Derek Niven

Derek Niven is the sports family history pseudonym of John McGee, the Glasgow-based author. His books consistently perform well in the Amazon, Books, Sports, Hobbies and Games, Football, Leagues, European Leagues Best Seller charts. In 2017 he published Pride of the Lions to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Celtic FC's historic victory in 1967. On 25 May 1967 Celtic became the first British side to win the European Cup in the Estadio Nacionale in Lisbon. 16 young Bhoys namely Simpson, Craig, Gemmell, Murdoch, McNeill, Clark, Johnstone, Wallace, Chalmers, Auld, Lennox, Fallon, Hughes, McBride, Gallagher and O'Neill were immortalised and have been written into the annals of Celtic folklore. Pride of the Lions is the untold story of the men and women who made the Lisbon Lions and it takes the legend of the 30 miles from Parkhead and takes the reader on a 3,000 mile journey through sporting and family history.

In 2018 Derek Niven published the sequel in the ‘Pride’ series: Pride of the Jocks which tells the untold story of the men and women who made the greatest Scottish football managers. Find out about the family histories of Matt Busby, Bill Shankly, Jock Stein, Alex Ferguson, Kenny Dalglish, Willie Waddell, Willie Ormond, Tommy Docherty, Eddie Turnbull, Ally MacLeod, Jock Wallace, Jim McLean, Craig Brown, Graeme Souness, Walter Smith and Gordon Strachan. Fascinating stories of ordinary men and women from working class backgrounds who created some of the top managers in British and world football.

Derek Niven is pleased to announce the publication on 22 May 2020 of the third book in the 'Pride series'. Pride of the Bears: the untold story of the men and women who made the Barca Bears. The reader will journey through the family histories of the 16 young Rangers players who won the European Cup Winners' Cup in the Nou Camp Stadium in Barcelona on 24 May 1972; McCloy, Jardine, Mathieson, Greig, Johnstone, Smith, McLean, Conn, Stein, MacDonald, Johnston, Neef, Denny, Fyfe, Penman and Parlane. Once again the reader can travel back in time through the amazing family histories of the Barca Bears.

Derek Niven has now published in September 2021 the fourth book in the 'Pride series': Pride of the Hearts: the untold story of the men and women who made the WW1 heroes of Heart of Midlothian. It takes the reader on the mythical story behind the 16 Hearts players who signed up for WW1 in McCrae's Battalion and the family histories that made them.

Pride of the Three Lions: the untold story of the men and women who made the heroes of Wembley 1966. Published in July 2023 the fifth book in the 'Pride series' relates the fascinating family histories of the men who lifted the World Cup in 1966, including Banks, Moore, the Charlton brothers, Ball, Hurst and Peters.

He is also considering an option on two more books in the series: Pride of the Dons: the untold story of the men and women who made Fergie's Dons. This would be the family histories of the 1983 Aberdeen team who beat Real Madrid 2-1 in Gothenburg to win the ECWC. Provisionally due out in 2023. Pride of the Red Devils: the untold story of the men and women who made the Man U team of '68. Provisionally due out May 2028.

John McGee also writes under the Sci-Fi pseudonym of Derek Beaugarde and has published 2084 The End of Days. If you like your Sci-Fi to be apocalyptic then you will love this futuristic thriller in the days leading up to Armageddon in the year 2084. He has published a novella sequel to 2084 entitled 2112 Revelation and the prequel novella 2048 BCE The Eye of Horus, both available on Amazon Kindle.