Beezy, from Ealing, explained that it was in prison that Eva met Diana Mosley, wife of Oswald leader of fascist Blackshirts who were a fearsome presence in London in the 1920s and 30s. Various members were eventually caught, though and served their time in Holloway prison, where rations were meagre and they slept on boards. They set up a fruit machine enterprise, which they would sell to pub landlords, to cover up their crimes. Please report any comments that break our rules. After trying his hand at crime as a child, Fraser then continued into his later life. Richardson Gang - Wikipedia "My father was the most honest man I've ever come across," says Fraser, who also refers to his Native American antecedents, saying that his grandmother was "a Red Indian", According to his sons, Fraser has no regrets: "He said, 'No, I wouldn't have done my life any other way. Following a trial at the Old Bailey in 1967, he was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment. He also ran a coach tour pointing out to a spectrum of customers the old criminal London. She got six months in jail, for stealing stockings from Bentalls in Kingston upon Thames. He was moved from prison to prison more than 100 times because he was virtually impossible to control. He was also tried in court in the so-called 'Torture trial', in which members of the Richardson Gang were charged with burning, electrocuting and whipping those found guilty of disloyalty by a kangaroo court. In 1996 he was cast as the gangleader Pops Den in the film Hard Men, which premiered at the London film festival. He was also tried in court in the so-called 'Torture trial', in which members of the Richardson Gang were charged with burning, electrocuting, and whipping those found guilty of disloyalty. The reader is also introduced to the girls brother Jim, who became a sergeant in the army and fought in North Africa. Mother of [private daughter (1940s - unknown)] Died 2000s. In 1966, Fraser was charged with the murder of Richard Hart - who was shot at Mr Smith's club inCatfordwhile other Richardson associates, includingJimmy Moody, were charged withaffray. Tallymen, who sold goods door-to-door, would shift them across London. Aged seven, Ms Pitts was stealing milk and bread to provide food for her five siblings. Her brother was the notorious gangster 'Mad' Frankie Fraser, who joined turf wars between London gangs in the sixties. The most famous 'queen', Alice Diamond (left), was the daughter of a docker and renowned for her row of diamond rings that doubled as a knuckle duster. It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times. With the help of Hill and mafia interests, Fraser and Eddie Richardson established Atlantic Machines, a successful business placing one-armed bandits in clubs throughout Britain. The first came when he was in the army during the second world war, the second time when he was sent to Cane Hill psychiatric hospital in Coulsdon, Surrey, and the third when he was transferred from Durham prison to Broadmoor. The gang's ringleaders appeared in a secret register of criminals, that is now kept by the National Archives, which then existed to help police track down the most persistent offenders. During his time behind bars he was involved in violence and was a major instigator in the Parkhurst Prison riots in 1969. She was taught by Alice Diamond in the 1930s and a very senior member throughout the. Born near Waterloo station, central London, he was the fifth child of a poor family. Petite shoplifter Bertha Tappenden stood just over 5ft 2in tall, but was convicted of inflicting grievous bodily harm on a man in Lambeth, after kicking down his front door and attacking him with razors and knives, to settle a score, aided by Diamond and another gang girl, Gertrude Scully. As people facedblackouts, rationing and a lack of professional policing due toconscription, Fraser had ample opportunities for criminal activities, such as stealing from houses while the occupants were hiding for safety in air-raid shelters. Photo taken in the late 1940s on a pub Beano (day out) in Walworth, before the group travelled to Margate On the back row: the girls mum, Margaret, next to daughter Kathleen. [26] On 21 November 2014, he fell critically ill during leg surgery at King's College Hospital, Denmark Hill[27] and was placed into an induced coma. Eva knew the Krays well and they treated her with reverence, although she saw them as little more than naughty boys. In 1969 Fraser led the Parkhurst prison riot on the Isle of Wight and found himself back in court charged with incitement to murder. Monty Python sketch featuring the Piranha brothers, Doug and Dinsdale. If you weren't actually stealing, you were outranked by The Forty Thieves. Frankie Frasers wife Doreen, with whom he had four sons, died in 1999. At the age of five, Fraser, running in the road to beg for cigarette cards, was knocked down, and from his injuries he developed meningitis. He chose the latter because they had taken sides on behalf of his sisters husband, Tommy Brindle, who had received a heavy beating by the Rosa brothers from the Elephant and Castle. The years just after World War II were a boom time for the gang, as clothing was rationed until 1949. 