Jill Morrell

Who is Jill Morrell?

Jill Morrell was the girlfriend of John McCarthy, and was a tireless and effective campaigner for his release from kidnappers who held him in Lebanon for more than 5 years. Raised in Yorkshire, she is a graduate of Hull University.

Morrell kept McCarthy's name in the public domain with a campaign to free him, called "Friends of John McCarthy".

After McCarthy's release on 8 August 1991, the public hoped for a fairytale ending for their relationship. They did stay together until 1994, but they then parted amicably and McCarthy met BBC photographer, Anna Ottewill, and eventually married her in April 1999.

Morrell has worked for charity Cancerbackup, now Macmillan Cancer Support as their Policy and Public Affairs Manager, putting into practice the skills she acquired during the FOJM campaign. Latterly she has held the role of Head of Public Affairs with the British Lung Foundation.