A NEILSTON man praised by Nicola Sturgeon in her Pride speech has told how he was “shedding tears” when she said his name.

It has been a remarkable week for Blair Wilson, who became a social media star after posting a grinning picture of himself in the aftermath of a violent homophobic attack.

In the incident, first reported in last week’s Barrhead News, the former St Luke’s High pupil was on his way home from his mum’s house, walking in the town’s Main Street, when another man called him a “faggot”.

Blair said he confronted the man over his language and was then physically attacked, leaving him with a cut across his nose and blood on his face and shirt.

He took a selfie and posted it to Facebook with a defiant message, expecting to be seen by a few friends and family around Neilston, never imagining what would happen next.

After speaking to the Barrhead News, Blair’s story was shared widely across social media, reaching tens of thousands of people. It was picked up by numerous websites and translated into a variety of languages, including French, Spanish and Italian.

He was inundated with messages of support from all over the world, suddenly finding himself championed as an inspiration to others.

Blair was also contacted by BBC Scotland’s online documentary team The Social and filmed an interview which was posted on Friday and has already been viewed more than a million times.

But none of this could quite have prepared him for hearing Nicola Sturgeon recount his story in her speech at Glasgow Pride.

The First Minister, who led thousands of people at the event on Saturday, praised the 21-year-old for his courage.

She said: “The principles and the values demonstrated by that young man of dignity, of courage and of compassion are the values that should define our country. So Blair, we all stand with you.”

Yesterday, Blair told the Barrhead News it had been “the most surreal weekend ever”.

He said: “I’m so grateful for the response, I can’t believe it. Every time I walk down the street in Neilston now at least one person will come up and talk to me, tell me they’re proud of me.

“I was in my house during Pride when I got a message from a friend saying Nicola Sturgeon was speaking about me. At first I didn’t know if it was just a quick mention but, when I heard what she said, it really hit close to home. I was shedding tears.

“I think the response says a lot about where our culture’s going. We’re much more accepting now.

“I’m just so grateful to the Barrhead News for reporting it in the first place because that’s when the BBC and everyone took notice.

“Such great things have come from it. I’m overwhelmed, overjoyed, all the ecstatic feelings.”