‘British Villains’ unpacks The Great Train Robbery from 1963, interviews ex-criminal Tamer Hassan, and more
In the summer of 1963, England was victimized by a multi-million dollar heist that altered its history. Police deemed The Great Train Robbery the century’s greatest crime, and it received tons of media attention. It was even adapted into movies, plays, and books. Although the story has been told countless times, the public did not know how the villains got away with their crimes. On Luminary’s “British Villains,” we’ll hear from gangsters themselves, ex-villains, and law enforcement.
In the series, William Green interviews his dad, one of the last possible survivors who might have participated in the crime. Start all 13 episodes from the beginning for the full story and historical context about London in the 1960s.
After the war, London was left bombed, and poor neighborhoods were decimated. Episode 1 introduces listeners to a group of young street hooligans who did not let the war determine their future. London’s residents tried to hustle and survive in the 1950s, and by the 1960s, the city was recovering from war.
Bruce Reynolds met characters from London’s West End, lined up his future crew, and planned to commit crimes. They needed to sort out an airport, an armored vehicle, 2 modified Jaguars, cash, and set some watchers. By episode 4, Reynolds realized robbing a train at full-speed might be more ambitious than the crew originally thought. He recruited small-time villains with train-robbing expertise, they found their own train driver, and we’ll learn about the South Coast Raiders.
The plan was strategically outlined, and the crew was set to carry out this grand-scale crime with laser precision. They managed to get away scot free. Scotland Yard’s Tommy Butler and his Flying Squad jumped right on the case to track the robbers and serve justice.
Episodes 9 and 10 share snapshots from life on the run, complete with missing money, kidnappings, prison breaks, terrible plastic surgeries, and the reality that their cash would not last forever. Ex-villain and actor Tamer Hassan joined episodes 11 and 12 to share personal stories from his past hustles, crimes, prison time, starting over, and more.
The podcast visited freelance enforcer Freddie Foreman’s flat to learn more about London’s crimes from the 1950s-1970s, villains like Bruce Reynolds, and The Krays’ violent sprees.
We recommend “British Villains” for fans of “Heist Podcast” and “White Eagle.” All episodes are now streaming for subscribers with new episodes released weekly for everyone else.
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