Fr Colin Patrick McLean RIP

Fr Colin Patrick McLean died peacefully at Candlewood House Care Home, London, on 9 April. He was 91 years of age. Fr Colin's Requiem Mass was at Our Lady of Hal, Camden Town on Wednesday 6 May 2026.

Soldier, Priest and Dancer

If Colin McLean's life was to be made into a stage production, or if a biography was to be written - or if his life was made into a dance production - there would be three Acts or Chapters, each with several scenes and a wide variety of characters, locations, uniforms and costumes. Colin was a soldier, a priest and a dancer who achieved much in all these, and more, aspects of his life, touching the lives of countless other people who will cherish their memories of him.

Born in New Delhi, India on 24 November 1934, where his father was serving with Army Headquarters, Colin had one sibling, Ian, who was born six years earlier to Kenneth and Daphne McLean. Ian went on to pursue a successful career as a barrister, judge and author of legal works. Primary education was in Edinburgh. The young Colin developed an interest in the Church due to holidays spent with a Canon and his family in the beautiful Trossachs area of Stirling. The McLean brothers attended Aldenham School in Hertfordshire before Ian went up to Christ's College, Cambridge to study law, and Colin went to the Chelsea School of Art in 1952. It was in 1952 that Colin saw ballet for the first time and was prompted to write to the Royal Ballet to ask if he could join but, aged 18, he was considered to be beyond ballet training. So, in 1953 he entered the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. It wasn't to be ballet shoes for Colin but army boots! In 1954 he was commissioned into the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, joining them in Edinburgh. In 1957 while in Stirling he declared his desire to become a Catholic. He received instruction and on New Year's Eve of that year he was received into the Church. As a soldier Colin was stationed in Berlin, Bury St Edmunds, British Guyana, Cyprus and, from 1960-62, back to Germany. The young Captain Colin McLean wanted more interesting postings. He was accepted for secondment to the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces. He joined the Northern Frontier regiment, the NFR, in Dhofar in 1963 after completing a three-month course at the Command Arabic Language school in Aden. The responsibilities of being a young Company second in command, and then Adjutant, sat well with him and, at the end of his secondment in 1965, he needed no persuading to resign from the British Army and remain in Oman on contract, staying with the NFR. Colin was awarded the Sultan's Commendation by His Majesty Sultan Said bin Taimur in 1968 and was promoted to second in command of the Regiment. In 1971 Colin was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, in command of the 1,000-man Oman Gendarmerie (OG), and became known affectionately as 'COG' - Commander of the Oman Gendarmerie - in northern Oman. Colin's esteemed military service led to being awarded the WKhM, the Distinguished Service Medal, in 1973. The following year Colin was given command of the Firqat Forces. He was subsequently appointed Military Secretary to the Armed Forces with responsibility for the selection, training, appointment and promotion of Omani personnel in all three military services. Lieutenant Colonel Colin McLean, a keen and exceptional Arabist, won the respect and trust of the Omani leadership and military personnel of all ranks. His military career concluded in 1977 and Colin returned to the UK.

Colin's desire to serve took him in another direction. He considered serving God and the Church as a member of the Cistercian Order, a Religious Order founded at Cîteaux in eastern France in 1098. He exchanged military fatigues for the white habit of the Order at Nunraw Abbey in Scotland. Vocational discernment then led him to the Oratory of St Philip Neri, a Society of Apostolic Life founded in Rome in 1575. He joined Brompton Oratory in London, with it's magnificent church dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and was ordained there by Cardinal Basil Hume OSB on 7 July 1981 having studied at the Westminster diocesan seminary, Allen Hall, in Chelsea. Seminary staff reports described Colin as intelligent and hardworking, 'an admirable student', the Rector commented. His priestly ministry after ordination was initially in the Oratory parish from 1981-83, but Vocational discernment continued, leading Fr Colin to request leave from the Oratory with a view to incardination as a priest of the Diocese of Westminster. He was appointed Assistant Priest at Our Lady of the Rosary, Marylebone from 1983-86. Fr Colin enjoyed the life and work of the parish, including ministry at St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, and his request for incardination, generously supported by the Provost of the Oratory, came to fruition at an informal ceremony, followed by lunch hosted by Cardinal Hume, at Archbishop's House, Westminster on 16 January 1985.

In 1986 Fr Colin was appointed Parish Priest at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Stephendale Road in the Sands End area of Fulham close to the River Thames, a small, close knit and diverse community where Fr Colin remained until his request for sabbatical leave was granted in 2004. As Parish Priest at Stephendale Road Fr Colin worked tirelessly for the parish and wider community, developing strong ecumenical partnerships and promoting collaborative ministry in which the gifts and talents of the parish community were recognized and coordinated with Fr Colin's leadership skills that were well developed having been a leader of men in the forces. He was the Father of the parish who came to be seen as a brother among his parishioners. His experience, gifts and talents helped to form a parish community with distinctive characteristics. He reordered the church, built in the 1920s with classical columns and Romanesque arches, so that the community gathered around an altar-table in the south aisle, with priest, ministers, musicians and congregation on the same level with the pews arranged as three sides of a rectangle. At the distribution of Holy Communion the last to receive were the Extraordinary Ministers and finally the priest. This practice was accepted by the local community but took visitors from elsewhere,

