How Ronnie And Reggie Kray Became London's First Casino Kings
Forget the Mayfair set - it took twin brothers from London's East End to make gambling respectable in the Big Smoke.
Think of the Kray twins and plenty of things come to mind, many of them pretty unpleasant. Spilt blood, broken bones, dead bodies, shallow graves – violence and its repercussions are what predominate when Ronnie and Reggie are up for discussion.
But beyond their commitment to thuggery, Ronnie and Reggie had insatiable appetites for ambition. It was this that led them to try and strike an allegiance with the New York Mafia. And then there was London’s burgeoning legitimate gambling scene. Sure, they’d long taken an interest in off-track bookmakers and unlicensed casinos, but with the introduction of new gaming laws in1961 came the opportunity to get they craved most – class.
The twins’ improbable bid for respectability began with the purchase of Esmerelda’s Barn in 1960, a den of iniquity that they soon transformed into Knightsbridge’s first high-end casino. Quite how the brothers came to buy the establishment is a source of great debate. Biographer John Pearson suggests that the Krays took possession of the place after attempting to extort money from the infamous slum landlord Peter Rachman. Meanwhile, Ronnie and Reggie’s elder brother Charlie insisted that he was crucial to the deal going through.
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