The Great Train Robbery (Part VI)

Sources

Early books

These books were written in the immediate aftermath of the 1964 trial and before the capture of several of the gang.

The Great Train Robbery (1964) by John Gosling and Dennis Craig. The first book about the robbery, it relied on the real-life experience of John Gosling, a former policeman.

The Robbers' Tale (1965) by Peta Fordham, first published by Hodder & Stoughton, London. It told the story of the robbery only shortly after the conclusion of the initial trial. The author was the wife of one of the lawyers involved in the case. The book mostly involves a description of the trial. The author constantly hints that she knew more than she was prepared to write, yet it was written before most of the facts emerged.

Biographies of investigators

Books written by senior police in the early 1970s, after their retirement, chiefly present accounts of the investigation, capture, trial and recapture of the robbers.

The Train Robbers (1964) by Malcolm Fewtrell (with Ronald Payne), first published in London by Arthur Barker Limited.

 A Detective's Story (1971) by George Hatherill, first published in London by Andre Deutsch Limited (ISBN 0-2339-6322-7) is part autobiography and part description on what makes a detective. Chapter 14, the last chapter of the book is dedicated to the Great Train Robbery the final major investigation before Hatherill's retirement.

Specialist in Crime (1972) by Ernest Millen, first published by George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd (ISBN 0245505075). An autobiography. When he retired, Millen was Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Scotland Yard and Commander of the CID. A unique inside story of his career as a detective.

No Fixed Address (1973) by Frank Williams, first published by W. H. Allen & Co Ltd (ISBN 0-4910-0524-5). It tells the story of the aftermath of the robbery from Williams's point of view, in particular describing the mistakes made in the early days by senior officers, and the autocratic nature of Tommy Butler. The book is targeted at Ronnie Biggs in the hope that he will contact Williams for a deal, similar to the one arranged by Buster Edwards. The book mistakenly identifies Bill Boal as a robber (although it concedes his role was a support role), and it also mistakenly identifies Biggs as one of the leaders.

Slipper of the Yard (1981) by Jack Slipper, first published by Sidgwick and Jackson Ltd (ISBN 0-2839-8702-2). This book is an autobiography of the police career of Jack Slipper, who had retired the year before as one of the best-known and most decorated detectives in the Metropolitan Police Force. It includes a chapter on his participation in the Train Robbery Squad hunting for the robbers, and has details on the arrests of Roy James, John Daly and Jimmy Hussey. It also has a chapter on the mission to recover Ronnie Biggs from Brazil and denounces the press version of events.

Biographies of the robbers

Slip Up (1975) by Anthony Delano and first published by Quadrangle / The New York Times Book Co. (ISBN 0-8129-0576-8).

The Train Robbers (1978) by Piers Paul Read and first published by W.H. Allen and Company (ISBN 0-397-01283-7). This book recounts a very detailed version of the story based on an exclusive account given by eight of the then-paroled robbers (Edwards, Goody, Hussey, Wisby, Welch, James, White and Cordrey with contradictory versions by Reynolds and Biggs). Despite revealing more than previous accounts, the book is flawed in that it includes inaccuracies that the funding source for the heist was former SS officer Otto Skorzeny. As the story unfolds in the book, however, the German connection was proved to be false.

Odd Man Out (1994) by Ronald Biggs, first published by Bloomsbury Publishing Limited (ISBN 0-7475-1683-9). This book is an autobiography of the life of Ronald Biggs, particularly his life on the run after the Great Train Robbery.

Crossing The Line: Autobiography of a Thief (1995) by Bruce Reynolds, first published by Bantam Press (ISBN 1-8522-7929-X).

Keep on Running (1996) by Ronald Biggs and Christopher Pickard, first published by Bloomsbury Publishing Limited (ISBN 0-7475-2188-3). This book is a novel that strongly draws on the events of the Great Train Robbery and suggests what may have happened to the three men who were never caught.

Gangster's Moll – Living with a life of crime – from the Great Train Robbery to 'Mad' Frankie Fraser. (2001) by Marilyn Wisbey, first published by Little Brown and Company (ISBN 0-3168-5208-2). This is an autobiography of the daughter of Tommy Wisbey. It includes details concerning how his share was hidden and later spent, and the effect of the life of crime on the families of the criminals.

