Dark life of I’m a Celeb’s Barry McGuigan… from kidnap terror plot to tragic daughter & fatal fight that haunted career

HE'S had a hellish commencement to jungle life, but Barry McGuigan has seen disconnected acold tougher challenges.

From household tragedies to traumatising boxing bouts, the former satellite champion boxer, 63, has faced nary extremity of heartache - some successful and retired of the ring.

In fact, the Irish brawler, nicknamed The Clones Cyclone aft his hometown of Clones, considered hanging up his gloves galore times earlier helium really did.

This included aft his tragic 1982 combat with Young Ali, who died aft six months successful a coma pursuing the bout, and threats from Irish violent groups astatine the height of his career.

I'm a Celeb prima Barry, who is simply a Catholic, besides questioned his religion aft losing his girl Daniker to crab erstwhile she was 33.

“I americium having issues with God”, helium told the Mail. “I mislaid my begetter astatine 52. My member committed termination astatine 34. 

“Now this. It’s horrendous. I dedicated my beingness to God. I judge I’m a bully person. I americium trying to reconcile this calamity with the goodness of God.”

Here, we look backmost astatine the darkest chapters of Barry's beingness and however helium has bravely flooded successive tragedies.

Fatal boxing match

It should person been 1 of the proudest moments of Barry’s career, arsenic helium won a lucifer against Young Ali astatine the World Sporting Club successful 1982.

But sadly the Nigerian ne'er regained consciousness aft being knocked retired by him.

Barry astir retired determination and past - but 3 years later, going into the featherweight satellite champion lucifer against Eusebio Pedroza, helium made it his ngo to triumph and dedicate his vocation to Ali.

And helium managed to travel retired victorious, by unanimous decision.

Reflecting connected the run-up to the match, Barry said: “I was reasoning astir [Ali] each week and [I thought] if I triumph and I get implicit this hurdle past the archetypal happening I’ve got to bash is bespeak backmost to that horrible nighttime successful 1982 wherever I had the tragic combat with the kid. 

“After that I didn’t cognize if I wanted to container oregon not. If I tin bash this benignant of harm to someone… it happens, but it’s specified a calamity and it's the 1 happening we arsenic boxing fans don't privation to ever hap again. 

“But it happened earlier and it volition hap again. I happened to beryllium successful a precise unfortunate presumption but I wanted to dedicate the combat to him.”

He continued: “I was crying by the clip I got circular to mentioning his sanction due to the fact that I was reasoning astir it and (presenter) Harry Carpenter was capable to articulate what I was saying to the 19million radical watching connected the BBC.

“'It was a precise bittersweet clip for maine and astatine the pinnacle of my vocation I wanted to retrieve him. It was a truly important clip for maine and that was a truly important moment.”

Terrorist plots

Originally from Clones, Ireland, Barry’s boxing vocation was soaring portion The Troubles were astatine their worst.

But, though his gramps had been an IRA skipper successful the 1920s, Barry ever promoted bid and reconciliation.

He fought with a dove connected his shorts, representing peace, and adjacent sparked the slogan “Leave the Fighting to McGuigan”.

“It was important to marque a connection of neutrality,” helium told the Mirror.

Due to this governmental stance, helium began to person maltreatment from the IRA.

In his memoir, helium recalls: ‘I was driving successful a profoundly partisan country of Ulster. I had to halt astatine a T-junction and determination were fractional a twelve guys lasting connected the corner.

“It was a lukewarm time and the car windows were open. As I started to determination disconnected 1 of them shouted, ‘You f**king Taig’. That’s a precise insulting word for a Catholic.”

Barry got retired of the car, and walked up to them.

“I told each six of them they were cowards. That if I knew who said it I would smash his look in," helium said.

“Silence. I got backmost successful the car and drove off. That was the archetypal and lone time.”

But a much sinister menace connected his beingness happened later, which led to him carrying a firearm, for his ain protection.

“I was told determination was a crippled to kidnap me,” helium said. “Security forces connected some sides of the borderline were keeping an oculus connected me. It came astatine a clip erstwhile radical were disappearing and not agelong aft the kidnapping of the racehorse Shergar. 

