THE father of a Derry man left in a permanent coma after a sectarian attack five years ago has spoken of his struggle to come to terms with what happened to his son.

Father-of-one, Paul McCauley, was attacked by a group of up to 15 people on July 16, 2006 while attending a friend’s barbecue in the Chapel Road.

Paul, who was aged 29 at the time, suffered severe head injuries including a brain haemorrhage and a fractured skull. He will remain in hospital for the rest of his life.

Daryl Proctor, 21, is the only person to date to have been convicted in relation to the attack. He received 12 years imprisonment.

Jim McCauley, Paul’s father, spoke to the Derry News on Friday following a police conference that revealed further information has been brought forward on the case.

“It’s five years on and we’re very glad that the police have reviewed the case and have passed it on to the Serious Crimes Squad; we feel that there was some impetus for the review and we’re quite confident with the new DCI handling it that there will be successful outcomes,” he said.

“It’s been a long haul for the police. Our frustration was matched with the police’s frustration but we’re delighted that the new inquiry is underway and we have every faith that there will be a successful outcome.”

Mr McCauley revealed his family only recently found the strength to visit the scene where Paul was assaulted.

“We’ve only gone to the site where it happened once and that was last year.

“It took us four years before we could even go down to see where it happened. And the BBC documentary, we’ve only watched that once on the night it went out.”

Visibly upset, Mr McCauley continued: “It can hit you at times, you can talk about it most of the times but occasionally it will just hit you.

“It’s quite difficult. It’s not the Paul we knew, it’s a different Paul; it’s a Paul that can’t communicate, it’s an immobile Paul, he’s basically a living image of Paul.

“The frustration comes from the fact that we have no communication with him but all the family spend a lot of time with him. It’s a nightmare.”

Mr McCauley said he is optimistic that the renewed police appeal for information will be a success.

“I’m sure the police will handle the information confidentially.

“There are not just a few people out there; there are the core of attackers, there are the supporters who transported them to the scene, there are the people who egged them on in the attack, there are the people who provided facilities for them to clean up after, there are the people who concocted alibis to protect them, there are the people who destroyed evidence.

“So, there re a lot of people associated with the crime and I think that people like that should come to the police’s door before the police go to their door.

“The police are closing in on them, they’ve got additional information now and they’re closing in on them.”

Detective Chief Inspector Ian Harrison appealed to the local community, particularly in the Bann Drive, Irish Street, Fountain and Kilfennan areas of the city.

“Paul deserves answers and there are people within the community that have those answers,” he said.

“New information has come to light. I have information that would suggest who was involved. I’m in a more informed position than the initial inquiry was and I believe this is an opportunity to get justice for Paul.

“I’ve visited Paul in hospital and have seen the devastating injuries. At the time Paul was 29 years old with his whole life ahead of him and now his body has become his prison.

“I’ve seen the devastating effect it has had on his family. This matter cannot lie.

“I have a good idea of the names and identities of the people involved, many of whom still reside in the local area.

“If you have information, please bring it forward to me. People know who is responsible and they’ve escaped justice to date – Paul McCauley remains in hospital and his life has been taken away from him.”

If you have any information about the attack please ring the designated phone line on 02871 379793.

A comic which tells the story of Derry being decimated by an outbreak of zombies has become the talk of the town following unprecedented demand for the first issue.

Zombies Hi! sees hordes of the undead laying waste to the city, with a band of survivors seeking refuge within Derry’s historic walls from the plague, forcing the first closure of the city’s gates in over 300 years.

Created by Danny McLaughlin (writer), Kevin Logue (artist) and John Campbell (inker), the comic was produced through the 2D Comics Collective based at the Verbal Arts Centre.

Keen eyed readers will also see a few familiar faces in the comics, including a well known local radio presenter overcome with zombie virus live on air.

 And it’s the use of local settings and faces that writer Danny McLaughlin cites as a major factor in the comic’s success.

“I think everybody’s had the idea of putting zombies in Derry, given the amount of them already running about at the weekend,” he joked.

“The whole thing started off as a joke, someone saying ‘Zombies Hi!’ and then we took it from there, hitting the library and researching everything we could about Derry.

“The big thing for us was to take something happening on a global scale, and put it in a local setting.

Artist Kevin Logue added: “At the end of the day, the City’s Walls are purpose built for something like this, so it’s strange that no one’s used them in a fictional setting like this before.

“At the minute, we’re hoping that we’ll take it up to twelve issues, and we’re now asking people to hit us with ideas or get contributions from other local artists through our Facebook page.”