'It gave them a life they could never have afforded. He claimed to have no regrets about his criminal life, apart from being caught. Mothers would hide hoisted clothes in their prams and move them to pubs, where they were sold on. "Maybe he was bored with going to prison," Ronnie Richardson, Charlie's widow, tells the programme. Fraser himself was accused of pulling out the teeth of victims with a pair of pliers. Bought stolen goods and sold them on in a role known as 'the fence'. He spent more than 40 years in prison. Fraser also appeared as East End crime boss Pops Den in the feature film Hard Men, a forerunner of British gangster movies such as Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, and had a documentary made of his life, Mad Frank. After the war, he worked for underworld boss Billy Hill, for whom he carried out razor attacks. A bucket boy would offer to clean the bookies' blackboards with a sponge, for which they were obliged to pay the Sabinis. Their view on Hatton Garden was that the world had moved on and robbing banks now was akin to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid trying to get away on horseback, while the police gave chase in cars. They stole to put food on the table. Her wartime experience was spent on the switchboards during the Blitz. Diamond's second-in-command Maggie Hughes (right) was known as 'Babyface' for her sweet looks and made a habit of cheekily shouting back at the judge when she was sentenced to jail: 'It won't cure me! He was so attired when, in 1951, he attacked the governor of Wandsworth prison, William Lawton, as he walked his pet terrier on Wandsworth Common. Both Frank and his sister, Eva, whom he adored, inherited their fathers features and his jet-black hair. The following year he was involved in a torture trial the Old Bailey, where members of the gang were charged with electrocuting, whipping and burning those disloyal to them. Two people were left dead. Members of The Forty Thieves, whose mugshots were captured by the Police Gazette ahead of regular stays at Holloway Prison, often wore beautifully designed hats, coats and dresses in order to fit in - known as 'putting on the posh'. Harts killing was avenged within 24 hours when Ronnie Kray shot George Cornell, the Richardsons chief lieutenant, at the Blind Beggar pub deep in Kray territory on the Mile End Road, using a 9mm Mauser semi-automatic pistol at point-blank range. He was working all the hours he got sent, but he couldnt make ends meet. News reports were checked to see how much was owing. Frank Davidson Fraser[1] (13 December 1923 26 November 2014),[2] better known as "Mad" Frankie Fraser, was an English gangster who spent 42 years in prison for numerous violent offences. I saved myself from Royal life, Harry says & insists 'sharing's an act of service', Love Island's Olivia Hawkins breaks silence as she returns to the UK, Loose Women star lined up to be Strictly's first contestant in wheelchair, Coronation Street fans horrified as Amy Barlow is raped in disturbing scenes, News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. After one snatch, he and his companion were arrested when their car would not start. For other inquiries, Contact Us. Frankie Fraser, who has died aged 90, was a notorious torturer and hitman for the Richardson gang of south London criminals in the 1960s; he spent 42 years behind bars before achieving a. A witness changed his testimony and the charges were eventually dropped, though Fraser still received a five-year sentence for affray. He shot, slashed, stabbed and axed. To evade discovery they posted the stolen items back to London or depositing a suitcase of loot at the railway station's left luggage office, to be collected later. Editors' Code of Practice. 'In fact, she was one of the people who spotted his talent for stealing after he pinched a cigarette machine from a hotel as a small boy. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. But by the 1930s, the breeding ground for its recruits was South London. Frankie Fraser was tried at the Old Bailey for Harts murder, while six others, including Eddie Richardson, faced lesser charges. Mad Frank. After being sent to HM Prison Durham for taking part in bank robberies, he was again certified insane and this time was sent to Broadmoor Hospital. One such member was Lilian Goldstein, who was known as the Bob-Haired Bandit. View our online Press Pack. Fraser owed his success in the fruit machine business to Billy Hill, whose patronage Fraser courted when he attacked and almost killed Hills gangland rival Jack "Spot" Comer. It was during the war that he first became involved in serious crime, with the blackout and rationing, combined with the lack of professional policemen due to conscription, providing ample opportunities for criminal activities such as stealing from houses while the occupants were in air-raid shelters. Aged 17 she was convicted for stealing from a hat shop in Oxford Street. Such were the criminal opportunities during the war, Fraser joked in a television interview years later, that he had never forgiven the Germans for surrendering. Another grandson, Anthony Fraser, was being sought by police in February 2011 for his alleged involvement in an alleged 5 million cannabis smuggling ring. Who was 'Mad' Frankie Fraser? | The Irish Sun Despite this, or possibly because of it, newspapers of the day were tipping him as Spots natural successor. After the war, Fraser was involved in a smash-and-grab raid on a jeweller, for which he received a two-year prison sentence, mostly served atHMP Pentonville. Their alleged specialities included pulling teeth out using pliers, cutting off toes using bolt cutters and nailing victims to floors using 6-inch nails. They enjoyed buying nice things with the money and putting on the posh. He has been part of the most infamous criminal gangs of the past 100 years, while maintaining his South London roots and deep devotion to his family. There was no evidence that Fraser had fired the fatal shots, and although he claimed to have been fitted up for the killing, he was convicted of affray and sentenced to five years imprisonment. 