Twin brothers Ronald “Ronnie” Kray (24 October 1933 – 17 March 1995) and Reginald “Reggie” Kray (24 October 1933 – 1 October 2000) were English gangsters who were the foremost perpetrators of organized crime in the East End of London during the 1950s and 1960s. With their gang, the Firm, the Krays were involved in armed robberies, arson, protection rackets, assaults, and the murders of Jack “the Hat” McVitie and George Cornell.
As West End nightclub owners, they mixed with politicians and prominent entertainers such as Diana Dors, Frank Sinatra, and Judy Garland. The Krays were much feared within their milieu; in the 1960s, they became celebrities, even being photographed by David Bailey and interviewed on television.
They were arrested on 9 May 1968 and convicted in 1969, by the efforts of detectives led by Detective Superintendent Leonard “Nipper” Read. Both were sentenced to life imprisonment. Ronnie remained in Broadmoor Hospital until his death on 17 March 1995; Reggie was released from prison on compassionate grounds in August 2000, eight weeks before his death from cancer.
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Reggie (left) and Ronnie Kray
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| Born | 24 October 1933 Hoxton, London, England |
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| Died | Ronnie: 17 March 1995 (aged 61) Wexham, Buckinghamshire, England Reggie: 1 October 2000 (aged 66) Norwich, Norfolk, England |
| Cause of death | Heart attack (Ronnie) Cancer (Reggie) |
| Other names | Ronnie & Reggie |
| Occupation | Club owners, gangsters |
| Criminal status | Both deceased |
| Spouse(s) | Reggie: Frances Shea (m. 1965; her death 1967) Roberta Jones (m. 1997; his death 2000)[1][2] Ronnie: Elaine Mildener (m. 1985; div. 1989)[3] Kate Howard (m. 1989; div. 1994)[3] |
As you can see; the word I made up today is real. Kray is the word, and this is what I found. Wow, these two were something else!
Who I am 
Yes they were famous where I live…. before I came here though!
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I had never heard of them, but I am in my own little corner of the world. Glad that you are familiar with them, and very thankful they were before your time. Can you imagine if they were still there? LOL
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I grew up in Bethnal Green, which was the part of London where the Krays grew up and had their “manor”. Their home was just around the corner to our house and my Aunt knew their mother (big deal). They were gangsters, corrupt and made our part of London interesting for the newspapers. The funeral of one of the brothers was a spectacular in our area, more like a state procession attended by most of the gangsters.
I moved away 47 years ago to live in Switzerland, but I remember it all. The killing in the Blind Beggar pub of George Cornell. It was actually a nice pub. There was an another brother Charlie. He was involved as well, but I believe he eventually had a flower selling booth at one of the main Londo stations and has now also passed on.
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Wow, you lived so close. Did you ever feel fear from them being so near? They sound just terrible!!! I love learning about their history from you but glad I never knew who they were
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When you grow up in Bethnal Green you don’t feel fear, it is all part of life really. The gangsters only bothered with other gangsters and those that got in the way. The krays were from Vallence Road which was the other side of the Bethnal Green main Road. I did know someone that used to take McVitie’s dog for walks, but after he got killed she was out of the job. We were just a cockney family and nothing really special. We seemed to have missed out on most of the action. Oh yes and Jack the Ripper of course kiled his victims in the late 19th cetuary in the area I walked through when I went to school. My grammar school was in Spitalfields Market – now that was a intresting territory,
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A film was made about them in the last year.
They are not worth while remembering and they are not ‘cool’, they were severe criminals, who abused and exploited teenage girls, killed for power assertion and dealt in arms and weapons…not so different to your average terrorist…
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That sounds just terrible. I wonder how my brain sometimes works when I pick out a made up name. Thanks for the info on these nasty people
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I didn’t mean to knock your thinking…it is a great coincidence and not your fault that these East end (London) brothers had to happen to have this surname and appear now to be somewhat glorified in contemporary media, as one of the commenters proofed. It was that comment that led me to provide a different perspective of these ‘cult’ figures, as I gathered that outside the UK their ‘legacy’ is largely unknown…
I love your blog!
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