Have-a-go hero John Smeaton has recovered from his coma and back on top form.

Smeat Victory!

Saturday 30 June 2007, a Cherokee Jeep crashes into Glasgow Airport as Islam extremists declare further war on the Western world. 

However, they forgot one thing – Glasgow does not back down lightly and the attackers were suddenly surrounded by police and airport staff determined not to let the Terrorists get their way. 

One man who helped out was a baggage handler from Erskine by the name of John Smeaton – little did he know that his actions were to make him an iconic figure worldwide. 

Smeato, as he’s affectionately known, gave his recollections of that day to Tartan Army Magazine beaming with pride at the efforts he and others put in to help put the Terrorists in their place. 

He said: “I was having a fag when I heard the noise and was like ‘what the hell was that?’ So I walked round and that’s when I seen the Jeep crashed into the building. I remember one of the guys jumping out the vehicle then I seen a police officer running across. This guy came out and started hitting the police I just charged right in. It was like seeing your mate getting attacked in the playground. I just went to help the police officer and the next minute this guy is taking a swing at me so I put my head back and kicked him. Then I seen the guy on the ground burning and I’m like ‘what’s going on here?’ Then a snap in my head made me realise ‘this is it’, the sort of thing we didn’t think would happen here. 

“I then seen Michael Kerr lying on the ground with a broken leg and had been punched by the guy, coz he’d done same thing as me, so I went to him and dragged him away. The police then came up and asked if we were ok and I said ‘this guys knackered’ so he said ‘give us a minute’ then turned round to the burning guy. We dragged him and put him in a puddle then got Michael into the car park when paramedics turned up and took him to hospital. After it, my first thought was to get back to work and tell the boys then I realised we had to shut the airport. It wasn’t until the next day it all sunk in for me.” 

What people forget is that Smeato wasn’t alone in help thwart the Terrorists and his motives for helping out were simple, as he explains: “It wasn’t just me that day – there was Michael, Alex (McIlveen), Stevie (Clarkson) and the off-duty police officer who was outstanding. There was so many people, everyone got together. When you see that policeman under attack, he is the law, he is everything we believe in and if you see him fall that’s us falling. If someone’s attacking him, then its time as a civilian and a member of the public to step up to the plate because if you don’t who is?” 

Whilst stepping in to back up the police was admirable, that wasn’t the reason behind the John Smeaton phenomenon that swept the nation the following day. 

During a TV interview afterwards with adrenalin pumping, Smeato came out with the famous line – “This is Glasgow, we’ll set aboot ye!” The phenomenon reached fever pitch when a website set up in his honour ran a campaign to buy him a pint, which totalled 1,400. 

Smeato has been in the public eye ever since but dismissed suggestions he took his fame overboard. He said: “If I wanted to, I could’ve milked it big style. I’ve no milked it. I’ve turned away from mega things, turned them back saying ‘I’m not doing it.’ I could’ve been constantly in the public eye, in your face, but I’ve never gone looking for it, people come to me I don’t go to them. I was a baggage handler for 13 years, scrimping and saving, being skint constantly at the end of the month. If you get an opportunity like that in life you take it. Everybody I’ve met since says ‘keep on going son because if I were you I’d milk it big style.’ If I want to do something I’ll do it but I didn’t ask to be made a celebrity, it’s not like I was on Big Brother or something going looking for it, it came to me and I’ve played it as honestly as I could.” 

Whether he has milked his fame or not, John Smeaton could be forgiven for taking every opportunity possible, especially given his recent near-death experience. 

On October 10 2008, he was rushed to Paisley Royal Alexandra Hospital after suffering an asthma attack that very nearly killed him with blood levels at 24%. 

Fortunately, Smeato pulled through and is extremely thankful to still be alive. He said: “The most nasty experience I’ve ever gone through in my life. I’d rather go to ten burning Jeeps a day than have an asthma attack, it’s the most frightening thing. It was so scary then, all of a sudden, you wake up two weeks later in intensive care and been told you nearly died, you were that ill. It was only the professionalism of the doctors and nurses at Alexandra Hospital that I’m still here standing. People slag the NHS off but see when you need the NHS, they’ll be there for you. The level of care I was given was second to none.” 

The most valuable lesson Smeato learned was how much smoking affected his asthma and was quick to acknowledge that fact as he, pardon the pun, stubs out the old habit. He said: “The reason I had my asthma attack is because I smoked. The best thing that’s come out of it is that I don’t smoke anymore. The memory that puts me off smoking most of all is walking round the repertory ward, learning to walk again because my muscles were gone and I had a Zimmer frame. Then you see people in the ward with epicedia, guys who were about 50 years old but looked about 70 and couldn’t walk the length of their body. I just say to myself there’s no way in ten years time I’m not going to walk from here to there because I smoked. I feel so much better waking up in the morning and not coughing my guts up.” 

After bouncing back from the brink of death, John Smeaton values his life immensely and it gives him the chance to talk about his fondest memories. 

That extends to his pride in supporting the National team and his earliest memory of this was of a certain “toe-poke” goal in 1982. He recalled: “My first early memories of watching Scotland were, probably, the ’82 World Cup. David Narey scoring against Brazil and I remember my dad saying ‘Oh no, we’ve just annoyed them!’ That’s my most abiding memory of Scotland in the World Cup cause I was only two when Archie Gemmill scored the wonder goal so I don’t remember it but my first memory was Scotland in the World Cup in ’82.” 

Smeato wasn’t slow in praising the Tartan Army and immediately said: “Best supporters in the world! The thing about the Tartan Army is we’re not full of ourselves, not like the English who’re like ‘we’re going to win, we’re beat everybody.’ It’s more like ‘if we win we win, if we lose we lose but hey we’re going to party anyway.’ That’s the whole attitude of the Tartan Army. Whenever we go to other countries, we always give them the respect because you realise you’re representing Scotland so we go out and show the rest of Britain how better we are. Proud of our nation, proud of ourselves and that comes across in droves.” 

Despite his love for the country, Smeato is planning on fleeing to New York to marry fiancé Christy MacPhedran. However, he did point out that even the world’s largest city has Scottish history that should give some home comforts. 

He said: “I love America. You hear people slag the Americans off left, right and centre but I tell you the hospitality I’ve had in America, off her family and off her friends has been unbelievable. They are second to none, I don’t care what anyone says, they’re amazing people and there’s so much to do in New York. But I’m always going to be Scottish, I see myself as first and foremost being Scottish because that’s where I was born and bred and I’m damn proud of my country. It might be even better in America because Scots built America. You look at the declaration of independence, how many Scotsmen signed it? Scotland built America, which people forget. It wasn’t the Irish who built America, it was Scotland and everything came from Scotsmen. We’ve given the world everything, the world’s Scottish but we just don’t know it!” 

It’s good to see that even though his mind is set on a new life in America, John Smeaton’s heart remains in Scotland.