Gangster - The Story of Curtis Warren

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Gangster

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The boxer turned bouncer who was gunned down on Tyneside in 1993

Viv Graham ran a pub and club protection empire which spanned Newcastle and beyond.

How did he build his fearsome reputation, and what led to his brutal, unsolved murder?

A new series of Gangster tells the story of Viv Graham, a man who ran a protection empire which spanned Newcastle and beyond.

Viv Graham, a 17-stone man mountain, a man feared and revered in equal measure, came to dominate Tyneside’s nightlife through brutal and uncompromising violence.

His murder, in an organised hit on New Year’s Eve 1993, sparked recriminations and repercussions which echo to this day. It remains one of the country’s most notorious unsolved murders.

The Story of Curtis Warren

Gangster: The Story of Curtis Warren: Just a Lad from Tocky and Narcos

Gangster: The Story of Curtis Warren

Just a Lad from Tocky and Narcos

BBC Radio 5 Live - Gangster, The Story of Curtis Warren, Just a Lad from Tocky and Narcos

Curtis Warren goes from the streets of Toxteth to the Colombian cocaine cartels.

Curtis Warren makes his mark on the streets of Toxteth before beginning his rise from lowly street dealer to dealing directly with the notorious Colombian cocaine cartels.

Against a backdrop of unemployment and racism, Curtis Warren starts to make his mark on the streets of Toxteth. A botched robbery lands him in prison for the first time, before he begins his remarkable rise from lowly street dealer to dealing directly with the notorious Colombian cocaine cartels. His first £100m shipment gets through - right under the noses of customs.

This programme contains strong language, descriptions of violence and some content you may find upsetting.

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The story of Curtis Warren - one of Britain's biggest and wealthiest drug barons.

Curtis Warren was one of Britain’s wealthiest drug barons. Gangster follows his remarkable journey from the streets of Liverpool to the summit of the international cocaine trade.

Curtis Warren was Britain’s biggest and wealthiest drug baron. Gangster follows his remarkable journey from small time dealer on the rough and tough streets of Toxteth in Liverpool to the summit of the international cocaine trade.  
Warren was the first gangster to be featured in the Sunday Times Rich List when he was earning a reported £15m a week and became Interpol's ‘Target One' – one of the world’s most wanted criminals. 
Presenter Livvy Haydock speaks to some of his closest criminal associates who helped forge direct links with the notorious Colombian cocaine cartels – the real life Narcos – and meets the dogged customs officers and detectives who eventually brought him to justice.
It is a tale of unimaginable wealth, gang wars, police corruption and illicit sexual encounters in a prison laundry room.  
Warren is expected to be released from prison this year, although the authorities will be watching his every move. One question remains, however. The whereabouts of his fortune reported to be nearly 200 million pounds.

This podcast contains very strong language and descriptions of violence

Presenter: Livvy Haydock.
Series producer: Paul Grant
Producer: Scott Hesketh
Technical production and sound design: Matthew Dempsey and Richard Hannaford.
Journalism Assistant: Tim Fernley
Production Manager: Cathy Clark 
Commissioning editor: Richard Maddock.
Editor and executive producer: Carl Johnston

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Gangster

The Story of Curtis Warren

Just a Lad from Tocky and Narcos

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