The Bollock Brothers’ Jock McDonald dies in “freak swimming accident”

Jock McDonald of The Bollock Brothers has died aged 69.

The news of his passing was shared by his bandmate, drummer Pat Pattyn, who took to Facebook to share that the musician had died as a result of “a freak swimming accident”.

The update read: “It is with great sadness in my heart, I have to bring you this terrible news…sadly, our singer Jock McDonald has died, apparently a freak swimming accident.

“His children asked me to tell you all via this way. His family and all the Bollock Brothers are in shock. We are going to try and give this a place, but that won’t be easy. Rest in peace, my friend. I will miss you.”

The founding member of the punk group was reportedly found in the water by RNLI volunteer lifeguards, near the diving boards at Bundoran beach in Ireland (according to a report from Donegal Live). The outlet shares that he was taken to Sligo University Hospital, but was later pronounced dead.

McDonald co-founded the band The Bollock Brothers in 1979, and they were most widely recognised for their English-language version of the Serge Gainsbourg track ‘Harley David (Son of a Bitch)’ – which was originally performed in French.

After spending his early life between Ireland and Scotland, McDonald later moved to London and worked as a promoter, DJ, and manager. He released nine albums throughout his time in the music industry, and various outlets have shared that he had been working on a new album in the months before his death.

Charly Records are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Jock McDonald, founding member of The Bollock Brothers.

Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time.

Rest in peace, Jock.#JockMcDonald #TheBollockBrothers pic.twitter.com/O1vFWxp2Il

— Charly Records (@CharlyRecs) July 28, 2025

RIP Jock Mcdonald #bollockbrothers pic.twitter.com/34vbOVfouq

— hicetnunc (@hicetnunc_9) July 27, 2025

Jock McDonald RIP – A true punk legend and good mate of The False Dots
One of the legends of the London punk scene has passed away. We pay tribute to him!https://t.co/yBpmBlkg3G

— Roger Tichborne/Rog T (@Barneteye) July 28, 2025

Farewell, Jock McDonald! https://t.co/dmREejDRDB

— CRASSOWSKIs (@CRASSOWSKI) July 27, 2025

RIP Jock Mcdonald, zanger The Bollock Brothers pic.twitter.com/CTSYcsEHeR

— Koen Godderis (@koengodderis) July 27, 2025

So sad to hear about the sudden passing of #JockMcDonald I had the pleasure of interviewing Jock on @sohoradio doing the @GCPunkNewWave show. You can hear Jock from 1hr 8mins here https://t.co/A0zDEWLZlw Pic is of Richard Collins from The Bollock Brothers myself and Jock R.I.P. pic.twitter.com/tsykkCNEHW

— Dylan White (@DylanWhite16) July 28, 2025

As well as their cover of ‘Harley David (Son of a Bitch)’, The Bollock Brothers also made a name for themselves with original tracks including ‘The Bunker’, ‘Horror Movies’ and ‘The Legend of the Snake’.

They also teamed up with Killing Joke’s Martin Glover for a track called ‘The Slow Removal of the Left Ear of Vincent van Gogh’, and performed various rock classics from the likes of Steppenwolf and Led Zeppelin during their time together.

Among those who have paid tribute to the musician is Charly Records, which said it was “deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Jock McDonald, founding member of The Bollock Brothers” and added that its “thoughts are with his family and friends at this difficult time.” Find more messages from fans above.

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