Killing Charlie (2004) by Wensley Clarkson, first published by Mainstream Publishing Co (Edinburgh) Ltd (ISBN 9781845960353). This book serves as a biography for the train robber, Charlie Wilson but was written 14 years after his death.

Ronnie Biggs - The Inside Story (2009) Hardback book by Mike Gray, a family friend of Biggs and organizer of the Free Ronnie Biggs Campaign 2001–2009. The book tells of Biggs's prison life in Belmarsh and Norwich prisons, from his UK return in May 2001 to his release from Norwich on compassionate grounds in August 2009. Published by Apex, ISBN 978-1-908548-48-1.

Odd Man Out: The Last Straw (2011) by Ronald Biggs, first published by Mpress Limited (ISBN 978-0-9570398-2-7). This book is the final autobiography of the life of Ronald Biggs, particularly his life on the run after the Great Train Robbery. It includes Biggs's return to the UK and subsequent release. Biggs also contributed, along with Bruce Reynolds, to The Great Train Robbery 50th Anniversary:1963–2013, published by Mpress in 2013. ISBN 0957255977).

The Ronnie Biggs Quiz Book (October 2013) by Mike Gray, author of Ronnie Biggs - The Inside Story. 200 quiz questions on Ronald Arthur Biggs, published for e-readers by Apex, ISBN 978-1-909949-87-4.

101 Interesting Facts on Ronnie Biggs & The Great Train Robbery (November 2013) by Mike Gray, published by Apex, ISBN 978-1-909949-97-3.

The Great Train Robbery Quiz Book (December 2013) by Mike Gray, published by Apex.

Retrospective accounts

The Great British Train Robbery (2003) by Tim Coates, published by Tim Coates in 2003, (ISBN 1843810220). Contains National Archives extracts from the report of Her Majesty's Inspector of Constabulary, which was submitted to the Home Office in 1964.

The Great Train Robbery (2008) by Peter Guttridge (ISBN 9781905615322). Commissioned by the National Archives as part of a series, this small book brings together highlights from the Public Records Office, Historical Manuscripts Commission, Office of Public Sector Information and Her Majesty's Stationery Office and information from other books.

The Men Who Robbed The Great Train Robbers (2013) by Mick Lee, published by Matador (ISBN 9781783062485). A novel re-telling the robbery filling in the gaps in accounts told by the robbers and police.

Signal Red (2010) by Robert Ryan, published by Headline Review (ISBN 9780755358182). A novel based on the robbery with a postscript by Bruce Reynolds.

The Great Train Robbery – History Making Heist (2011) by Brenda Haugen, published by Compass Point Books, a Capstone Imprint (ISBN 9780756543600). A novel based on the robbery with a postscript by Bruce Reynolds.

The Great Train Robbery – Crime of the Century – the definitive account (2013) by Nick Russell-Pavier, published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson/Orion Books (ISBN 9780297864394)

The Great Train Robbery 50th Anniversary: 1963–2013 (2013) by Bruce Reynolds, Ronnie Biggs, Nick Reynolds and Christopher Pickard, published by Mpress (ISBN 9780957255975). The full story of the planning preparation and aftermath from the people involved in the robbery.

 Pithie, Fraser; Cornwell, Christopher (August 2013). Pigott, Nick (ed.). "The Great Train Robbery". The Railway Magazine. Horncastle, Lincs: Mortons Media Group (published 10 July 2013). pp. 49–53. ISSN 0033-8923. Archived from the original on 25 December 2013. Retrieved 24 December 2013. Details of the story focusing on the railway aspects of the robbery.

Keep on Running - A Story from the Great Train Robbery (1995/2014) by Ronnie Biggs and Christopher Pickard, published by Mpress (ISBN 9780992606275). A novel by Ronnie Biggs based on the three robbers that got away. The novel mixes fact with fiction. First published by Bloomsbury in 1995, it was published on Kindle for the first time on 8 August 2014 on what would have been Biggs' 85th birthday.

Film and video

The 1966 German three-part TV mini-series Die Gentlemen bitten zur Kasse [de] tells a fictionalized version of the story more or less close to the facts, but changes the names of those involved and of locations.

