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Scottish Sun
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Bay City Rollers star reveals ‘harrowing' sex abuse by band's ‘bully, predator' manager who ‘plied stars with drugs'
Stuart has opened up about the abuse for the first time 50 YEARS OF PAIN Bay City Rollers star reveals 'harrowing' sex abuse by band's 'bully, predator' manager who 'plied stars with drugs' Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) STUART 'Woody' Wood told how he hid the trauma of his abuse by paedo manager Tam Paton for 50 years, saying: 'I chose not to let it shape my life.' The Bay City Rollers icon, 68, said he was determined not to let the sicko 'win' as he opened up for the first time about how he too was a victim of the beast. Sign up for the Entertainment newsletter Sign up 4 Stuart 'Woody' Wood opened up about the abuse for the first time Credit: Andrew Barr 4 He was one of the members of The Bay City Rollers who had No1 hits, including Saturday Night Credit: Getty 4 His autobiography Mania is being released on Thursday 4 Tam Paton managed the band during the height of their 70s fame Credit: John Kirkby Burly Paton bossed the band during the height of their 70s fame, when they had No1 hits including Saturday Night, Bye Bye Baby and Shang-A-Lang. He was later fired by the group before being jailed for three years in 1982 for gross indecency with teenage boys. In his autobiography Mania, released on Thursday, former pop-pin up Stuart brands the late fiend a 'true monster' and explains why he kept his own suffering a secret for five decades. Stuart wrote: 'I met Tam when I was 16 years old. He was intimidating and a bully, and all the disgusting things said about him are accurate. 'He was a predator. He abused me as he did others. 'It was a horrific and harrowing time. The drugs he plied us with were part of that control. I met Tam when I was 16 years old. He was intimidating and a bully, and all the disgusting things said about him are accurate 'My take is that to have a healthy mind, you have to let some things go, as much as it might pain you to do so. 'So, when Tam's squalid little life came to an end in 2009, I stopped thinking about him. 'He was a terrible human being, but the way I see it, he doesn't get to define me. 'Tam f******g Paton doesn't get to win.' Original lead singer of The Bay City Rollers returns 50 years after fall out In 2003, Paton was accused of attempting to rape Rollers guitarist Pat McGlynn in a hotel room in 1977. Police investigated but concluded there was insufficient evidence to take it to court. Depraved Paton claimed he was being targeted because he was gay. After the flabby perv's death from a heart attack in 2019 singer Les McKeown claimed the former manager had also raped him while on tour in America after drugging him. Les — who died at 65 in 2021 — said: 'I was given Quaaludes, a drug for lowering your inhibitions and making you horny. 'Afterwards I felt really used and abused. I never told anybody about it, not even the other guys in the band, because I was ashamed.' He was a terrible human being, but the way I see it, he doesn't get to define me. Tam f******g Paton doesn't get to win Original Rollers singer Nobby Clarke has also claimed the boys were encouraged by Paton to sleep with radio DJ Chris Denning, who jailed for child sex abuse in 2016. Meanwhile, founder Alan Longmuir revealed in 2018 how Paton had 'friends in low places' and warned 'his depravity ran deeper than we know.' However, Stuart maintains he did not talk about Paton's abuse with either Les or Alan, even when they reformed the Rollers together 10 years ago. Speaking from his home in Edinburgh, the songwriter, guitarist and producer said: 'We never discussed it - any of us - it just happened. 'We were all survivors, but with Les it felt like it hit him harder. 'It's not like I locked all those experiences away, stuffed down the bad memories, pretending they didn't happen. BAND'S TROUBLED PAST 1974: Stuart 'Woody' Wood joins group to form classic line-up with Alan and Derek Longmuir, Eric Faulkner and Les McKeown. 1975: Bye, Bye, Baby reaches No1. 1978: Les quits soon after being booted off stage by Woody during a gig in Tokyo. 1979: Manager Tam Paton is fired before Rollers split. 1982: Paton is jailed for three years for sexually abusing ten boys over three years. 2003: Cops decide there is not enough evidence to prosecute Paton over accusations he tried to rape former Rollers guitarist Pat McGlynn. 