'In fact, she was one of the people who spotted his talent for stealing after he pinched a cigarette machine from a hotel as a small boy. While serving this sentence, Fraser received 10 years for his part in the so-called Richardson torture trial. '", Frankie Fraser's Last Stand will be broadcast on the Crime and Investigation network on 16 June at 9pm, New TV documentary shows ex-gangland enforcer is far from mellowing with age and has few regrets about his life of crime, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Frankie Fraser has no regrets over his life of crime, which involved him being jailed for a total of 42 years for 26 offences. He then worked for legendary Soho crime boss Billy Hill in the 1950s, earning the nickname razor Fraser for his attacks on those who crossed him, before becoming embroiled in protection rackets in the 1960s, rising to the position of the Boss of Soho. Last seen in public in October at the funeral of his former boss, Charlie Richardson, Fraser is one of the few remaining members of a generation of "celebrity criminals". End-right girl on the back row is Eva.. VIEWS Every old-school south Londoner knows the folklore of cockney criminal Frankie Fraser, whose violent tendencies were infamous on the streets of Walworth. Eva got six months for stealing stockings from Bentalls in Kingston upon Thames. As a reward, he was shown his examination answers, and thats how I come top, he later boasted. Young Frankie attended local schools, captained the football team, and acted as bookies runner to one of the teachers. Before then, Fraser had been involved in smash-and-grab raids and wages snatches. A keen Arsenal supporter, Fraser had four sons, the first three of whom, Frank Jr, David and Patrick, followed to an extent in his footsteps. At the age of five, he moved with his family to a flat on Walworth Road, Elephant and Castle. MAD FRANK and SONS - Home - Facebook 'You name it, we nicked it,' he tells the . 'Any girl worth her salt in South London in those days was a hoister because they could outearn us men two to one,' he said. 'The other side of the story involves these feisty women and it is perhaps more fascinating given the limited powers such working class girls had to earn a decent wage.'. In the second part, she reveals how Frank wasnt the only member of his family with a chequered past. Diamond's second-in-command Maggie Hughes was known as 'Babyface' for her sweet looks and made a habit of cheekily shouting back at the judge when she was sentenced to jail: 'It won't cure me! As a solicitor, I defended him in the trial following the Parkhurst riot and as a result wrote a number of books with him. Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. From the time of Frankie Fraser's sister Eva and the gang of hoisters The Forty Thieves, comes a book which will have you gripped this summer. By the time of the Swinging Sixties, she was drinking champagne with the Krays. New biography of notorious Frankie Fraser promises to reveal the late She once stabbed a policeman in the eye with a hatpin, blinding him. Notorious 1930s West End girl gang who hid stolen jewellery in It was just what we knew and to be honest, we loved it.. [13], It was in the early 1960s that Fraser first met Charlie and Eddie Richardson of the Richardson Gang, rivals to the Kray twins. Data returned from the Piano 'meterActive/meterExpired' callback event. "From there he goes on to burgle, and she goes onto shop lifting with a famous female gang called The 40 Thieves. Fraser, whose health has been deteriorating in recent years, turned to crime aged just nine when he and his sister, Eva, became petty thieves. Tony Lambrianou, a one-time henchman of the rival Kray brothers, was also a fan. Fraser became a minor celebrity of sorts, appearing on television shows such as Operation Good Guys,[18] Shooting Stars,[19] and the satirical show Brass Eye,[20] where he said Noel Edmonds should be shot for killing Clive Anderson (an incident invented by the show's producers), and writing an autobiography. Fraser treated his various brushes with death as an occupational hazard: his thigh bone was shattered by a bullet fired during the melee in Catford, and part of his mouth was shot away in an incident in May 1991 when someone botched an attempt to assassinate him outside a nightclub in Farringdon. There was Eva, the naughty girl of the three, who became a key figure in the all-girl gang, the Forty Thieves, who targeted the West Ends big department stores. He received a further five years when, in 1970, he was acquitted of incitement to murder but convicted of grievous bodily harm after he had led the Parkhurst prison riot the previous year. It wasnt that we chose to be thieves, said Patrick. It was a thief's paradise, Gor blimey! ', As the photographs show, the women often wore beautifully designed hats , coats and dresses in order to fit in, known as 'putting on the posh'. Theres one account of one of Peggys colleagues pretending to still be single so she could carry on working as a Post Office manager. Whereas for Eva it was about her earning her own money on her own terms. But when her brother Frankie was in prison, she helped to run his protection rackets in Soho and even sent her daughters to collect payments, as the police would not stop a child. Queen of Thieves, by author and journalist Beezy Marsh (published by Orion, November 4 2021, 8.99). On his release, Fraser joined Richardsons brother Eddie in a company called Atlantic Machines, installing fruit machines at some of Sohos most profitable sites, with Sir Noel Dryden recruited as the respectable frontman. But who were the gang's most brazen members? 