Gangster Number 1: The Freddie Foreman Story (Full Documentary) | Real Crime 

thank you Freddie Foreman , your autobiography answered a mystery about my late grandfather Alexander Thomson. my family here in New Zealand thank you for calling him a man of honour , to us and me in particular he was a true man of honour. your son Jamie is a great actor as well :)

Many thanks for another great interview, Bernard! You have a very good rapport, with Mr Foreman. You totally put him at his ease. I wish you all the best for your future projects. xxxx

Great documentary..I'm not into true crime things but this was in my recommend from vague association with other stuff I'd watched.. got to say I'm pleased curiousity got better of me, not knowing who he was until it got going and it became evident.. well made.. interesting. concise. Historically important..thanks..

My mum and dad went through the blitz. My dad fought in Korea... but like most cockneys he was not a gangster terrorising his neighbours.

Brilliant documentary. Well done.

I liked listening about the history of London before, during and, after the war.

Interesting fella. Listening to him talk is like listening to an overexcited 5 year old kid telling you stories...there's no full stops and the story keeps rolling taking unpredictable turns

My father was a bare knuckle fighter in the day. He never harmed anyone and done things to help the poor, he fed them by means of stealing. He never once bragged and did his time.

I've never understood the idolising of criminals. Quite sad really.

Lucky for Freddie that Ron Pickering wasn't around at the same time

Reminds me of my grandfather here in Glasgow

Very interesting vid, great job. I luv this channel, the good ole day'z. 👍🇺🇲🗽🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿👍

Brilliant documentary

Great documentary.bernard 👍

Freddie Foreman aka The Managing Director OF British Crime 💪

Absolutely bangin'! I take on what others have said, but the ending is true, that old style of a residing respect has gone, villainy these days is without character.

I can't help but like him.

Freddie reminds me of Mr Wolf from Pulp Fiction, a man with contacts and who gets things done but seems an ok kind of guy.

I read his book respect on holiday and I couldn’t put it down

Makes me laugh when he was moaning the police broke the law taking him back to the UK 😂

good documentary, when was it made?

What a fascinating, well researched and presented doc. Those gentlemen still dress as such. End of an era though.

Freddie's childhood rings similar to what my late Mum and Auntie told me about their childhood as well.London and the Blitz

Love listening to Freddie Foreman and Albert Donoghue

Remember this guy when I worked at full Sutton prison in the 80s, he was always respectful and polite- a gentleman

His son, Jamie Foreman, is a pretty well known actor, Nil By Mouth, Gangster No. 1, Elixabeth, etc

MAXIMUM RESPECT..LOVE THEASE TRUE STORYS...THANKS....

If Freddie hadn’t been a villain he would have been a brilliant comedian. I’ve read all his books and some of the stories he tells had me crying with laughter just picturing it. Freddie was old school he didn’t believe in hurting for the sake of hurting usually it was because someone took a liberty. His mistake was getting involved with the Krays had he not of he wouldn’t have got jail time. He was successful in the businesses he ran he earned good money and was comfortable. He did a lot for charity and helped people who had very little. Their are plenty of people who have nothing but good things to say about Freddie.

Was sure I'm Freddie's book 'Respect' he admitted and detailed the the brinx mat job

I think GB is unique in its portrayal of it's underbelly of crime and violence in the world of unlicensed boxing and cage fighting mixed up with all sorts in the underworld. Violence has become popular. It has spread, and in the mix it has scuped up every kind of undesirable that normal would have been screened out. Greed and power is the motivation because there's lots to be had in the fight game. Reminds me of the scene in the Dear Hunter, the Russian Rulet scene. 🤕🔫

Gangster no. 1 is an awesome film.

I have read, watched and listened to these amazing gangster life stories. I find it easier to believe as I try and understand the reality of death in the war or even end of world. Who knows which way we would have gone??? They lived and died through it all. Xx

Fred was more than your expectations of him

self pity and envy are the real motive , I worked for similar characters and the stories are always amazing 😕

They do NOT know what respect is

31:05 , Christine Keeler ! Instrumental in the down fall of at least one Government Minister .

