Cornelius "Neil" Horan, sometimes referred to as The Grand Prix Priest, The Dancing Priest or The Armageddon Priest (born 22 April 1947), is a laicised Irish

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

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 ...

who is noted for his interference with the running of the 2003 British Grand Prix and the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

men's

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

in order to promote his religious belief that the end times are near. In 2004 he was found not guilty of indecent assault against a seven-year-old girl. Though he did admit that he was naked while the girl tickled him and while they played

hide-and-seek Hide-and-seek (sometimes known as hide-and-go-seek) is a popular children's game in which at least two players (usually at least three) conceal themselves in a set environment, to be found by one or more seekers. The game is played by one chos ...

, during the court case he also claimed to own only one pair of tight-fitting green satin underpants that have never been washed as he needs them to 'always be ready for use', at one point Horan produced the pants from his pocket to show the jury. He was arrested and spent some time in jail in Germany in 2006 when police found out about his plans to stage a Pro-Nazi demonstration (which included a poster he made praising

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

). He went on to appear on ''

Britain's Got Talent ''Britain's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated to ''BGT'') is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (colloqui ...

'' in May 2009. He danced a soft jig on the show, received a standing ovation by the audience and was put through to the second round. He did not make the live semi-finals. In 2017 he showed his support outside court for disgraced entertainer

Rolf Harris Rolf Harris (born 30 March 1930) is an Australian entertainer whose career has encompassed work as a musician, singer-songwriter, composer, comedian, actor, painter and television personality. He often used unusual instruments in his performan ...

Early life and the priesthood

The second of 13 children born to Catherine (née Kelly) and John Horan. Horan is a native of Knockeenahone, Scartaglen in

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

. He currently lives in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He studied to be a priest at

St. Brendan's College, Killarney St Brendan's College, known locally as The Sem, is a secondary school in Killarney, County Kerry, Ireland History St Brendan's is a Catholic Diocesan College, founded in 1860 by Bishop David Moriarty as a boarding and day-school for boys under ...

and

St Peter's College, Wexford St Peter's College, Wexford is an Irish secondary school and former seminary located in Summerhill, overlooking Wexford town. It is a single-sex school for male pupils. Currently, the school's population is over 770. History Founded in 1811 by ...

Horan plans trip to Brazil to say sorry
independent.ie, 25. November 2004 and was ordained in 1973.

Incidents

2003 British Grand Prix

On 20 July 2003, Horan ran across the track at the

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

British Grand Prix at

Silverstone Circuit Silverstone Circuit is a motor racing circuit in England, near the Northamptonshire villages of Towcester, Silverstone and Whittlebury. It is the home of the British Grand Prix, which it first hosted as the 1948 British Grand Prix. The 1950 ...

, wearing an orange

skirt A skirt is the lower part of a dress or a separate outer garment that covers a person from the waist downwards. At its simplest, a skirt can be a draped garment made out of a single piece of fabric (such as pareos). However, most skirts ar ...

and waving a religious banner, which stated "Read the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

. The Bible is always right". His protest took place on the 200 mph (320 km/h) Hangar Straight. Several drivers had to swerve to avoid him and the safety car had to be deployed to protect him and the competitors. Horan was tackled by

track marshal Motorsport marshals are mainly volunteer workers responsible for the safety of motor racing competitors. They are stationed at various points of danger around race tracks to assist them in case of any collisions, accidents or track problems. Mar ...

Stephen Green, who removed Horan from the track before he was arrested. He was charged with, and pleaded guilty to, aggravated trespass and sentenced to two months

imprisonment Imprisonment is the restraint of a person's liberty, for any cause whatsoever, whether by authority of the government, or by a person acting without such authority. In the latter case it is " false imprisonment". Imprisonment does not necessar ...

2004 Epsom Derby

At the 5 June 2004

Epsom Derby The Derby Stakes, also known as the Epsom Derby or the Derby, and as the Cazoo Derby for sponsorship reasons, is a Group 1 flat horse race in England open to three-year-old colts and fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surre ...

