JOE'S BLOODY NIGHT

By EDDIE ROWLEY

How thugs almost killed the late Irish singing star

IRISH singing legend Joe Dolan was left unrecognisable after being savagely tortured to within an inch of his life in a Liverpool club back in 1970, his official biography reveals.

Joe was a pin-up idol with pop star good looks before his fateful encounter with the local gangsters following his performance in the city that night.

By the time the evil thugs had finished pummelling his face, smashing him into a wall, shoving his head into a toilet bowl and stamping on it, Joe's appearance would be changed forever.

The graphic account of the Westmeath born entertainer's horrific and prolonged beating, after an exchange of words with his merciless attackers in the club, is one of the many detailed revelations in Joe Dolan's new biography, set to hit the shops next week.

Superstar

Penned by his friend, journalist Ronan Casey, and exclusively serialised in a Sunday World glossy magazine free with today's paper, the book also reveals how Joe:

• Grew up in poor circumstances, stealing spuds as a kid to put food on the table for the family.
• Caught the showbiz bug after winning a national talent contest called Beginners Please, the equivalent at the time of the X Factor.
• Was the first Irish star to perform on Top Of The Pops when Make Me An Island saw him become a superstar around the globe.
• Was feared dead when his plane went missing in an electrical storm on a flight to Rio de Janeiro in 1971.
• Was banned from flying with Aer Lingus after an air rage incident in 1976; and
• Was targeted by anti-apartheid protesters after he insisted on touring in South Africa.
• Was a generous and caring man who secretly supported many charities and played host to young traveller kids and friends from all walks of life at his home during Christmas festivities.
• Broke down and cried backstage in a dressing room as ill health forced him to leave the stage for the first and last time just months before his shock death.

The fascinating biography of the Man in White also takes Joe's fans on a truly heartbreaking journey with the national treasure as his health slowly deteriorated to the point where he was in a wheelchair during his final days.

One of the most gripping and harrowing accounts of Joe's remarkable life and times centred around the vicious assaulted he endured on that September night in 1970, following his show at the Wookie Hollow club in Liverpool.

Joe and one of his crew, Hubert 'Shotgun' Crowley had stayed behind for a few drinks.

There were three men and a young woman drinking heavily at a near-by table. At one point the girl was pestering Joe and eventually he told her to leave him alone.

Then her burly male companions began to verbally abuse a member of staff for refusing to serve them champagne.

Thugs

When Joe jokingly suggested they should come back in the morning for a champagne breakfast, he realised too late that it was a big mistake.

The thugs suddenly turned on Joe as he tried to leave the club with his pal 'Shotgun' Crowley, and one head-butted him in the face, shattering his nose.

As Shotgun was held in a corner by one of the men, the others punched and kicked Joe as the girl egged them on.

At one point a terrified Joe managed to get to his feet and escape through the nearest door. His eyes were swollen and blackened with blood, and he fell into a toilet as he was pursued by his attackers.

He managed to lock himself into a cubicle, but his assailants kept taunting him, calling him "an Irish bastard" and "a f**king Paddy".

They kicked in the cubicle door. One of the men slammed Joe's head into the wall on top of one of his own concert posters.

"You won't look like this again, you Irish c**t!" the ringleader said as he ordered the other man to search for a piece of rope.

"We're going to throw what's f**kin' left of you into the Mersey," he sneered.

'Shotgun' had managed to escape and outran his attacker to raise the alarm.

As a terrified Joe feared he was about to be finished off, the sound of police sirens brought an end to his living nightmare.

"Tonight is your lucky night," the ringleader sneered as the attackers fled the club. No one was ever caught.

Depressed

As he looked in the mirror all Joe could see was a face left disfigured, his nose flat and smashed into his head; and the popular singer became deeply depressed. Along with the dark moments of Joe's rollercoaster career, the book also captures his fun times and the lighter side of his incredible life.

Pop icon Robbie Williams remembers how Joe was a friend of his parents and often stayed over at his home when in the neighbourhood.

Sometimes Joe would call in late at night, and Robbie would have to vacate his room for the singer. "My first memories of Joe are that I had to give him me bed," Robbie says.

Fans get a peek inside Joe's world through the eyes of a long-time girlfriend, Isabella Fogarty.

With neverbefore- seen pictures, the book paints a picture of a man who lived for the stage.

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