JOHN COOPER was raised in Stranraer, at the western end of Dumfries & Galloway, and was educated at the town’s Rephad Primary and Academy.
Straight from school, he began work at 17 on the local paper, the Stranraer & Wigtownshire Free Press.
This was the start of a highly successful career in journalism which saw him move through a series of local papers before setting up a news agency in Edinburgh, supplying stories to national titles.
He worked for the Edinburgh Evening News before joining the Sunday Mail in Glasgow. From there he joined the Scottish Daily Mail, and transferred to Dublin where he helped launch the Irish Daily Mail and Irish Mail on Sunday.
On his return to the Scottish Daily Mail, he penned the highly popular Weekender column which often featured his experiences – and those of friends and family – in Dumfries & Galloway.
He returned to his home town of Stranraer as Editor of the Free Press, taking the paper from its former format and layout to that of a modern, full-colour, tabloid.
Then, as a Special Adviser with the Scotland Office of the UK Government, John worked closely with Secretary of State Sir Alister Jack. When Sir Alister decided not to stand again as MP for Dumfries and Galloway, John was selected by the Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party to contest the seat in the General Election of July 2024, beating the SNP into second place, and Labour into third.
John married Patricia, who was born in Dumfries and raised in Minnigaff, and they have three children together. Patricia also began her journalism career with the Free Press, and she is now an executive with a national Sunday newspaper.
An avid music fan, John plays drums and has been in a series of bands since his teenage years. A motorsport afficionado, he is also a keen clay pigeon and occasional game shot. An advocate of lifelong learning, John gained an MA in Military History via a distance learning course from the University of Birmingham.