of the SAS.
The VC that never was
Depicted to the right of Lt Col Mayne is his Distinguished Service Order with three bars, which were awarded for four acts of bravery.
His first DSO was awarded for his actions in 1941 during the SAS raid at Tamet in Libya. The daring raid – the unit’s first success - destroyed around two dozen Axis aircraft, along with vital fuel supplies, while suffering no British casualties.
In 1943, by then holding the rank of major, Paddy Mayne commanded the Special Raiding Squadron (SRS) during the Allied campaign in Sicily and Italy.
According to the official citation, he carried out two successful operations. The first was the capture of the CD (Coastal Defence) battery, which proved vital in securing a safe landing for 13 Corps.
By nightfall, SRS had captured three additional batteries, 450 prisoners, and had killed 200 to 300 Italian troops.
The second operation was the capture and defence of the town of Augusta. In a daylight assault, he led his men ashore under heavy machine gun and mortar fire, forcing the Italians to abandon their position through sheer audaciousness.
For these operations, he was awarded his first bar.
Appointed to Lt Col in 1944, he led the SAS through the final campaigns of the war in France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Norway.
His leadership and personal disregard for his own safety in France - where he worked closely with the French Resistance to conduct raids, sabotage and disruption of German forces - earned him his second bar.
His third bar came in 1945, when he rescued men pinned down by heavy German fire near Oldenburg. In a daring act of bravery – his modus operandi thus far in his career – he drove a jeep up and down the front line, allowing the gunner to his rear to fire into enemy positions.
His bravery and heroism were recommended for a Victoria Cross, but the award was controversially downgraded to a DSO.
Despite this, he remains one of the most decorated soldiers in history.
Mr Hamilton hopes the mural will contribute to renewed public interest in Paddy Mayne's legacy and the longstanding campaign to recognise his wartime heroism with the VC - the highest award for bravery in the Armed Forces.
"Maybe this mural will help give that extra push to get him his much-deserved Victoria Cross," he added.
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