Both my grandfathers were on the fringes of the Foreman/Kray/ Richardson outfits and they were all a product of the war. Most of them were decent people who just did what they could to provide for their kith and kin. Freddie is know as a stand up bloke and is recognised by many of then and now as a proper guvnor. He was a man of his word

Jay Kaye........ You might just be right. A person who is fierce etc can often have a flip side to their personalities - they can be fierce with their love too. I do believe every one has goodness in them, sometimes they're afraid to show it, perhaps they would never be able to make it come to the surface but the goodness is there regardless. Attack is said to be the best form of defence.

Absolutely mind numbing 🤕

Anybody who’s never Brocken the Law . As never gone bed hungry !

When was this excellent documentary filmed, please?

Bless him what a man a proper man Freddy was I didnt know him but we can tell he was a decent man 🥂👍

Love the way Bernard bigs himself up as a former member of the Essex boys.... He was a bloody doorman and was just happened to be around when those events were unfolding... Otherwise, there would have been 4 bodies in the land rover thar night, one that used to speak shit in a painful to the earhole, Brummie accent....Friend of the Krays? LOL

Not that people idolize criminals it seems to be a fact they have led interesting life's x😮😮

I despise criminals... that being said, this gentleman here, regardless of his crimes, he had morals. I was highly impressed with his loyalty and the thought of safety of people who weren't involved. Very few criminals have high morals to separate the family, women and kids from the person that does the indecencies against other gangsters. He may be my favorite gangster. I also liked the "you kick the dog you kick the master" part, seems he cared about his underlings as well. Proper chief here.

17.45 I was in Stamford House in 1979.

Does a great grill too 👍well done

Let's goooo! 👐🏾👐🏾👐🏾👐🏾

Love you're manner ...great bloke..chin up...respect....

That's mad. from pompey and went to write something and saw the amount of comments were 657 and now forgot what I was gonna write

If he wrote a book to be published after his death it would make some reading and answer a lot of underworld mysteries, i would like to know why his family no longer speak to him...something serious must have came to light for that to happen because Fred and his son Jamie were extremely close.

I understand if you listen to Freddie he has a strong family ties and was livid how his brothers who all served were treated.

It must be awful to have stolen the property that belonged to other people who worked very hard to own it.

Fred a stand up guy

Freddie was the most dangerous man in this country by a country mile. A legend in his own right & in a league of his own…

Blighty has, evidently, some of the scariest criminals who have ever drawn breath. Take away even the most fierce American criminals' firepower and throw the two sets (if numbers were comparable) into a closed space and I have no doubt whatever who would walk out. These people, raised from children (in one of the segments of this series, the pretty seven or eight-year-old daughter of one of them was incidentally shown in a [serious] boxing cum [serious] weight-training gym, throwing, with her skinny little arms, punches against a heavy bag) to swim when deemed necessary -- and that can mean anything -- in an unimaginably violent world. These people are the germination of the phrase, "When you see me comin', better step aside". And judging from what I've seen in this series, I damn sure would . . . except I'd run.

Nice

This seemed to be almost more about the Kray twins than about him.

Bernard ya ur face at the rate of talking from him in first 2 mins 😂🤷‍♀️

Who would've known. My grandparents also grew up in Battersea in the 30's and then moved to Woking (Sheerwater) after the war. Wonder if they were ever neighbours! 😝

When was this interview with Freddie.

He seems Very friendly and like a good Person. Hope He lives His remaining Years in Peace and happiness

I'm wondering if this guy is what the character Brick Top is based off of in the movie Snatch!!

One thing I can say about George foreman is respect

Eddie is a g for real. 💯

LOL. That "Godfather" looks like Bubbles from Trailer Park Boys.

He always has come across as very fair it seemed his game was more doing robberies then investing the money to go straight I don`t think Foreman was squeezing money from places like the Krays were,

Is it just me or did Freddie talk for 8 plus minutes straight without saying anything. Brings to mind politicians

This interview is quite old but still very informative and entertaining. I remember seeing it and thinking that Bernard hardly spoke throughout the interview! 😄 I've read nearly ever book known to man about all the Eastend gangsters and ya man here always had some manners and morals. They were are all a different breed of man back then. No honour or loyalty (even for criminals!)

