Paddy Mayne

British Soldier (1915-1955)

帕迪·梅恩 · パディー・メイン

Born

11 January 1915, Newtownards

Died

14 December 1955, Newtownards

Citizenship

United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland

Sport

boxing, rugby union

Occupation

solicitor, rugby union player, military personnel, boxer

Team / club

Queen's University RFC, Ireland men’s national rugby union team, Ulster Rugby

Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Blair Mayne, (11 January 1915 – 14 December 1955), best known as Paddy Mayne or familiarly as Blair, was a British Army officer from Newtownards. He was an amateur boxing champion, qualified as a solicitor and played rugby union for Ireland and the British Lions before becoming a founding member of the Special Air Service (SAS).

Serving with distinction during the Second World War, Mayne became one of the British Army's most highly decorated officers. He was controversially denied the Victoria Cross, a decoration which King George VI remarked "so strangely eluded him".

Awards and honours

• Distinguished Service Order
• Officer of the Legion of Honour

External links

• Wikipedia
• Wikidata

Facts from Wikidata Q2918762 (CC0); quoted introduction from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Data retrieved 2026-10-22.

Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.