The 1967 film, Robbery, is a heavily fictionalized version based on the events of 1963 directed by Peter Yates. The movie launched Yates's Hollywood career after it attracted the interest of Steve McQueen who got the British director to make his next feature, Bullitt. The film featured a gripping car chase (though this was connected to another earlier crime and not the robbery) which included scenes of a policeman being run down. Despite being a fictionalized account Robbery did draw on key details of the real robbery and these were reflected in the film. These included the detailed planning and preparation used, the use of a farmhouse as a base and the intended (but unsuccessful) use of a replacement driver for the train. The film ends with the mastermind of the robbery "Clifton", played by Stanley Baker (whose own company Oakhurst Productions had produced the film), evading capture and going on the run overseas by posing as a merchant seaman.

The 1969 French film The Brain stars David Niven as a British master criminal who perpetrates in France a heist based on the Great Train Robbery. The script implies him to be the real planner of the 1963 robbery.

 In 1988, Buster Edwards' experiences were made into the comedy-drama Buster, starring Phil Collins.

 In 2012, a five-part ITV docudrama, Mrs Biggs, was produced, relating events chiefly from the point of view of Charmian Biggs, who assisted in the scripting and production. ITV concurrently produced a 44-minute documentary film, The Great Train Robbery, written and directed by Marion Milne. Based on The Great Train Robbery – Crime of the Century – the definitive account (2013) by Nick Russell-Pavier, who also acted as programme consultant. Filmed at actual locations and featuring interviews with Charmian Biggs, Bruce Reynolds and other real-life participants.

In popular culture

Films

In the 1965 film Help!, John Lennon makes a snide reference to robbery in Scotland Yard. "Great Train Robbery, how's that going?"

In the 1965 James Bond film Thunderball, a SPECTRE officer states that the criminal organization received £250,000 of the stolen loot as a consultation fee for the robbery.

A comedy version was staged in the 1966 film The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery.

Die Gentlemen bitten zur Kasse [de] (The Gentlemen Prefer Payment, also known as Great British Train Robbery) aired in Germany as a three-part mini-series in 1966 and featured Horst Tappert as Reynolds.

In Robbery (1967), Stanley Baker plays a character based upon Reynolds.

The 1968 film Inspector Clouseau sent the incompetent French policeman in pursuit of Rainbow, a fictional character based on Reynolds, who appears in Gosling and Craig's 1965 book about the robbery and in McDaniel's 1967 book.

In the 1969 French comedy film The Brain, the Great Train Robbery was committed by a criminal mastermind nicknamed 'The Brain' (David Niven), who tries some years after to repeat the same plan to steal NATO's millions in cash transiting from Paris to Brussels. He does not know that two French petty crooks planned to rob the wagon using the same methods of the Great Train Robbery.

Singer Phil Collins starred in the title role of Buster (1988), a comedy-drama film loosely based on the life of Edwards; Larry Lamb played Reynolds.

In TV series Widows-3 (She's Out! (1995)) Dolly Rawlins teams up with several other parolees and make plans to stage a train robbery on horseback.

Games

In the online multiplayer game RuneScape, there is a quest called "The Great Brain Robbery", with similar plot elements.

In the computer video game Starcraft 2, there is a mission titled "The Great Train Robbery".

In the video game Borderlands 2, there is a mission called "The Pretty Good Train Robbery".

 In the 2010 Rockstar video game Red Dead Redemption, the player must take supplies from a train in a fashion similar to this in the mission "The Great Mexican Train Robbery".

The board game "The Great Train Robbery" by Bruce Barrymore Halpenny in the 1970s.

Literature

John Gosling and Dennis Craig's book on the robbery The Great Train Robbery – the Incredible Story of a Masterpiece of Modern Crime (1965), theorized that the theft was masterminded by a cashiered British army officer, Johnnie Rainbow.

The character of Rainbow featured in The Rainbow Affair (1967), a novel by David McDaniel based on the television series The Man from UNCLE.

Agatha Christie's Miss Marple detective novel At Bertram's Hotel (1965) contains elements of the robbery.

