Gangster: The Story of Viv Graham

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Gangster

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Factual: Crime & Justice: True Crime

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 Viv Graham

Gangster: The Story of Viv Graham: Viv Graham: 1. King of the Ring

Viv Graham: 1. King of the Ring

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In 1993, Tyneside enforcer Viv Graham was shot dead. Livvy Haydock investigates.

Viv Graham ruled Tyneside's nightlife with an iron fist. Livvy Haydock investigates the life and death of a man who was feared and revered in equal measure.

On New Year's Eve 1993, Viv Graham, a 17-stone man mountain, stepped out of a Tyneside pub and walked a few yards towards his Ford Sierra Cosworth. But he never made it. Lurking in the shadows was a gunman who fired three shots at him from close range. 
Viv, who ran a pub and club protection empire which spanned Newcastle and beyond, dragged himself back to the pub but his life was slipping away. 
The murder of Viv Graham, right in the middle of his heartland territory, sent shockwaves through Tyneside which echo to this day. 
In this podcast series Livvy Haydock delves into one of the country’s most notorious unsolved murders. It’s a story of brutal violence, drugs, guns, love, loyalty and betrayal.
She investigates how a charming boy from a village in the country, grew to become one of the most fearsome enforcers in the country, ruling over Newcastle’s nightlife with an iron fist. 
What made Viv Graham stand out? How did he rise to the top? And who was he really?  
In episode one, Livvy travels back to Viv Graham’s roots and discovers a young man trying to find his way in an era when the heavy industries, which had dominated the North East for generations, were fast dying out. Employment opportunities and future prospects looked bleak and many people were leaving the North East in search of work. But Viv Graham took a very different approach. Through a relentless regime of boxing and weightlifting, he set about transforming himself into a one-man wrecking machine. The sort of person who could come in very handy on the doors in Newcastle at the very moment the city was emerging as one of Europe’s party capitals.

Presenter - Livvy Haydock 
Series Producer - Ben Robinson 
Technical Producer - Richard Hannaford 
Producer - Patrick Kiteley 
Archive Researcher - Jackie Mccoy 
Journalism Assistant - Tim Fernley
With assistance from Jamie Boyle
Commissioning Executive - Louise Kattenhorn 
Assistant Commissioner - Lorraine Okuefuna & Sarah Green
Editor and Executive Producer - Clare Fordham 

Archive credits: 
Get Carter - Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer British Studios. 
Auf Wiedersehen Pet - Central Independent Television and Witzend Productions.
Discovery Museum, Newcastle Upon Tyne.

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The story of Viv Graham, the fearsome hardman, 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 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.

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The Story of Viv Graham

Viv Graham: 1. King of the Ring

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