2004: The sicko is fined £200,000 for drug dealing after cannabis stash find at home. 2007: Ex-band members sue Arista Records over claims they are owed millions of pounds in unpaid royalties. 2009: Paton dies after a heart attack on the same night £1.5million in drugs and cash are stolen from his Edinburgh pad. 2016: Les McKeown says he was raped by Paton. 2016: Woody sensationally quits the group after a bust-up at T in the Park. 2018: Alan Longmuir passes away aged 70. 2021: Les dies of heart attack at 65. 2023: TV documentary details how Paton controlled and abused band. 2025: Woody releases tell-all autobiography Mania. 'I just choose to not let them shape my life.' Stuart is now the last member of the 'classic' Rollers line-up still performing, with a new single Rollers Forever released next month. A musical of the same name opens at Glasgow's Pavilion Theatre in August. However, the star describes his relationship with Paton as 'complicated' as he even invited his abuser to his wedding to artist Denise in 1997. He added: 'There's an old expression, 'Keep your enemies close'. "I think that was the case with Tam. There was another side of Tam that was funny. 'He could be a lovable rogue.'
Irish Independent
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Wexford bingo marks half a century – ‘Over the years, it's given me back more than I've ever put into it'
In Ireland it was the year of the Miami Showband Massacre. Eamon De Valera passed away. George Best lined out for a league of Ireland game for Cork Celtic against Drogheda and the likes of The Bay City Rollers were taking over the charts. It was also the year that the Clonard bingo was established. Five decades later, Frankie Thomas, one of the original committee members, turns the key in the lock at the community centre and gets things ready to call the numbers once again – this time marking the major milestone. 'It's just been lovely to be involved in it over the years,' he smiles. 'I would say that I've gotten back more from it than I ever put in.' It was back in 1972 the idea of the bingo first came up. With funds required to build a church in Clonard, it was decided that running a bingo could be a great way of bringing in funds. Frankie and a few others were dispatched to observe the successful bingo at the Dun Mhuire and get some advice. Little did they know that the Clonard bingo would not only outlast the one in Dun Mhuire, but it would outlast the parish hall building itself! In the early days, Frankie found himself in charge of handing out the prize money to lucky winners, while Joe Brennan and Martin Shannon did the calling and kept the large crowds entertained. Also involved since day one is Dave Ormonde, who was chairman of the first committee. "It's been a real team effort,' Frankie says. 'Over the years some great people have been involved. I count myself really lucky to have been part of it.' Nowadays, the operation is run by Frankie and Carol Goodison and they along with Denny Farrell do the calling. There's a whole team that helps in various ways, however. From Geraldine Mahoney and her team in the box office to Sophie Hendrick and Tess Duggan in the shop and Margaret Brennan in the kitchen. The committee are also grateful to those who look after the hall and are so accommodating, as well as Karen the Parish Secretary. While the numbers being called and books being marked are still the same, the age profile of those in attendance is steadily going up. The love of bingo hasn't quite caught on with new generations as it did with those who packed out parish halls across the 70s, 80s and 90s. ADVERTISEMENT "We could do with some fresh blood coming into it alright,' Frankie concedes. 'But we do have very loyal supporters who come every Wednesday. Some of them have been coming for the full 50 years. It's a great social night out and it gives a great opportunity for people to get together. It's a real community.' As well as raising money to build two churches, the Clonard bingo community also managed to raise €10,000 for the oncology unit at Wexford General Hospital in the past. "The only break we had in the whole 50 years was when Covid hit,' Frankie says. 'That was a tough time for everyone. Obviously, everything closed down. Then we were able to do it out in the car park before getting back properly. Some people were a bit worried about coming back at that stage, but thankfully we're back in full flow again now. As he gets the machine going, microphone in hand, Frankie is extremely proud of the legacy of the Clonard bingo, and hopeful that there are a few more years left in it yet. "I count myself very luck to be here,' he smiles.
