Chris McConville (1934 – 2019) (Joe's 1944 – 1952)
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Obituary taken from the service book of his Memorial Mass.
Chris grew up in Blackpool in a family of six children. He came to University
in London, followed by National Service in the UK, Malta, Germany and Suez.
Then, to pay back his student loan, he worked as a coal miner, drove trolley
buses and worked night shift metal-polishing car bumpers in a factory, where
he was working when he met his wife Molly.
Trying different jobs, he found himself driving vans for the British Council,
collecting and delivering the heavy luggage of students from the Commonwealth.
That led to driving foreign visitors around Britain by coach, then helping in
and eventually running the British Council Student Centre in London creating
educational and social programmes for foreign students.
Next, based in Head Office, he placed and supported post doctorate students
from overseas, notably from Russia, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria and Germany.
Chris worked for the Council in Malawi and then on the Middle East desk in
London. Finally he was appointed to Palestine, as the first UK Director of the
British Council in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza. He was awarded an
MBE for his outstanding achievements there.
Following retirement, he was asked by Medical Aid for Palestinians to
supervise the setting up of health facilities in Lebanon and Syria. He also
joined EU election monitoring teams, in Palestine and Kosovo. Back home, for
ten years he was the voluntary treasurer for FQMS, the Foundation for Al Quds
(Jerusalem) Medical School. He continued to support FQMS and other medical
charities until he died. In every phase of his life he made lasting friends.
Chris had two children, Joe and Claire and four grandchildren, Christine,
Joseph, Christopher and Michael. One sister, Margaret, survives him.
Chris donated his body for medical study.
A meeting of old friends
In 1995 my wife and I retired from academic posts in London teaching hospitals
and were invited as Professors of Pathology to establish the pathology
department in the newly established Al Quds Medical School for Palestine just
outside East Jerusalem. On a preliminary visit we were at the British Council
and they spoke of their previous director, Chris McConville. After my enquiry,
“Does he have red hair and did he come from Blackpool?”, there was much
laughter with the reply, “Once, but now it is very white and he lives in
Islington”. On returning home I phoned and sure enough it was the Chris
McConville I had last seen in 1951 when I left St Joseph's College. We renewed
our friendship over a good lunch and a bottle of wine and Chris told me of his
remarkable career.
Although we had been in the same class Chris was a year younger and stayed on
until 1952 when he went to London University to study English. There in his
first year he shared a flat with David Lodge, who later became the celebrated
novelist. Indeed he told me with considerable pride and again much laughter
that he was the model for Ginger in Lodge's novel Ginger You're Barmy
about University life, though he denied any links with the IRA which he put
down to Lodge's febrile imagination!
His subsequent career is well set out in his obituary notes and the
appreciation by Sir Ciarán Devane but I would like to add my gratitude for his
efforts in retirement when he became treasurer of the Foundation of the Al
Quds Medical School. His prodigious efforts raised large amounts of money and
the 'Old Boy' network sustained not only the new pathology department but
ensured the continuing success of the Medical School. This now produces
doctors in all specialties for Palestine and even exports those who for
political or social reasons cannot practice in that troubled land. Indeed two
of the first cohort of students are now consultants in British teaching
hospitals.
An appreciation from Sir Ciarán Devane. Chief Executive of the British Council
Chris had a very illustrious British Council career and his legacy is varied,
profound and lasting. Chris was our first UK appointed Director of British
Council Occupied Palestinian Territories, but I also wanted to mention that he
is also regarded by many as one of our best ever directors. He arrived at a
very challenging time after the first lntifada when all Palestinian
universities had been closed by lsraeli authorities. Chris took the initiative
to start up a Teaching Centre in our current East Jerusalem premises to which
Palestinian students from far and wide (from even Gaza and Nablus) came to
study. This proved a huge success, and this was confirmed during a visit by
our Director General. Chris was also very highly regarded for opening a
teaching centre in Gaza. Chris, with Colin Green, also started up the first
Palestinian Medical School - at Al Quds University at Abu Dis in Jerusalem
which is still going strong despite all the challenges of the occupation:
another wonderful and lasting achievement, and his MBE award was indeed richly
deserved.
Chris is also remembered by British Council colleagues as an inspirational,
flexible and highly intelligent leader, who not only had wonderful ideas which
he ensured came to fruition, but who also deeply cared about his teams. This
is also the case with this tenure as Director British Council Malawi and his
post in London. I know that he kept up the great work after his retirement
from the British Council, using his skills for Medical Aid for Palestinians in
Lebanon and Syria in particular.
Chris is a very fondly remembered colleague who did so much for our
organisation, who left so many wonderful memories and whose work impacted on
the lives of thousands of people. He will be greatly missed by very many.