Category: London Crime

The Hunt Syndicate: Behind the Legend of David Hunt, London’s Infamous Crime Boss

David Hunt’s name doesn’t just echo in the alleyways of East London; it reverberates through the streets like a whispered legend. Known to some as “The Long Fella” because of his towering 6’5″ frame, Hunt is a criminal figure whose life story seems ripped from a gritty urban thriller. But beyond the nickname and the…
Crack Smoking on the Tube: Commuters Report Rise in Drug Use Underground

It’s not just delays and signal failures that Londoners are dealing with on their daily Tube journeys. Increasingly, commuters are reporting a disturbing trend: people openly smoking crack cocaine on the Underground. It might sound like an urban myth, but social media is full of firsthand accounts. On Reddit, one user described an incident on…
Bent Coppers and Bohemian Vice: The Corrupt Cops of 1970s Soho

In the 1970s, Soho was a neon-lit jungle of vice, glamour, and criminal enterprise. It was the heartbeat of London’s underworld, where strip clubs, gambling dens, and illicit drinking haunts thrived in the shadow of Piccadilly Circus. At the centre of it all were the bent coppers—uniformed officers who treated the law not as an…
The Forty Elephants: The All-Female Gang That Terrorised London

For over a century, a group of women in London pulled off some of the most daring heists, ran blackmail rackets, and caused absolute mayhem, all while looking impeccably stylish. They were known as the Forty Elephants—an all-female crime syndicate that struck fear into shopkeepers and police alike. The Rise of the Forty Elephants The…
The Sidney Street Siege: Anarchy, Gunfire, and a Future Prime Minister

At around 7:30 am on 3 January 1911, a quiet street in London’s East End exploded into a scene of chaos. A house on Sidney Street, Stepney, was surrounded by police officers, armed with revolvers. Inside, heavily armed revolutionaries—Latvian anarchists, to be precise—were holed up, determined to shoot their way out. By the time the…
Jack the Hat: The Man, the Myth, the Murder

In the sprawling rogues’ gallery of East End gangland, there are few nicknames as instantly evocative as Jack the Hat. Even if you know nothing else about him, the moniker alone conjures up a half-cut silhouette lurking in the corner of some smoky pub — part wide boy, part walking cautionary tale. But Jack “the Hat”…
The Messina Brothers: Soho’s Kings of Vice

If you were looking for the dark heart of 1950s Soho, you didn’t need to go far—just follow the money, the girls, or the frightened men stuffing cash into brown envelopes. At the centre of it all were the Messina Brothers, five Maltese siblings who ran one of London’s most infamous vice empires. Their business? Prostitution, extortion,…
The Tottenham Outrage: London’s Wildest Police Chase

It was the morning of January 23, 1909, and Tottenham was bracing for another ordinary winter’s day. The workers at Hodgkinson’s rubber factory on Chesnut Road were busy with their routines, unaware they were about to become unwitting participants in one of the most infamous and chaotic events in London’s history: the Tottenham Outrage. What…
Billy Hill: The Gentleman Gangster Who Ran London’s Underworld

In the smoky, post-war underbelly of London, where the fog clung to cobblestones like whispered secrets, one man reigned supreme: Billy Hill. Dubbed the “Boss of Britain’s Underworld,” Hill wasn’t your typical gangster. He was sharp, charming, and impeccably dressed, with a penchant for Savile Row suits and a mind wired for meticulous crime. Picture…
London’s Burkers: The East End Bodysnatchers

In the shadowy alleys and gas-lit streets of 19th-century London’s East End, a grisly trade thrived—a macabre economy fueled by the burgeoning demands of medical science. The London Burkers, as they came to be known, were not content to let death come naturally; instead, they expedited it. These body-snatchers-turned-murderers lurked in the margins of society, operating…
Alfie Solomon: The Real-Life Jewish Gangster from Peaky Blinders

In Peaky Blinders, Tom Hardy’s portrayal of Alfie Solomons is one of the show’s most memorable performances. With his unpredictable temperament, dark humor, and violent tendencies, the character quickly became a fan favorite. However, while much of the show’s narrative is fictional, Solomons is based on a real historical figure: Alfie Solomon, a bookmaker and gangster in…
The Life and Legend of John Bindon: London’s Real-Life Gangster Actor

John Bindon was a man who seemed to step straight out of a gritty British crime film—because, quite often, he did. Born on October 4, 1943, in Fulham, London, Bindon rose to fame as an actor. However, his off-screen life, rife with tales of high society liaisons, alleged criminal connections, and even heroic acts, made…
Camelot Castle: The Eccentric House of Dave Courtney

More than anything, London “gangster” Dave Courtney’s legacy is inextricably tied to Camelot Castle, the sprawling, bizarre, frankly ridiculous, mansion he called home.
The Eastcastle Street Robbery: London’s Forgotten Heist

On a crisp May evening in 1952, London’s Eastcastle Street transformed from a quiet, nondescript lane into the site of one of the largest unsolved heists in British history. This was no ordinary caper, but a lightning-quick, military-style ambush that left authorities baffled and the public in awe. The Eastcastle Street Robbery was meticulously planned,…
London’s 10 most famous gangsters

London’s criminal underworld has had its share of infamous figures over the years, with some becoming almost legendary for their bold crimes, unique personalities, and colorful reputations. Here’s a look at some of London’s most famous gangsters: 1. The Kray Twins (Ronnie and Reggie Kray) The Kray Twins are perhaps the most notorious figures in London’s…
The Sabini Gang & Peaky Blinders

The true story behind the Sabini Gang, the London based Italian mobsters that feature in the TV series Peaky Blinders.
The Highwaymen of Blackheath

Picture this: It’s the 18th century, and London is a bustling metropolis, but venture just a little way out of the city, and you’d find yourself in the dark, misty expanse of Blackheath—a desolate stretch of land with windswept hills and the occasional inn, all perfect for a lurking danger. This eerie setting was the playground…
The locations of the Jack the Ripper murders

Jack the Ripper is one of London’s most infamous serial killer. Jack the Ripper spread a rein of terror through London’s East End in Victorian London between 1888 and 1891. His victims were mostly prostitutes, who had their throats slashed and their bodies mutilated.Although many books have been written on him, nobody knows his true…
London’s Scariest Tourist Attractions

London is one often greatest cities to live and visit but with over 2000 years of history it has also born witness to a lot of horror.If you like your tourist attractions to be scary then here are our favourites. The London Dungeon The London Dungeon is London’s scariest tourist attraction. At the London Dungeon…
The Highwayman of Wimbledon Common

On the edge of Wimbledon Common where the Kingston Road passes, are some trees on the side of a small rise of ground. This part of the common is called Jerry’s Hill. It is named after the 18th-century highwayman called Jerry Abershawe, who frequented those parts and held up carriages on their way between Kingston…
The 1971 Baker Street Robbery

The Baker Street Robbery, was an audacious bank robbery which occurred on, or to be more accurate, below Baker Street in the autumn of 1971. No weapons were brandished, nor were any alarms triggered. Yet the gang who committed the heist managed to make off with an absolute fortune. The valuables stolen were estimated to…
Sherlock Holmes Museum

With the BBC series starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes, the Hollywood Blockbusters with Robert Downey as Sherlock and the American series that moves Sherlock to New York and has Lucy Liu as a female Dr Watson, Sherlock Holmes has never been so popular, so why not visit his original home? Sherlock Holmes, the worlds…