Child abuser hired to be town crier

Jun 1 2008 Exclusive by Billy Paterson

A SHAMED football commentator exposed as a child sex offender was hired by a council as a town crier.

South Ayrshire Council decided Dougie MacDonald would be perfect to plug new tourist maps for the town.

They dressed him in a tricorn hat and tartan trews, handed him a bell and got him to pose for publicity shots with Deputy Provost Mary Kilpatrick.

But she did not know about his sordid past as a child abuser.

MacDonald, 49, a former Radio Clyde host and sports editor, was convicted of using lewd and indecent practices towards two boys and two girls - all aged 12 and 13.

He plied his young victims with booze in a lock-up in Bellshill, Lanarkshire, before inducing them to expose themselves.

The offences date back to 1979 and MacDonald was given three years' probation and put on the Sex Offenders' Register after admitting the charges in 2001.

During the case, it was revealed that MacDonald had a previous sex conviction relating to children.

MacDonald said: "I am not on any offenders' register and haven't been for several years.

"I do some town crier work and when I did the one in Ayr I wasn't asked to fill in any disclosure form."

On his website MacDonald - who bills himself The Toastmaster - offers his services at weddings, corporate dinners and charity galas.

South Ayrshire Council said: "He is not our employee.Hewas contracted for a one-off promotional event."

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