Gulf War torture survivor John Nichol reveals he 'deals with Twitter trolls by being polite'

John Nichol when he was held prisoner in Iraq
Getty Images

A former RAF airman held hostage in Iraq has revealed he is the target of online trolls — but deals with them by being “unfailingly polite”.

John Nichol was a navigator, aged 27, when he and Tornado pilot John Peters were shot down during a mission to destroy an enemy airfield in the Gulf War in 1991.

Mr Nichol lost two-and-a-half stone while locked in a fetid cell, pistol-whipped, burned with cigarettes, forced into stress positions and subjected to mock executions.

The pair were interrogated by Saddam Hussein’s secret police, beaten with fists, boots and clubs, and forced to appear on Iraqi television under duress.

John Nichol when he was held prisoner in Iraq
Peter Brooker/Rex

Now Mr Nichol faces “haters” needling him about his war record online, where the best-selling author, 54, tweets on subjects including military charities, police work, dogs and his books.

The father-of-one from Hertfordshire said: “The thing that comes up time and time again is a small amount of people who still criticise my actions for being shot down 27 years ago. I still get people saying: ‘All you did was get shot down, you were useless and here you are spouting off about it’. But I let it wash over me. They feel able to say something on social media that they would never consider saying around a family dinner table or in the pub with friends.”

One of John Nichol's Twitter responses

One user snidely suggested that Mr Nichol used a BBC radio programme celebrating the Second World War Spitfire pilot Mary Ellis to promote his book. Mr Nichol replied that the user, who has 14 followers, was firing off spiteful missives from “their mum’s spare bedroom”.

Instead of blocking the worst would-be bullies, he spends up to 15 minutes “crafting” responses before posting to his 23,400 followers.

John Nichol: 'I love the internet'

“I say: ‘Thanks for your tweet, it’s wonderful to see you’re supporting me’, and they go mad,” he said.

“My advice is even if you are affected, never give any indication. They have won if you give them what they want, showing them that you have been hurt by their silly, spiteful, childish, pointless tweet. Then you are letting the bullies win, and I would never do that.

“These are the people that 25 years ago would have had to pick up a pen and paper and write something in green ink, put it in an envelope, put a stamp on it and send it to you at a TV studio or to your publishers.”

He still describes Twitter as a “great place to talk to people and talk about different issues”.

Mr Nichol was treated for post-traumatic stress disorder after being released from Baghdad’s notorious Abu Ghraib jail after 47 days.

He still jumps when he hears fireworks exploding and car doors slamming.

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