including supply priests covering for Fr Colin, by surprise! A supply priest, celebrating Mass on Christmas Day when Fr Colin was absent due to illness noticed that the vestments, laid out for the visiting priest in the sacristy, were not white or gold as might have been expected, but red - 'far more festive and seasonal according to Fr Colin' was the explanation given by the sacristan! Fr Colin's liturgical practices were not always in keeping with the Church's rubrics. He used the presbytery to accommodate members of the Movement for Faith and Justice Today. The parish became a home for activists and campaigners for social justice. Fr Colin has a special concern for the marginalized and people of all ages with additional needs. Everyone was not only welcomed but embraced by the warm and loving community. Conscious of the financial debt carried by the parish, Fr Colin did not take a stipend from the parish but drew on his personal means. In 2004, after 18 years in Stephendale Road, his wish for sabbatical leave was granted and from September of that year he went to live in Lamb's Passage off Bunhill Row where he very quickly felt at home, thanks to the welcome extended by the Parish Priest, Fr Bruno Healy who, like Fr Colin, had been a member of Brompton Oratory before transferring to the Diocese of Westminster. The following year Fr Colin retired from full time ministry and moved to an apartment in the presbytery at Camden Town where he lived contentedly for the next twenty years. While living in Camden Town Fr Colin provided greatly appreciated supply ministry and became well known to parishioners and others in the local community. In 2006 Fr Colin celebrated the Silver Jubilee of his ordination to the priesthood. However, due to a bad fall he was unable to go to Archbishop's House on 8 June for Mass and lunch with fellow jubilarians hosted by the Cardinal, saying in an email, 'Very much regret I am hors de combat for Thursday Mass and luncheon due to a fall I had yesterday sustaining a broken wrist and other injuries.'

In 1999, while Parish Priest at Stephendale Road, Fr Colin joined the Amici Dance Theatre Company, a pioneering London-based inclusive venture, integrating disabled and non-disabled performers, founded in 1980. Performing at the Lyric in Hammersmith, artistic conventions were challenged through audacious and innovative rehearsals and performances, modelling 'total theatre' that blends dance, drama and live music inspired by themes including war, human rights and social justice. Fr Colin's dancing style was spirited and sprightly. He brought both lightness and depth to the studio environment as well as an enduring curiosity about dance as a creative medium. He worked with some notable and respected choreographers. His kindness and sense of humour endeared him to everyone involved and his dedication and abilities took him to prestigious dance stages in the UK and across Europe, inspiring fellow performers and audiences alike. When he took sabbatical leave from Stephendale Road in 2004, he threw his energy into dance training, full of enthusiasm for leading and performing, including in the USA. He developed something of a reputation as the 'dancing priest' in his 70s and into his 80s. His last performance with Amici was in October 2025, a few weeks before his 91st birthday, when he gave a moving and memorable performance.

In November 2025 Fr Colin made known that he had been diagnosed with leukaemia and required periodic blood transfusions. He wanted to live independently, in his flat in Camden Town, for as long as possible. In March he moved to a care home where his needs were met and where he felt safe and secure. At Candlewood House Care Home he received visits and calls from a variety of friends made over the years. Just days before his death Fr Colin dictated his final voice message to his close friend Major General Naseeb bin Hamad bin Salim Al Rawahi who had been the first Omani Commander of the Sultan of Oman's Land Forces.

Incredibly both accomplished and modest in all respects, Fr Colin formed close and enduring friendship with his army comrades and their families, and did the same with his parishioners and wider community, and also with teachers and performers as a dancer. He embraced diversity and fostered inclusion and unity. He played his part in making the Army, the Church and the performing arts more humane and accessible, motivated by his Catholic faith and deep personal spirituality. He danced until restricted by illness until just a few months before Jesus, the Lord of the Dance, called him home to heaven. Fr Colin died peacefully on 9 April 2026, 91 years of age. 25 years a soldier, 44 years a priest, 27 years a dancer. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him, not least by his niece and other relatives.

May Fr Colin's creative soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Elaine, Ingrid and Trustees from the Amico Dance Company write:

Colin was a remarkable person, gentle, kind, always with a sparkle in his eye and a story to tell from his rich life. He was well known in the dance community in London, joining Amici in 1999 when his search for a new evening class brought him to a rehearsal at Sands End community centre in the parish where he was Catholic priest. The following year he performed with Amici in a Wayne McGregor piece at the Millennium Dome. After joining a contemporary dance class with Nicola Gibbons, he went on to study a diploma in Dance Studies at Trinity Laban and became a sought-after dancer for many contemporary choreographers and dance artists.

All the while continuing to work with Amici, which he thought of as his 'parent company,' he took part in many performances worldwide on stage, in galleries and on film.

He was introduced to Skinner Releasing Technique and worked extensively with Gaby Agis and dancers. He also had a long association with Marie-Gabrielle Rotie and Butoh practice, taking part in workshops and performances right into the last year of his life.

We have wonderful memories of Colin spanning his 27 years of dancing with Amici. The many productions and workshops he took part in and his unfailing belief in Wolfgang and the company. Colin made his last performance with Amici in October 2025 in Our Time, where he danced a moving duet with Young Amici dancer Filippo. This was remarkably just one month before his 91st birthday which he also celebrated with the company.

Colin will be greatly missed but remembered for his generous and inquisitive spirit; the beauty and grace in everything he did as a dancer, a priest and as a dear friend. We were privileged to dance with him. Rest well Colin and we will dance again.

Elaine, Ingrid and the Amici Trustees

Last dance

Amici have published this little video of Colin's last dance, filmed by Marie-Gabrielle Rotie
on his last day in hospital: https://vimeo.com/1190033584