BUS STOP GUNMAN DIES BEHIND BARS
Murderer was returned to jail after fleeing as he prepared for release
A KILLER who shot a man dead at a bus stop 30 years ago and went on to blow his chance at freedom has died behind bars.
John Wilson gunned down Stephen Barnes in Glasgow in 1991 and shouted “bang, bang” at the victim’s family in court as he was jailed for murder.
He absconded from prison as he prepared to be released from his life sentence and was denied opportunities for parole.
He died aged 55 while a prisoner at HMP Low Moss, near Glasgow, on February 15.
Wilson murdered 24-year-old Stephen four months after the pair rowed in the Sheiling Bar in Shettleston, Glasgow.
The killer appeared in front of his victim as he waited for a bus home with a friend and fired a single fatal shot at close range.
When police searched Wilson’s home in nearby Mount Vernon they found a cache of weapons.
In 2016, the killer was on an unescorted work placement in Dalmarnock as part of his preparation for freedom when he failed to return to Greenock
Prison. He was found in Rutherglen three days later and returned to prison.
A prison source said there were not believed to be any suspicious circumstances surrounding the death.
The Scottish Prison Service confirmed the death and said a fatal accident inquiry would be held.
BOOKER Prize-winning author Douglas Stuart has revealed he was the victim of a brutal homophobic gang attack while growing up in Glasgow.
The writer told how he was beaten up and repeatedly stamped on as he lay on the ground.
He was only rescued when a housewife intervened, thinking the gang was attacking a dog.
Douglas, 44, won last year’s Booker Prize for Shuggie Bain, a novel inspired by his childhood.
Set in the 80s, it follows a boy coming to terms with his sexuality while growing up in poverty in Glasgow with an alcoholic mother.
The author said he was bullied at school for being gay and subjected to violence when he became a teenager.
He said: “It was a lot of name calling and some days it was physical and they would beat me up and, as I got older and became a teenager, the violence escalated.
“There was a time I was set upon by about 12 boys in the street on a Saturday afternoon when I was 15.
“It was an old Glaswegian housewife who was driving by and stopped and got out because she thought the boys were stamping on a dog. She chased these boys away and at the centre of it was me.”
Speaking on the Past Imperfect podcast, Douglas said he didn’t “learn to love and accept myself until I was in my mid-30s, I think”.
He added: “If I could sit my 16-year-old self down I would just try to encourage him to get there a bit quicker.”
Douglas, who lives in New York and has spent two decades working in fashion, is the second Scot to win the Booker Prize, after James Kelman in 1994.
SEX is supposed to be the most natural thing in the world, but it doesn’t feel that way when you’re sitting on the end of the bed with your head in your hands because you can’t perform.
The number of men with erectile dysfunction has doubled in the past 25 years, with 43 per cent of UK men between 18 and 60 having faced the problem. The issue is complicated by the fact it can be caused by both physical and psychological issues.
“My girlfriend would say, ‘Don’t worry, we’ll try again later’. Yet to me that was the problem,” says Chris Cooper, 33, of Essex. “You shouldn’t have to try, and the word ‘later’ felt more of a threat than a promise. It put me under pressure to perform, which made things worse.”
Heart of the matter
Erectile dysfunction – defined as the inability to attain or maintain an erection for satisfactory sexual performance – can be triggered by a range of health conditions. However, 90 per cent of cases are still the result of a physical issue rather than a mental block, according to the British Association of Urological Surgeons.
“The main causes are poor lifestyle habits: too many calories, not enough exercise, abdominal obesity, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease,” says Professor Mike Kirby, a urologist and trustee of the Sexual Advice Association. “Nearly three-quarters of men with type-2 diabetes will suffer from erectile dysfunction, but heart disease is the biggest issue.”
It turns out that the penis is a barometer of cardiovascular health. “If you get narrowing of the penile artery you lose your night-time erections. These are important for the wellbeing of your penis, which needs blood and oxygen for its own health,” says Prof Kirby.
“I worked on a study into men who had suffered heart attacks and 78 per cent of them had suffered from erectile problems, starting about five years before their heart attack.”
Stress, alcohol, smoking and drugs can also have an impact, as can anatomical irregularities such as a tight foreskin.
“The good news is that there are lots of effective treatments, including various types of medication and surgery if necessary,” says Prof Kirby. One popular treatment is a PDE5 inhibitor, which helps to control blood flow. Viagra is the best known of these inhibitors, and taken as required, but there are also daily treatments.
“These are good as you take one every morning and there’s no need to plan, so there’s no pressure on your partner to be in the mood,” says Prof Kirby.
All in the mind?
Not every lost erection is the result of a physical ailment. Psychological issues are more common in younger men, although again lifestyle choices can have an impact.
“One failed experience, maybe due to drink or drugs, can snowball so you think, ‘Will things work next time?’ That’s an important primitive reflex,” says Prof Kirby – and one that goes all the way back to our prehistoric ancestors, who developed the fight-or-flight mechanism to cope with threats.
This mechanism causes your body to produce adrenaline and anything that produces this – whether it’s threat of attack or performance anxiety – will kill your erection. Thankfully, it can be treated with PDE5 inhibitors.
The psychological element is important because erectile dysfunction can play on the mind, no matter your age. “It can cause mental health problems: stress, anxiety or depression. Men lose confidence and withdraw, and that can cause problems for their partners, too,” says Prof Kirby.
Erection problems can also be an issue for men already suffering with mental health problems. “Antidepressants are a disaster for erections and ejaculation so it’s important to get the right treatment,” says Prof Kirby. “Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are particularly problematic.”
First stop for help should be your GP. “Men don’t talk about it and many don’t do anything about it,” Prof Kirby adds. “They’re missing the opportunity to get checked and have simple things such as their blood glucose, blood lipids and blood pressure assessed.”
No one should suffer in silence – and you really do suffer with this
Driven to action
As for Chris, he reached a point where his inability to maintain an erection drove him to action. “The doctor asked about my lifestyle and I realised I wasn’t as healthy as I had been. I felt under pressure at work so had been drinking a lot and eating a lot of takeaways on nights we weren’t going out. “I started running again and my girlfriend bought some lubricant. The fact that she did it somehow made me feel better, like she was investing in me. The first time we used it was a massive breakthrough. “I’m glad I took action and don’t want it to happen again. No one should suffer in silence – and you really do suffer with this.” This feature is from the latest issue of Healthy for Men magazine, from hollandandbarrett.com and Holland & Barrett shops