Former ‘Public Enemy No.1’ John McVicar dies from suspected heart attack while walking his dog

John McVicar has died at the age of 82 from a suspected heart attack while walking his dog.

The late British journalist was dubbed “public enemy no.1” by Scotland Yard in the 1960s following an escape from a high security prison in Durham.

McVicar was serving a 23-year prison sentence for armed robbery, when he sparked a national manhunt after managing to break free from a jail van which led to two years on the run.

However, upon returning to jail, McVicar decided to turn his life around and proceeded to  take three A Levels at the University of Leicester.

He went on to pen an autobiography about his escapes called, “McVicar By Himself” following his parole in 1978.

This would later form the basis for the 1980 film named after the reformed criminal starring The Who’s singer Roger Daltrey.

In addition to the film’s creation, the former “public enemy number one” turned into a respected broadcast journalist despite losing a libel case brought forwards by sprinter Linford Christie for labelling Christie a “steroid athlete”.

According to The Sun, McVicar lived out the rest of his years in a caravan in Althorne, Essex with his husky dog, Lucky, who he was walking when he had a suspected heart attack on 6 September.

The British journalist is survived by his son Russel Grant and his sister Janice, 80, who was pleased that he turned his life around following his prison sentence.

Janice said: “It was a sad way to end up. The last time I spoke to him he told me he was cold and lonely.

“He had isolated himself from his entire family, but I find it very sad that he ended his days like this.”

She added: “I am devastated by his death...I was proud of him for getting his life back on track.”

McVicar’s son Russel Grant was jailed initially for 15 years in 1998 for a string of armed bank robberies and stealing a Picasso painting worth £800,000.

The likeness between estranged father and son continues as Grant ran away while on a day trip eight years into his sentence, before being arrested again in 2010 for attempted robberies on two cash-in-delivery security guards and is currently serving a 16-year-sentence.

Before his death, John McVicar appeared at Grant’s first hearing and told the judge: “He resents me. He has become precisely what I was and now detest.”

Essex Police said that John McVicar’s death on 6 September 2022 was not suspicious.