1. Ian McKay left school at seventeen and in August 1970 enlisted in the Army, training as a paratrooper.
12 Facts About Ian McKay
1. 2.
On 30 January 1972, McKay was part of a patrol on the streets of Derry involved in the killing of unarmed civilians known as Bloody Sunday.
3.
In official reports concerning the massacre he is referred to as Soldier T An inquiry concluded that McKay was likely responsible for firing the shot which wounded Patrick Brolly.
4.
Ian McKay was killed during the Battle of Mount Longdon, for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross.
5.
Sergeant Ian McKay decided to convert this reconnaissance into an attack in order to eliminate the enemy positions.
6.
Ian McKay was in no doubt of the strength and deployment of the enemy as he undertook this attack.
7.
Ian McKay issued orders, and taking three men with him, broke cover and charged the enemy position.
8.
Sergeant Ian McKay was killed at the moment of victory, his body falling on the bunker.
9.
Ian McKay's was a coolly calculated act, the dangers of which must have been all too apparent to him beforehand.
10.
Ian McKay's medals were sold by his wife around the year 1989, and his VC is on display in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery at the Imperial War Museum, London.
11.
The Ian McKay VC Gymnasium is a gym facility and sports hall located across the football fields at Vimy Barracks, Catterick Garrison.
12.
Ian McKay was profiled in the 2006 television docudrama Victoria Cross Heroes, which included archive footage, dramatisations of his actions and an interview with his mother.