, Horan was spotted by police and shoved to the ground moments before they believed he was about to run in front of the horses.Tim Ashton
''Police arrest priest at Derby race meet''
newsshopper.co.uk, 15 June 2004 He was later released without charges, although police did circulate information about Horan to other sporting events. The following year a court order prevented him coming within two miles of the racecourse.

2004 Summer Olympics men's marathon

In spite of tight security at the

2004 Athens Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

due to fears of a

terrorist attack Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...

, on 29 August Horan (who had flown to Athens earlier that day) was able to run onto the course of the men's marathon event near the 35 km mark, carrying placards on his back and front. Horan pushed Brazilian

Vanderlei de Lima Vanderlei Cordeiro de Lima (born 4 July 1969) is a Brazilian retired long-distance runner. He was born in Cruzeiro do Oeste, Paraná. While leading the marathon after 35 km at the 2004 Summer Olympics, he was attacked on the course by Iri ...

, who was leading the race, into the crowds alongside the course. After a few seconds Horan was hauled off the shaken runner by Greek spectator Polyvios Kossivas. Kossivas subdued Horan and helped de Lima up and back to the lane. Horan was promptly arrested by Greek police, who were later criticized for not giving runners adequate protection. Following the encounter with Horan, De Lima suffered from leg cramps and muscle pain, although he continued running and completed the race. He lost 20 seconds from his 48-second lead and finished third, after being passed by Italian

Stefano Baldini Stefano Baldini (born 25 May 1971 in Castelnovo di Sotto, Emilia-Romagna, Italy) is a retired Italian runner who specialized in the marathon. He was the Olympic champion in Athens and was twice European champion (1998 and 2006). Biography Baldin ...

and American Mebrahtom Keflezighi at the 38 km mark. De Lima later commented that "I think that the psychological shock was the greatest impact that I suffered. To be attacked like that, it was painful. I was totally defenseless and exhausted." The head of the

Brazilian Athletics Confederation The Brazilian Athletics Confederation (CBAt; ''Confederação Brasileira de Atletismo'') is the governing body for the sport of athletics in Brazil. President for the period 2013-2016 is José Antonio Martins Fernandes. History CBAt w ...

launched an

appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

based on the controversy surrounding Horan's interference in the marathon. The federation asked that de Lima also be awarded a

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have be ...

, citing precedents set in past Olympic matches where extenuating circumstances have led to more than one winner in certain sports. This request was denied. Horan was given a 12-month suspended sentence by a Greek court and fined

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

3,000. Although he could have been sentenced to up to five years' imprisonment, the judge gave him a suspended sentence due to his mental state. Horan's brother commented that he had gotten away "scot-free".

World Cup 2006

During the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host th ...

in Germany, Horan was arrested by German police before he could stage a planned protest. He had written to German Chancellor,

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German former politician and scientist who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. A member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), she previously served as Leader of the Opp ...

, and ''The Kingdom'' newspaper in

, Ireland, informing them that he planned to dance a peace jig outside

the stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

before the World Cup final. He told ''The Kingdom'' he would carry posters declaring "Adolf Hitler was a good leader who was following the word of Christ", give the

Nazi salute The Nazi salute, also known as the Hitler salute (german: link=no, Hitlergruß, , Hitler greeting, ; also called by the Nazi Party , 'German greeting', ), or the ''Sieg Heil'' salute, is a gesture that was used as a greeting in Nazi Germany. Th ...

and light a candle for Hitler at the Gestapo headquarters. He spent two months in custody awaiting trial but was released on 15 September 2006 when the judge discharged the case.

