Wannabe in My Gang? by Bernard O'Mahoney Read Free Book Online Page A

reasoned.
    Geoff and I spent most of the evening laughing at the guests who had arrived dressed as Kray clones. It reminded me of some of the sad individuals I had seen on Elvis Presley lookalike TV competitions. Nobody but themselves could see the slightest resemblance. They looked absolutely ridiculous, dressed in starched white shirts, black ties, Brylcreemed hair, Crombie coats and a fixed scowl to match, they believed they looked the part. Two Kray clones that were particularly prominent appeared to be very friendly with ‘promoter’ James Campbell. I thought they looked more like the comedian duo Hale and Pace than the Krays.
    When I asked Geoff who they were, he told me they were Lindsay and Leighton Frayne, the brothers he had advised me to avoid. Later in the evening, Campbell brought the Fraynes over to introduce them to me. They seemed polite enough, but I couldn’t help but notice the sense of theatre about them. Every phrase, every bit of body language was well thought out, mimicking their heroes Ron and Reg. I also spoke to Lambrianou, who thanked me for a great evening. Why he should be thanking me did puzzle me a little, as he had paid £40 to get in – or so I thought. Lambrianou didn’t strike me as a violent man or appear in any way intimidating; he seemed OK, was extremely polite and went out of his way to be pleasant to anybody who spoke to him.
    What I did find rather bizarre was the amount of people who asked Charlie Kray, Kate Kray and Lambrianou for their autographs. Another man I met there was a Scot named Alan Smith. Alan had written to me before the boxing show and had organised a sponsored run in Edinburgh to raise money for the Fallons. Alan was in his early 30s, fit and approximately 6 foot tall. He told me he worked as a doorman and often visited London doing security at some of the large outdoor pop concerts. We agreed that when he was next in London we would meet up for a drink.
    The evening went really well. A couple of local fools tried to gatecrash, but when Charlie Kray, Lambrianou and a few other infamous faces appeared at the door to see what the fuss was all about, their mouths dropped open and they fled into the night. Flannagan, the self-styled first page-three girl, and ‘close friend’ of the Kray family, took the bids during the auction.
    Out of the various items for sale, including the signed Rolling Stones albums and boxer Charlie Magri’s shorts, pride of place went to two official passes for visits to Broadmoor Hospital and Lewes Prison to see Ronnie and Reggie in person. Flannagan, treading the boards of the boxing ring, shouted out: ‘If you really fancy an interesting chat and want to do some good at the same time, then let’s hear from you.’ Both passes were quickly snapped up for £500 each. The event raised a reported £15,000. I was overjoyed that so much money had been made. It also eased the embarrassment I had endured following the non-event in Wolverhampton. With the proceeds from Reggie’s book, I thought I had generated about £100,000 for the Fallons. The fact that the police were still seeking Paul and me for the assault on Stuart Darley did not trouble me. All that mattered to me that night was the fact that I had finally achieved my aim and raised a considerable amount of money for James’s family.
    At the end of the evening, I went to collect the money but I could not find Campbell or Brazier. The hotel and other expenses had been paid, but there was no sign of the promoters. It had been a long day and an even longer night, so I assumed they had gone home and would contact me the following day.
    That weekend I contacted Dave Venables at Raquels nightclub and asked him if he had any door work for me. I was told that I could start work immediately. The wages, Dave said, were £40 per night, cash in hand. I stayed at the club for a short while, talking about things in general.
    Dave Venables told me that things were not going too well for the local