This article is from page 14 of the 2013-04-23 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
A BLITZ hero living in Coventry has been refused a telegram from the Queen of England for his 100th birthday next Tuesday for a very specific reason – he was born here in County Clare.
It is not clear what part of the banner county Dr William Navin was born in, but as he is not considered a British citizen, he has been refused the traditional telegraph by Buckingham Palace.
The retired GP carries an Irish passport, even though he is also entitled to a British one.
Buckingham Palace said the Clare native does not qualify for the telegram without a British passport as proof of citizenship.
A British passport will not come through before his birthday on April 30 however.
A campaign has begun in his hometown of Coventry to have him reinstated on the list of centenarians who are to receive a message from the monarch. The petition is being signed online via a local newspaper, The Coventr y Telegra ph , in shopping malls and a Conservative council member has even signed it.
Described by the newspaper as a “devoted royalist” Dr Navin arrived in Coventry from County Clare in 1939 to work with the ear, nose and throat specialist at Walsgrave Hospital. This was not to be however and he ended up in general practice as the war broke out.
During World War II he was a medical officer and served with the Home Guard, earning him seven medals for service.
After the war, he took over a GP practice in Walsgrave Road, Coventry, where he continued to work until the age of 72.
He also worked as a police doctor with the city force in the 1950s and as a doctor for the Ministry of Labour’s medical board.
Those campaigning for him to be recognised as British and receive the royal honour have argued he has lived in Coventry for more than 70 years and “risked his life for the country during the Second World War”.
“As a lifelong royalist, he was looking forward to receiving a card from the Queen for his 100th on April 30. But his application has been rejected because County Clare in Ireland now forms part of the Republic of Ireland, even though it was still under British rule when he was born in 1913,” they argued.