John Campbell, inker, added that the parallels between the comic and real life historical events had given added impetus to interest in Zombies Hi!

“We sold the first issues at the 2D comic festival in June, and there were that many people asking for it that we actually had to print more up on site to cope with the demand,” he said.

David Campbell of the Verbal Arts Centre explained that the Zombies Hi! was evident of the wealth of comic talent in the city.

“The 2D Comics Collective gives people the opportunity to hone their skills, give them access to all the resources they need and then print the final product,” he said.

“They can then showcase their work at the 2D Comics Festival, so everything happens here on site at the Verbal Arts Centre.”

Danny added that their plans didn’t stop with Zombies Hi!.

“We’ve also got plans for Vampires Hi! and Werewolves Hi!, but we’re sticking zombies at the minute,” he said.

“The appeal of zombies will never die!”

Groan!

For more go to www.facebook.com/zombieshi or email zombieshi@gmail.com.

The car was travelling along Rossville Street shortly after 2am on Saturday when a man stepped out in the road in front of the vehicle.

A number of other men then surrounded the car.

One of them climbed on to the car and attempted to open the driver’s car.

He then tried to smash the driver’s side window.

However, the window didn’t break and the motorist managed to speed off from the scene.

A police spokesperson said the driver was uninjured but badly shaken by the incident.#

The incident came two days after a van was hijacked in Derry.

The silver Renault Kangoo van (pictured) was hijacked at Patrick Street around 10.30am on Thursday before being taken to Kildrum Gardens in Creggan and burnt out.

Police have appealed for anyone with information about either incident to contact them on 0845 600 8000.

The Bloody Sunday Trust and Museum of Free Derry are organising the essay writing competition.

The competition is open to all local young people, on the theme of “What did the events of June 15^th, 2010 mean to you?”

The competition is aimed at all year 10 and year 11 pupils in the Derry City Council area.

There will be a prize of £250 and a plaque for winning school, individual prizes of £100, £75 and £50 gift certificates plus plaques for the top three essays.

The winners will be announced at an event organised as part of this year’s Gasyard Wall Feile.

The submitted essays should be around 400–600 words, with the closing date for entries being June 15, 2011.

A selection of the entries will be published in a booklet to be launched at the same event, while a number of copies of the book will also be given to all schools involved.

A spokesperson for the Museum of Free Derry explained: “Our aim with this competition is not only to enable young people in this city to express their opinions about June 15th, 2010also to generate an important contribution to the historical archive about that day, which will be kept in the Museum of Free Derry’s archive.”

For more information on the competition, or to submit an entry contact the Museum of Free Derry at info@museumoffreederry.org or on 71360880.

Mark Kelly, who would have celebrated his 40^th birthday last Thursday, passed away from cancer last November, was honoured by hundreds of friends and family at a ‘Stars in their Eyes’ event held in the Everglades on Friday night.

Mark, who worked at Alec Orr’s motor factors outlet for 15 years, was well-known and much-loved throughout the city – which was reflected in the numbers that turned out to see ten acts, all of which who got into full character for the event to strut their stuff on the night.

Everyone from Jedward and Right Said Fred down to Robbie Williams and even Derry News’s own Ursula Duddy as Karen Carpenter made their way to the stage, knees knocking, to honour the memory of Mark.

Stephen Orr, one of Mark’s best friends, co-worker for 15 years and the man who co-ordinated the night in memory of his much-cherished buddy, said he was delighted how it had turned out.

“It was hard to deal with how quick Mark was taken from us and how sad we all felt; it was impossible to console us, looking back,” he said.

“But Friday night was a celebration of his life and a great night’s craic. It was a testament to him, the amount of people that turned out for him.

“Mark wouldn’t have wanted to have seen any sad faces; he was the first out on the dance floor on a night out and he was always the last off it.

“It really was a fitting tribute for Mark.”

THE Blood Transfusion Service has issued an urgent appeal to the people of Derry to help find a suitable match for a local man in need of a life saving bone marrow transplant.

The call comes as Bill Quigley (39), continues his search for a donor after he was diagnosed with leukemia last September.

The father of two had been given fresh hope after his sister Allison had been found to be suitable match, with the vital transplant procedure due to take place today.

However, just ten days ago the family was hit with another bombshell after doctors discovered Allison had a malignant melanoma.

Speaking to the Derry News at the weekend, Bill called on as many people to attend today and tomorrow’s transfusion service in the Guildhall in the hope that a new donor can be found.

“This could be my last chance,” he said.

