Barry George - Early Life

Early Life

Barry George was born in Hammersmith Hospital, London, to Alfred and Margaret (née Burke,), who is Irish. The couple had married in July 1954. He was the youngest of three children; they grew up in a high-rise flat in White City, London. His sister Michelle Diskin, who lives in the Republic of Ireland, is five years older than he is; his sister Susan, three years older than he is, died of epilepsy aged 28 in 1986. George suffers from epilepsy. He attended Wormholt Park Primary School in White City, but was soon transferred to Northcroft School for children with educational and behavioural disorders in Hammersmith. His parents split up when he was seven and divorced in December 1973. At 14, he attended the publicly-funded Heathermount boarding school in Sunningdale, Berkshire, for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties. After leaving school without qualifications, his only employment was as a messenger at BBC Television Centre for four months in 1977. His interest in the BBC endured until his arrest; he was a regular reader of the in-house magazine Ariel, and had reportedly kept four copies of the memorial issue which featured Jill Dando's murder. George has exhibited an interest in celebrities, including Diana, Princess of Wales; and Prince Charles. He adopted several pseudonyms, starting at school, where he used the name Paul Gadd, the real name of singer Gary Glitter. In 1980, George joined the Territorial Army, but was discharged the following year. He claimed to be SAS member Tom Palmer, one of the soldiers who ended the 1980 Iranian Embassy Siege. George's father remarried and emigrated to Australia. The couple subsequently moved to Wales, where they still live. George's mother reverted to using her maiden name; she died in Ireland in September 2011.