I actually think this man is real, has a good heart, he might have made mistakes but he is loyal, he has a presence about where you just know not to mess with him

When I grew up in the Gorbals in Glasgow in the Sixties and seventies we always watched the Men coming out of the Pubs and having a Square Go with each other, if you don't come from Glasgow a Square Go is a fair fight.

Stealing from corporations is a community service

Great man and a true legend.

One breathless monolog,.....

50:17 I don’t think Dickie Hart was the Krays cousin.

I like Freddie.

He should have lived a straight life, could have got a job on a building site and worked his way up to foreman.

I love this MAN..TO ME HE"S BETTER THAN ANY CREW ,THIS MAN IS AMMAZZING ..LIKE IV SAID BETTER THAN ANY OTHER GANGSTER...PLUS THE MAN IS STILL ALIVE ..GOD BLESS FREDDY 4MAN.XXXGOOD LUCK 4 YA FUTURE, TO ME YOURE NO1.ALLWAYS WILL BE MY TOPBOY..MASSIVE RESPECT SIR..TO YOU FRANKY FOURMANS.X😊

'did he nail your head to a table?'....'No, no no....well, yeah he did do that. But he had too!'

He wasn’t an Essex boy he was just a door man!!!!

Remember him coming in the Putney Yacht Club in Fulham, before Fulham got posh! Thing was there was no yachts!! When he came in we left, he used to drink with Bindon.

What a legend

Those were days...🙏

Did Bernard know the kray twins personally? I keep hearing he did but then some say he's too young 🤷🏼.

8:00-8:01 He wound up in Mombasa...I live in Mombasa. Karibu Kenya. Hakuna matata..just love.

I LOVE LISTENING TO FREDS RECOLLECTIONS OF HIS EAST & SOUTH END EXPLOITS, SOOTHING VOICE, VERY RELAXING. ALTHOUGH NOT TO BE APPLAUDED, AT THE END OF THE DAY, IT HAPPENED, AND NOTHING CAN CHANGE IT. WHAT THESE GUYS DID ARE NO WORSE THAN WHAT THE GOVERNMENT AND THE ROYAL FAMILY HAVE DONE FOR YEARS, BUT THEY'RE LAUDED AND ADMIRED. YOU CAN'T HELP WHAT INTERESTS YOU.

Absolutely terrific. Freddy seems like the sort of gentleman who would pay for your shopping and carry it home for you. He'd then go to the pub for a bitter lemon, and buy whatever the barmaid serving him wants, before having a punch up outside and then getting some fish and chips on the way home. An absolutely smashing film. 😃🥹😊🛒🛒🛍🛍🍹🍋🍋🙆‍♀️🐟🐠🐟🐠🍟🍟🍟🍟🥊🥊🥊🥊

His dvd Fred is great watch too 👌🏼

Rough times, with even rougher men....😮

I don't agree with glamourising crooks but I didn't go through a war...

I was only at the castle before we went to the BKB 35 and met him a few times, I made him a joint when we got back to his, had a fkin great tablet someone gave me and it was the bollox, when I was off i told Dave I was going, he was moonwalking towards me and said thanks for the joint Ricky man bless ya! Last words he said to me, gutted totally gutted but I understand how he must have felt 💯 Rest in Paradise Dave see you when I get there bruv ❤ LLH&R Forever ♾ 🕊🕊🕊🕊🕊🕊🕊💙💎👊🏼

The real deal they made the movie the long good Friday was said to be on Fred's life one true man's man

I've visited him in his nursing home hes 90 k now a nice chap

Was his son in East Enders or am I confusing him with someone else?

*Glad to see comments* 👍

real deal

I had to stop after 5 minutes. He gave me a headache.

Well I got to say..I like the bloke.

Too much for a child to take. This is probably why he ended up being a gangster; coupled with a predisposition that lead him that way.

Is there any southern gangsters that wasn't a "friend of the Krays"?