“The transfusion service has told me that there is a higher likelihood of finding a suitable match in Derry than anywhere else, so it would great if people could come out.

“The past few months have just been surreal, having to deal with the chemotherapy and then Allison’s news. That was just a slap in the teeth for everybody. Sometimes it feels like this is all happening to someone else.

 “But my family and friends have been great, they’ve really rallied around and I can’t say enough for the nurses and staff at Ward 10 at the City Hospital, they’ve just been brilliant.”

Paul McElkerney, Donor Recruitment and Organisation Manager at Northern Ireland
Blood Tranfusion Service said that one person could make all the difference.

“I think Bill’s situation has really brought it home to people in the city the need for bone marrow donors,” he said.

“So we’d ask people in Derry that if they’re thinking about coming down to give blood today and tomorrow that they also consider becoming bone marrow donors, particularly of they given blood before.

“It could make all the difference to Bill and his family.”

Allison also moved to dispel the notions that a bone marrow transplant was a painful process.

“It’s not an invasive process, and people seem to have this notion that it’s painful, but it’s not,” she said.

“The biopsy is painful, yes, but when it comes to the bone marrow transfusion it’s just like giving blood, only longer.”

The Blood Transfusion Service will be the Guildhall today (Monday) and tomorrow, Tuesday from 1.30pm – 4pm, and 5.15pm to 8pm.

THE Derry News has been nominated for two of the most prestigious awards in journalism.

The paper has been shortlisted for the Weekly Newspaper of the Year and Front Page of the Year in the Society of Editors Regional Press Awards.

The awards are regarded as the Oscars of the newspaper industry in the UK and the winners will be announced at a gala event in London next month.

The Derry News’ nomination for Front Page of the Year came as a result of the paper’s coverage of the publication of the Saville Inquiry report last June.

The edition following the historic events in Derry featured a wraparound front page of the huge crowd which gathered in the Guildhall Square, alongside the headline ‘A Day When Derry Changed’.

In the Front Page of the Year category the Derry News is up against some of the UK’s biggest newspapers, including the Evening Chronicle in Newcastle, Manchester Evening News, Birmingham Post and the Bristol Evening News.

In the Weekly Newspaper of the Year category, the Derry News is on the shortlist with five local papers in England.

A total of 750 entries were received for the 22 categories in the awards.

The Derry News is the only local newspaper from Northern Ireland to feature in any of the shortlists.

It caps a fantastic year for the local paper which was last year named Weekly Newspaper of the Year at the Northern Ireland Press Awards.

Ciaran O’Neill, editor of the Derry News, said it was a fantastic achievement for the paper.

“To have been shortlisted for one award would have been great, but to be in the running for two awards is brilliant news,” he said.

“We have a small team of reporters, production staff and advertising reps but everyone takes a real pride in the paper, and achievements like this show that we must be doing something right.

Judges will now debate the shortlists in preparation for the announcement of the winners at an awards ceremony at London’s Park Plaza Riverbank on May 11.

Bob Satchwell, executive director of the Society of Editors, said: “The judges faced a formidable task and the rare privilege of reading thousands of words gathered together in brilliant entries that reflect the variety, vitality and sheer excellence of local and regional newspapers, which are of course the best in the world.

“In some cases the entries were so strong in quality as well as numbers that it was simply impossible to choose only six for each shortlist.”

The house at Beragh Hill Road in Ballyarnett has been owned by the McCorkell family since it was built in 1845.

Now, the family’s link to the building looks set to be broke after the house was placed on the market.

As well as being one of the most impressive houses in the local area, it also has significant historical interest.

In 1972, the owner of the house, Aileen McCorkell, hosted a meeting between representatives of the IRA and the British government.

It was the first meeting between the IRA and British government since the 1920s.

The talks are believed to have eventually led to the short-lived IRA ceasefire in June 1972.

It’s understood the IRA delegation included a young Gerry Adams.

Aileen McCorkell passed away on Christmas Day last year at the age of 89.

She was particularly well known in Derry for her lengthy involvement with the local branch of the Red Cross.

Mrs McCorkell settled in Derry in the 1950s after marrying Michael McCorkell, who was Lord Lieutenant of Derry from 1975 to 1980.

The couple, who had four children, lived in the McCorkell ancestral home.

The 11 bedroom house is set in eight acres of land which includes a large fish pond and a tennis court.

It has been described as a building of significant architectural importance and there is expected to be widespread interest in the property.

An adjacent dairy house is also included in the sale, although the two buildings are available to buy separately.