I Swear

The true story that inspired the forthcoming film, I SWEAR- John Davidson MBE’s astonishingly moving memoir of growing up and learning to live with Tourette’s syndrome.

From the remarkable man whose life inspired the heartstopping film, ‘I Swear’, a book that offers extraordinary insight into what it’s like to live with a severe form of Tourette’s syndrome- a fascinating, complex condition that’s more common than most of us think ( 1 in 100 schoolchildren have the condition) , and yet is chronically misunderstood.

Born in the 1970s on the Scottish Borders, John’s was ten when his tics first arrived, as if from nowhere. Previously a happy, popular, football-mad boy he was labelled disruptive, rude, and even mad. As his condition progressed, from blinks and jerks to involuntary rude and obscene shouting, John was bullied, rejected – alienated from his family and a society that had no idea what to make of him.

Hospitalized and drugged for months, it was only an extraordinary and transformative friendship, and John’s dogged optimism, that turned his life around, making I Swear an inspirational story of triumph over adversity.

Through John’s eyes, we see Tourette’s not just as a medical condition, but as a lens through which we can all better understand the importance of human connection. And how essential, as well as ultimately rewarding, it can be to keep going and never give up.

Author Biography

John Davidson MBE was born in 1971 in Galashiels. After leaving school without qualifications, he began work as a caretaker at Langlee Community Centre in Galashiels, where since 2002 he has also been a part-time youth worker.
Aged sixteen, John was the subject of a BBC documentary, John’s Not Mad, about living with Tourette’s syndrome, and he has since been an ambassador for the condition, giving talks and workshops in schools and to the police, and running residential camps for young people with Tourette’s. Since 1989 he has featured in several follow-up documentaries; Kirk Jones’s 2025 film I Swear is based on John’s life.
In 2019 John joined the board of Tourette Scotland and was awarded an MBE in recognition of ‘his efforts to increase understanding of the condition and helping families deal with it across the country’. He has also gained international recognition for his online support for families all over the world.