St Mary's Hospital

During the waiting period outside the front door of St Mary's Hospital's Lindo Wing in west London before Prince William's first child was born, Horan appeared in front of media with a sign proclaiming "

Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen ...

is very probably the last monarch of Britain" on one side, and "Queen Elizabeth is very probably foretold in the Bible" on the other. He handed out his business card, which read "Neil Horan, the Britain's Got Talent Irish Dancer. I perform at Weddings. My Mission in Life is to help prepare the world for the

Second Coming The Second Coming (sometimes called the Second Advent or the Parousia) is a Christian (as well as Islamic and Baha'i) belief that Jesus will return again after his ascension to heaven about two thousand years ago. The idea is based on messia ...

David Norris letter

During campaigning ahead of the

2011 Irish presidential election The 2011 Irish presidential election was the thirteenth presidential election to be held in Ireland, and was contested by a record seven candidates. It was held on Thursday, 27 October 2011. The election was held to elect a successor to Mary ...

, Senator David Norris's past came under scrutiny. ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'' reported that it had seen a letter in which Norris had politely responded to Horan thanking him for his pamphlet on "various Messianic prophecies". Norris admitted in the letter, "To be honest I haven't really read it in detail yet", but said that he would put his "feet up and read it with great interest" when he returned from a trip to Berlin. He added, "I will then pass it on to my aunt who is just 100 and has always taken a keen interest in this kind of material."

Reactions

Dismissal from priesthood

On 20 January 2005,

Kevin McDonald Kevin Hamilton McDonald (born May 16, 1961) is a Canadian actor, voice actor and comedian. He is a member of the comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, who have appeared together in a number of stage, television and film productions, most notably th ...

, the Archbishop of Southwark (South London), laicised Horan. Horan later made the following statement to the press: "I completely reject this decision. I appeal to the much higher court of heaven and the court of Jesus Christ ... I now cannot preach, I cannot give out Communion - I am little more than a pagan."

Legal restraints

On 13 April 2007, Horan was served with an

Anti-Social Behaviour Order An anti-social behaviour order (ASBO ) is a civil order made in Great Britain against a person who had been shown, on the balance of evidence, to have engaged in anti-social behaviour. The orders were introduced by Prime Minister Tony Blair ...

(ASBO) banning him from entering, on the day of the race, any of the

London borough The London boroughs are the 32 local authority districts that together with the City of London make up the administrative area of Greater London; each is governed by a London borough council. The present London boroughs were all created at ...

s that the course of the

London Marathon The London Marathon is an annual marathon held in London, United Kingdom, and is the 2nd largest annual road race in the UK, after the Great North Run in Newcastle. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically he ...

passed through.

Other appearances

''Britain's Got Talent''

Horan auditioned for Series 3 of ''Britain's Got Talent'' in 2009 (airing 16 May) performing an Irish jig in traditional costume. The judges put Horan through to the second round. He was allowed to perform on the show because the producers "did not know" who he was. The makers of the show, TalkbackThames and

Syco Syco Entertainment is a British media entertainment company, headquartered in London, founded and owned by British entrepreneur and record executive Simon Cowell. The company focuses on TV production. The company was formed in 2005 through So ...

, defended showing Horan's audition on the show. Horan then appeared on ''

The Ray D'Arcy Show ''The Ray D'Arcy Show'' is the title given to two differing versions of a radio programme hosted by Ray D'Arcy, originally broadcast on Irish commercial radio station Today FM from the late 1990s until 2014 before transferring in February 2015 t ...

'' on Today FM and revealed that he did not get through to the next stage.

References

External links

Ex-priest admits Grand Prix invasion
BBC, 11 August 2003
Protester ruins marathon
BBC, 29 August 2004
Sport disrupting priest defrocked
BBC, 20 January 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Horan, Neil 1947 births Living people Formula One people 20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Laicized Roman Catholic priests Britain's Got Talent contestants People acquitted of sex crimes People from County Kerry Irish expatriates in the United Kingdom People educated at St Peter's College, Wexford pt:Anexo:Lista de celebridades instantâneas#Cornelius Horan