The Men Who Robbed The Great Train Robbers (2013), a novel by Mick Lee, re-telling the robbery and filling in narrative gaps from first-hand accounts, demonstrating who was probably behind the crime.

Signal Red: A Novel Based on the Great Train Robbery (2010), a novel by Robert Ryan.

LIFE magazine, in its 23 August 1963 issue, featured an 8-page article title 'STOP! For The Greatest Train Robbery" and 'Big Tickle Puts the Scream Too High'

Keep on Running - A Story from the Great Train Robbery (1995/2014) by Ronnie Biggs and Christopher Pickard, published by Mpress (ISBN 9780992606275). A novel by Ronnie Biggs based on the three robbers that got away.

Novelization of Buster by Colin Shindler (ISBN 9780747403760).

Music

The American rock band Mountain included the song "The Great Train Robbery" on their 1971 album Nantucket Sleighride. The song's lyrics refer to Wilson and Rainbow by name.

Ronald Biggs recorded vocals on two songs for The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, Julien Temple's 1980 mockumentary film about the Sex Pistols. The basic tracks for "No One is Innocent" (aka "The Biggest Blow (A Punk Prayer)") and "Belsen Was a Gas" were recorded with guitarist Steve Jones and drummer Paul Cook at a studio in Brazil shortly after the Sex Pistols' final performance, with overdubs being added in an English studio at a later date. "No One is Innocent" was released as a single in the UK and reached No. 6 on the British singles charts, with the sleeve showing Martin Bormann playing bass with the group (in actuality this was American actor James Jeter).

Paul Hardcastle released a song in 1985 titled "Just for Money", about the robbery.

 In 1991, Ronald Biggs sang vocals for the song "Carnival in Rio (Punk Was)" by German punk band Die Toten Hosen.

Following the extradition attempt, Biggs collaborated with Bruce Henry (an American double-bass player), Jaime Shields, and Aureo de Souza to record Mailbag Blues, a musical narrative of his life that he intended to use a movie soundtrack. This album was re-released in 2004 by whatmusic.com.

British group, Alabama 3, recorded a tribute to Bruce Reynolds about the robbery, "Have You Seen Bruce Richard Reynolds" (originally recorded by The Fylde Folk) on which he appears, on their 2005 album, Outlaw. Alabama 3 harmonica player, Nick Reynolds, is the son of Bruce Reynolds.)

British group The Crocketts called their second album The Great Brain Robbery, which was released in 2000.

Radio

In several 1963 episodes of The Navy Lark, the robbery was referred to via expressions of surprise – by various characters – of seeing Chief Petty Officer Pertwee free, and not in police custody for committing the robbery.

Television

In February 2006, Channel 4 aired a documentary about the 1981 plot to kidnap Biggs and take him to Barbados. The program featured a dramatization of the attempt and an interview with ex-soldier John Miller, one of the men responsible. In the program, security consultant Patrick King, who led the team, claimed that the kidnapping may have in fact been a deniable operation.

Bruce Reynolds was portrayed in the 2012 television series Mrs Biggs by Jay Simpson.

On 18 December 2013, the day Ronnie Biggs died, BBC One aired the first of a two-part dramatization The Great Train Robbery. Episode one, A Robber's Tale details the organization of and successful completion of the robbery. Episode two, A Copper's Tale follows the police investigation into the crime and subsequent arrest of many of the perpetrators.

In 2019 in episode 6 of part 1 of the Spanish TV program The Money Heist, there is mention of "the Glasgow train robbery".

Theater

A popular skit from the comedy revue Beyond the Fringe, starring Peter Cook and Alan Bennett, deals with the efforts to catch the criminals behind the robbery.

 In Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Starlight Express, the main villain, a brake van and apparent serial criminal, claims to have been involved in the robbery, along with several other historical train crimes.

Model railway

On 10 September 2011 two 5-inch-gauge battery-powered scale models of class 40 locomotives on the half-mile-plus circuit of The Strawberry Line Miniature Railway in the Avon Valley Country Park at Keynsham near Bristol were named in honor of driver Jack Mills and secondman David Whitby.

Additionally, the Luton Model Railway Club has created a diorama portraying the scene of the robbery which is currently situated at Ferry Meadows station on the Nene Valley Railway, as part of the Night Mail museum.