John Michael Alfred McCarthy was born on June 17th 1930 in the front room of Kimberly Road, Croydon to parents William ‘Mac’ McCarthy, (1901-1989?) and Gladys Eleanor McCarthy nee; Crabbe (1909-2005).

            John was raised with his younger brother, Brian on Midhurst Ave, Croydon. He went to Catholic school, where he had to learn the catocism and attend the altar. School was punctuated by air-raids and evacuations and in 1941, John and Brian’s second evacuation took them to Devon, where they stayed with a priest, Peter Dart in Abbotsham Vicarage.   When the boys returned to Croydon, John started an after school job, delivering groceries for his grandfather who ran a provisions shop on the Canterbury Road.

            Then, in 1946, at aged sixteen, John won a scholarship to Stanley Technical College to study surveying.   Three years later to the City of London.  To pay his way he worked as a lifeguard at the local baths and was on the water-polo team for Croydon.  In 1948 he was called for national service and on 28th April 1949, John showed up at Rippon Camp, then onto Catterick Camp in Yorkshire.

GHQ Royal Signals, 2207509 Sign. McCarthy. 7 Troop, 3 Sqdn, 7 Selection Regt

            John’s troop left Liverpool, on the S. S. "ORBITA" on 7th May 1948, off to the far-east.  John wrote many letters to his mother over the next two years.  She kept every one.  He told her of the movies they saw, the food they ate, the evening sing-a-longs.  He told her of sailing through the Suez Canal to Singapore and Malasia eventually reaching Hong Kong in 1949.  

            In 1950, he was demobed and sent home.  Back to Croydon and a job as a surveyor for the ministry of supply.   At the same time, he took to water polo and was quickly selected to represent the British team against Holland and Germany.  He was offered a part-time job as a lifeguard at the local swimming pool on Purely way, in order to train for his chosen sport.  Much to his mothers dismay John threw up his job with the ministry of supply to play water-polo for England.  

            John also joined a local theatre group, through which he met an agent in Charing Cross road.  That led to modeling jobs in London and Fridays in the Salisbury Arms with all the other actors.  There, John discovered that Al Packer was the biggest Agent in London so John rang him with a line and was duly summoned to Pinewood studio with a seven-year contract.  Then fate took a hand, John Davis took over the Rank organization, sacked most of the artists and John was back to square one.  He got small TV parts and modeling jobs, supplemented by working on his fathers building sites.   Then one day in 1954, his agent rang with two days photographic work in Kensington on the “Call for Carol” series that ran in ‘Illustrated”, a popular glossy magazine.  The lead was 23 year old Shirley Burniston.  John pulled a favor and wrangled a couple of tickets for Kismet, the hottest show in town. It was their first date of many.  They worked and traveled and lived life to the fullest until they married in 1960.  

"Sidney J. Furies sci-fi horror feature, 'Snake Woman' introduces John McCarthy.  In the lead role of detective tanner, John McCarthy beams bumptiously throughout." - Daily Variety 1959

John’s resume lists 15 Television Plays, 18 films, 17 television films and 11 stage plays.  The Films include,  “Snake Woman” (dir. Sidney J. Fury), “Dr. Strangelove” (dir. Stanley Kubrick), “Goldfinger” (dir. Guy Hamilton),  “The Bedford Incident” (dir. Richard Widmark,) “Arabesque”, (dir. Stanley Donnen).  ‘The Road to Hong Kong”, in which he chases Bob Hope.  He often played a ‘heavy’ a truck driver or a cop, often chasing or threatening the lead.  He was especially proud of role in, “And suddenly its spring” with Margaret Lockwood and kept the poster on the wall.  TV work of this time includes. “Requium for a Heavyweight,” and  “Dixon of Dock green”.

            After they married, John and Shirley moved into a Bungalow in Sutton and in 1965 they moved to a house John had converted from a Coach House - 10 Harestone Valley Road in Caterham.  John took over his father’s construction company and in February 1966, John’s Daughter, Bridget Joanne was born.  Gavin John was born three years later in March 1969. John and Shirley divorced in 1973.           

            In 1974, John met Carolyn Crabtree Morgan. Carolyn was a divorcee with a son named Allister (born April 21st 1967), who had recently emigrated (back) from Australia.  A year later, Carolyn and Allister moved in and the blended family moved to the Pilgrims Lane, another of Johns building projects, a school converted to three houses.  John and Carolyn married in 1976.

            In 1977/8, John and Carolyn sold Pilgrims Lane and decided to give a publicans life a try.  In 1980, the family moved into The Seven Stars Inn, Robertsbridge.   Pub life gave John room to do a little TV acting, ‘The Professionals,” “Scarf Jack,”  “Tripods”, which provided countless stories for the bars entertainment.  After a couple of years, John and Carolyn gave up the pub life and John returned to construction.  In 1982, the family moved to Virgins Lane, Battle, East Sussex - the children were growing up and going to college in St-Leonards.

            In 1986, John and Carolyn bought a flat on the Hastings sea front and in 1989, move to what would be their last home on Hollington Park Rd, in St Leonards.

            Bridget moved to Los Angeles in 1991, followed by and Gavin in 1993.

           Allister welcomed a son, Christopher and soon after a daughter, Carolyn - giving John & Carolyn their first two grandchildren.

            John visited Bridget and Gavin often.  He enjoyed hanging out at the beach bars, chatting with the locals.  Back at Lismore Court, John and Carolyn purchased a strip of land adjoining their garden and expanded it, adding a pond and a vegetable garden.

            In 1998, Gavin became a father and John welcomed granddaughter, Kate Elizabeth (1998).  Soon after, Gavin and his family moved to North Carolina.  Back in the UK, John built a granny flat extension to their house in Hollington Park Road and his mother moved in.  Gavin & Rebekah gave John another grandchild, Liam John (2002)

            In 2004 Bridget gave John his fifth grandchild, Alice Rose.

            Back in the UK, finally retired, John and Carolyn adopted a small dog they called Rollo and spend afternoons in their garden, now with added fish-pond.  Friends would come over or they’d go to the pub.   Forever the actor, John would keep many entertained in the Horse & Groom, his favorite local, for many years.

            In 2016 Carolyn died at home in hospice care and John eventually settled in Bethune Court, where the staff have cared for him for the last two years and been entertained by his acting stories and endless tales.

John died on December 6th, 2018.

He is survived by his children Bridget, Gavin and Allister.

Grandchildren Christopher, Carolyn, Kate, Liam, & Alice, Carolyn and great-grand child Beatrix.