Frank Collins (5 November 1956 – 16 June 1998) was a

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

clergyman and the first 22 SAS soldier to enter the building in the Iranian Embassy Siege in 1980. Whilst with 22 SAS B Squadron (Air) Troop, Collins served with both Al Slater and Charles "Nish" Bruce. He left the service in 1989 after 15 years to work in security and later pursued training for ordained ministry. Having trained at

Oak Hill College Oak Hill College is a conservative evangelical theological college located on Chase Side in Southgate, London, England. Its aim is to prepare men and women from the Church of England and Independent churches for ministry in the real world. Ove ...

, a

conservative evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual exper ...

theological college, Collins was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

in the

as a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...

in 1992 and as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in partic ...

in 1993. He served his

curacy A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy w ...

at St Peter with St Owen and St James, Hereford in the

Diocese of Hereford The Diocese of Hereford is a Church of England diocese based in Hereford, covering Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and a few parishes within Worcestershire in England, and a few parishes within Powys and Monmouthshire in Wales. The cathedral i ...

. He was then commissioned as a chaplain in the Territorial Army, and served as padre of

23 Special Air Service Regiment (Reserve) 23 Special Air Service Regiment (Reserve) (23 SAS(R)) is a British Army Reserve special forces unit that forms part of United Kingdom Special Forces. Together with 21 Special Air Service Regiment (Artists) (Reserve) (21 SAS(R)), it forms the ...

, The Parachute Regiment and the AMF(L) in Bulford, Wiltshire. His autobiography, ''Baptism of Fire'',
Baptism of Fire: The Astonishing True Story of a Man of God, Frank Collins PB. , was published by Doubleday in 1997. He committed suicide by gassing himself in his car in 1998.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, Frank 1998 deaths Special Air Service soldiers Royal Army Chaplains' Department officers Suicides by gas 20th-century English Anglican priests 1956 births British Parachute Regiment officers Suicides in England British military personnel who committed suicide 1998 suicides Evangelical Anglican clergy Alumni of Oak Hill College Military personnel from Newcastle upon Tyne