Racing driver held captive

A former Formula One racing driver told a court yesterday of his ordeal at the hands of robbers who took him and his family captive…

A former Formula One racing driver told a court yesterday of his ordeal at the hands of robbers who took him and his family captive last year. John Watson, the winner of the 1981 British Grand Prix, was visiting his mother's Deramore Park home in the Malone Road area of Belfast last August when three raiders confronted him. At Belfast Crown Court, Mr Michael McGeown (39) of McAuley Street, Belfast, denied holding the Watson family captive, robbery, assault and burglary. Mr Watson said he was beaten about the head and body after he, his sister Heather and mother Victoria (80), were ordered to lie on the floor.