'Mad Frankie' Fraser - a legend in his own gaol time On the morning of Derek Bentleys execution at Wandsworth in 1953, he spat at the executioner Albert Pierrepoint and tried to attack him. Although he was never convicted of murder, police reportedly held him responsible for 40 killings, but the bluster and bravado of a media-savvy gangland relic almost certainly inflated this tally, the actual scale of which remains unfathomable. Shegot her first criminal record aged just 14 and, in 1923, she was jailed after running out of a jeweller's with a tray of 34 diamond rings straight into the arms of a policeman. He refused to discuss the shooting with the police. There was also kind of respect for them locally because people could get a nice dress or a pair of stockings cheaply. A machine costing 400 could quickly recoup its cost if well-sited, and Frasers company offered club owners 40 per cent of the take rather than the standard 35 per cent as an inducement to install their machines. 'Mad Frank' the thug, hitman and enforcer You understand the choices that lay ahead of you if you were a working-class girl. Aged seven, Ms Pitts was stealing milk and bread to provide food for her five siblings. After another, the car ran out of petrol in the Rotherhithe tunnel. Furs were rolled on the hanger and tucked into the women's undergarments when the store assistant was distracted, while jewellery and watches were swapped for fake versions and hidden under hats or in their hair. In 1938, she was sentenced for stabbing a policeman in the eye with a hatpin. But few would perhaps know about the equally incredible lives led by his three sisters. Both Fraser and his sister, Eva, were also active juvenile thieves. The Krays held Eva Fraser in high regard because of her role in the gang and during the 1940s and 1950s, and the Soho gang boss Billy Hill - brother of the fiery Maggie Hughes - was careful not to encroach too much on their territory because he respected their right to earn their own money, free from male interference. He was full of contradictions: He hated authority but at the same time he understood the need for society to have rules and was against anarchy. He spent 42 years almost half his life in prison for 26 offences. 'Mad' Frankie Fraser handed Asbo at the age of 89 | Metro News Involvement in such activities often led to his sentences being extended. During the 1940s it was not unusual for 'hoisters', a historical term for shoplifters, to be paid a hundred pounds a week - out earning men's average wages ten-to-one. When Mason demurred, Fraser buried a hatchet in his skull, pinning his hand to his head. Mad Frankie Fraser - Everything2.com They didnt go to jail, they did bird or got a lagging. Eva (Fraser) Brindle (1920s-2000s) | WikiTree FREE Family Tree Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription you will not receive any newsletters until your subscription is confirmed. He later joined the notorious Richardson gang, formed by brothers Eddie and Charlie, and began carrying out more criminal activities. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? The following year, the British mobsterJack Spotand wife Rita were attacked on Billy Hill's say-so, by Fraser, Bobby Warren and at least half a dozen other men. Nothing ever got to Frankie, wrote Charlie Richardson. Francis Davidson "Frankie" Fraser, better known as "Mad" Frankie Fraser,was an English gang member and criminal who spent 42 years in prison for numerous violent offences. What saved him I think was the branch; it was supple and it bent. Although Lawton survived, the dog died. The violent thugs, the Kray twins, held Eva Fraser in high regard because of her role in the gang and during the 1940s and 1950s and the Soho gang boss Billy Hill - brother of the fiery Ms Hughes - was careful not to encroach too much on their territory because he respected their right to earn their own money, free from male interference. Charles Richardson was a criminal businessman who reputedly specialised in various tortures administered at secret courts at which he presided, sometimes robed like a judge, a knife or a gun to hand. Fraser was released in 1988 and almost immediately served a two-year sentence for receiving. Here are some pictures of Eva Fraser - MAD FRANK and SONS | Facebook Photograph: Crime and Investigation network. It spent six weeks in the Sunday Times top ten and held the coveted #1 Globe and Mail chart slot in Canada for three months. The Krays, according to Frank, were little more than thieves ponces.. Eva got into shoplifting, but had a heart of gold. Ancestors . He then became involved in serious crime - and the war provided a perfect backdrop with the blackout, rationing and a shortage of police officers. When caught by police she replied: 'I don't know anything about it.'