Key Scottish attorney resigns over pope joke

Jun 6, 2005 / 22:00 pm

One of Scotland’s most well known lawyers was forced to resign his chairmanship of the Faculty of Advocates after making anti-Catholic comments in public and telling a joke about the death of Pope John Paul II.

Donald Findlay and former Rangers Football Club goalkeeper Andy Goram were alleged to have delivered routines with obscenities and jokes about Catholics in a Rangers social club in Northern Ireland.

Findlay reportedly said to an audience of around 140 people: “It’s very smoky in here tonight – has another f***ing pope died?”

The Sunday Herald reported that as a result, Findlay, 54, was faced with a unanimous vote of no confidence from the faculty’s board of directors after a meeting of senior advocates in Edinburgh. Some legal experts have speculated that Findlay could even face suspension.

This behavior is not new for Findlay, who had to resign as vice-chairman of the Rangers Football Club six years ago after being filmed singing Orange songs at a social club.

“This is an example of how Scottish society is no longer prepared to tolerate this type of behavior,” a spokesman for the anti-sectarian charity Nil by Mouth told the Herald.

There is a growing movement against sectarianism in Scotland. And, since First Minister Jack McConnell has launched a personal crusade against sectarianism, the penalties are likely to be higher.