“So I was issued with a weapon and the police taught maine however to sprout it.”

He added: “I couldn’t deed a barn door! I was terrible. It was truly funny...but astatine the aforesaid clip deadly serious. I had plain apparel constabulary guys travelling with maine everyplace for a portion successful lawsuit I was nabbed.

“My suspicion is it was each astir ransom – attempting to rise wealth for violent activities. But I deliberation the terrorists past realised that due to the fact that of my popularity and non-political stance, kidnapping maine had the imaginable to backfire.

“Perhaps that’s wherefore – convey God – the menace ne'er materialised. Now, erstwhile I look backmost astatine immoderate of the things I did and the statements I was making, I was precise fortunate to travel done it unscathed.”

Brother's abrupt death

Barry experienced much heartbreak successful 1994 - erstwhile his older member Dermot McGuigan tragically killed himself astatine the property of 35.

Dermot was a cardinal portion of Barry’s boxing career, having helped bid him for satellite rubric fights, sparring with him astatine home.

In his book, helium wrote: “I miss my brother; helium was specified a large man. I don’t cognize if I volition ever get implicit it.

“I lone privation determination had been a mode I could person helped Dermot more. I cognize I would person been the 1 who could person talked him down disconnected the container that fateful day.

“I cognize that due to the fact that helium near lone maine and my parent a letter. To person to unrecorded with the information I’ll ne'er spot him again is agonising.”

And past year, Barry paid tribute to his brother, with a touching station connected X, sharing an aged photograph of the brace astatine a golfing event.

He wrote: “It’s 29 years since my dearly beloved member Dermot RIP took his ain life. 

“Dermot would person been 64 today. He was a scratch golfer, an outstanding boxing manager and a large quality being. Never forgotten brother.”

'Devastating' loss

But the biggest heartbreak for Barry came successful July 2019, erstwhile his girl Nika died astatine the property of 33, conscionable a period aft being diagnosed with cancer.

He admitted connected The Tommy Tiernan show: “I’ll ne'er retrieve from that. That’s the astir shocking happening – to suffer your kid is just... I mislaid my brother; helium committed termination astatine 34. My dada died astatine 52. My sister died conscionable past year. 

“And they’re each bad, and Dad was precise hard to get implicit and Dermot was peculiarly bad, but losing your kid is conscionable the astir shocking thing.”

Barry and his woman Sandra’s lone girl was diagnosed with acute lymphoid leukaemia erstwhile she was 11 years old.

After 2 years of treatment, she recovered and went connected to go an actress, starring successful The Secret Scripture alongside Rooney Mara.

But the crab sadly returned years later, devastating Barry and Sandra - arsenic good arsenic their 3 sons.

In a statement, they said: "It is with large sadness and dense hearts that we stock the quality of the passing of our beauteous girl and sister, Danika 'Nika' McGuigan. 

“After a little but brave conflict against cancer, Nika passed distant peacefully successful the aboriginal hours of Tuesday 23 July, surrounded by her loving family. 

“As a household we are devastated and inquire for implicit privateness during this hard play to let america to grieve for our Nika.”

Barry opened up astir his grief successful 2021, and confessed he’d person retired from boxing had helium mislaid Nika during his career.

He told Belfast Live: “I mislaid my girl 2 years agone and it’s been shocking. I'll ne'er retrieve from it. My beingness volition spell connected but I’ll ne'er beryllium the aforesaid due to the fact that household means everything to me.

"She was specified a large kid. She had a pugnacious beingness each her life. She had fever convulsions astatine 9 months; she was dormant connected accomplishment astatine the infirmary and they got her bosom going again; she had leukaemia astatine 11, they said she would ne'er get done it and she got done it.

"I get precise upset astir it. I effort my champion not to. I think, ‘I don’t privation to outcry again.’ But, yeah, tough. Very tough. If this had happened to maine during my career, I could ne'er person continued with that. 

“I don’t cognize if I could person recovered from that arsenic a fighter."