. Daughter. The comments below have not been moderated. Fraser himself was accused of pulling out the teeth of victims with a pair of pliers. Frankie Fraser was a notorious torturer and hitman, who worked as an enforcer for some of London's most feared gang leaders, including Billy Hill in the 1950s and the Richardson gang in the 1960s. The family was hard-working and kept themselves clean [out of crime].. Beezy said: "Frank's sister Eva was the one who led him into crime as a small boy. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. She was sentenced to five months. Author Beezy Marsh said: 'These women fought harder than the men and were feared by men and women in their communities. At the same time Fraser was concerned to protect his West End business interests, chiefly the installation and operation (on an exclusive basis) in the clubs of Soho of one-armed bandits, or fruit machines, then growing in popularity. Borstal was followed by prison, where in 1943 he met the influential London villain Billy Hill, for whom he worked on and off for more than a decade, culminating in his slashing of Hills rival Jack Spot in 1956 after the self-styled kings of the underworld had fallen out. His funeral took place on December 18, 2014. The publisher also decided to include a glossary for the reader. [24], Fraser's wife, by whom he had four sons, died in 1999. [16], Fraser's 42 years served in over 20 different prisons in the UK were often coloured by violence. Fraser was acquitted but received five years for affray. Both Fraser and Warren received seven-year sentences. The big question everyone has about Frank is Was he really mad? He was certified insane three times once by the Army, twice in prison and he was diagnosed as a psychopath but his family argue, and I tend to agree, that he played the system to suit himself. She helped him sell on his loot. Eva was a chip off the old block and as well as being Franks first partner in crime, stealing sweets from the corner shop, she had a lucrative career in a daring gang of girl shoplifters, The Forty Thieves, which traced its roots back to Victorian London and cleared many a West End store for furs and luxury goods. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused. Former Northern Echo journalist Beezy Marsh has written a book about London gangster Mad Frankie Fraser. In 1996, he played (his friend) William Donaldson's guide to Marbella in the infamous BBC Radio 4 series A Retiring Fellow. Even the gangster 'Mad' Frankie Fraser, whose sister Eva was a leading light in the gang in the thirties and forties, spoke with great reverence about Alice Diamond. After trying his hand at crime as a. [14] According to Fraser, it was they who helped him avoid arrest for the Great Train Robbery by bribing a policeman. Alice herself was famous for clouting three furs in one go: one down each leg and one under her gusset. Prisoners and ex-prisoners all over Britain speak about him with undisguised admiration. [21] In 1999, he appeared at the Jermyn Street Theatre in London in a one-man show, An Evening with Mad Frankie Fraser (directed by Patrick Newley), which subsequently toured the UK. MAD FRANK and SONS - Home - Facebook Nevertheless his campaigns and, on the outside, those of Eva, did bring the attention of the general public to the unpalatable conditions in which prisoners served then their sentences. The police were cozzers and a burglary was a screwer, hitting someone was a clump, while jewellery was tom as in Tom Foolery, in rhyming slang. Updated November 28, 2014 2.43pmfirst published at 2.41pm Save Share Frasers partner in this endeavour was Bobby Warren, an uncle of the boxing promoter Frank Warren. The Guardian, October 12 1980 Frank Fraser is a thorn in the Prison Department's side - a thorn so big that he is possibly the only British criminal who has become a legend simply by serving time. Frank stole because he loved to have money yet when he had it, he gave it all away. Fraser received seven years. Fraser was the youngest of five children who were growing up in poverty - he first turned to crime at the tender age of 10, alongside his sister Eva. He saw himself as an innovator, claiming to have invented the Friday gang, robbing wages clerks carrying money from banks; he would use a starting handle to beat his victims and to deter any watching have-a-go heroes in the street. Frankie Fraser's Last Stand (2013) - IMDb He was still serving his sentence for the Catford affray when he was handed a further 10 years for his part in the Richardson torture case. Comments have been closed on this article. Jack 'Spot' Comer showing the scar on his face left by Frankie Fraser and Alf Warren (GETTY), By 1956, Fraser had racked up 15 convictions and had twice been certified insane. Somehow Eva found herself in the opposite company of her eldest sister Peggy, whose boyfriend was heavily involved in the Communist Party, whom the Blackshirts fought in the famous Battle of Bermondsey, and the even more famous Battle of Cable Street. Because of the type of person I am, he wrote, in the life I led, you learn to shrug off adversity better than people whove worked hard all their lives.. They worked department stores including Selfridges in teams of three or four during hoisting trips up to three times a week. It has emerged that the former gangland enforcer, who has spent 42 years in prison for 26.
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