A brush with evil.....have you met anyone?
Discussion
I was prompted by a post in the "Would you buy a notorious house/building?" Thread where someone talked about being Ian Brady's paper boy.
It got me wondering if I've ever met anyone evil. Especially someone who later went on to become infamous.
In my career as a journalist I met a few murderers, but no one infamous. I spent an afternoon through work with Jimmy Saville and an evening - again through work - with Gary Glitter. All this long before any of their evil deeds came to light.
I don't want it to turn into a "I knew Jimmy Savile" thread as there's already one on the go.
So, did anyone have Harold Shipman as their GP? What was he like? Did Fred West do a bit of building work for your folks back in the 1970s? Was Peter Sutcliffe someone you knew locally? That sort of thing.
It got me wondering if I've ever met anyone evil. Especially someone who later went on to become infamous.
In my career as a journalist I met a few murderers, but no one infamous. I spent an afternoon through work with Jimmy Saville and an evening - again through work - with Gary Glitter. All this long before any of their evil deeds came to light.
I don't want it to turn into a "I knew Jimmy Savile" thread as there's already one on the go.
So, did anyone have Harold Shipman as their GP? What was he like? Did Fred West do a bit of building work for your folks back in the 1970s? Was Peter Sutcliffe someone you knew locally? That sort of thing.
Not me, but Harold Shipman was the GP for my old boss & his family. He said he was a really friendly bloke & great with the kids.
I also sat next but one to Jimmy Saville in my local one night. Dressed up in all his usual weird crap & wearing persimmon Oakleys indoors. He was a very funny man to listen to, just a bit odd.
I also sat next but one to Jimmy Saville in my local one night. Dressed up in all his usual weird crap & wearing persimmon Oakleys indoors. He was a very funny man to listen to, just a bit odd.
https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&a... yes this bloke used to try and hang out with me and my mates in the little park opposite 6 form. Always thought him creepy but harmless until he went Hannibal lector on some woman.
Was in a rough area of Brum, a bit pished. Asked a geezer for directions...he pointed thataway. As his arm swung round to point something fell out of his sleeve & clattered to the ground. Being the gent that I am I picked it up & handed it to him. It was a massive machete covered in very fresh and runny blood. He looked at me, I looked at him.
When I was working in Byker (Newcastle) during the mid 1980's Viv Graham used to come into our place to see the boss.
I wouldn't say he was evil, well, if you crossed him....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFVvgPIN7OI
I wouldn't say he was evil, well, if you crossed him....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFVvgPIN7OI
Ummm - just before Christmas 2001, and scruffy looking guy enquired about renting a car from the place I worked at the time to take to France for Christmas. We gave him a relatively high price as we thought that would deter him, but he accepted and wanted to book there and then.
We went through the usual checks, driving licence, bank statements etc, and run it through a High Risk Renter database. It came back as "Do Not Rent". When this happened, we were never told specific reasons why (data protection or something) but the typical reaction was either the shouty abusive howverydareyou type, or a simple shrug and OK, I'll go elsewhere that doesn't check me out properly.
The scruffy dude was in the latter category, and simply left.
A few days later we saw the mugshot of the same scruffy dude after he had been detained at Boston airport - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Reid
Needless to say, the intelligence services were very keen to get our CCTV footage and copies of any ID we had.
We went through the usual checks, driving licence, bank statements etc, and run it through a High Risk Renter database. It came back as "Do Not Rent". When this happened, we were never told specific reasons why (data protection or something) but the typical reaction was either the shouty abusive howverydareyou type, or a simple shrug and OK, I'll go elsewhere that doesn't check me out properly.
The scruffy dude was in the latter category, and simply left.
A few days later we saw the mugshot of the same scruffy dude after he had been detained at Boston airport - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Reid
Needless to say, the intelligence services were very keen to get our CCTV footage and copies of any ID we had.
Edited by S11Steve on Tuesday 21st March 10:50
edgyedgy said:
https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source=web&a... yes this bloke used to try and hang out with me and my mates in the little park opposite 6 form. Always thought him creepy but harmless until he went Hannibal lector on some woman.
I covered that story as a Young journalist. Some really creepy stuff came out in court. I think the case was led by a legendary old school detective called Dave Gray.Went to visit my best pal when he was at Gloucester College. His address...27 Cromwell Street! I've still got a letter from him with that address on it. He had a T-shirt made with "I was Fred West's neighbour".
He used to say he often took girls home but never saw them again!
Also later, I was looking to move to Halifax and went to look at a nice house in the grounds of a park. It seemed very cheap and we were interested in buying it...until the girls in the office said the Yorkshire Ripper murdered one of his victims just next to it. (Didn't move to Halifax in the end).
He used to say he often took girls home but never saw them again!
Also later, I was looking to move to Halifax and went to look at a nice house in the grounds of a park. It seemed very cheap and we were interested in buying it...until the girls in the office said the Yorkshire Ripper murdered one of his victims just next to it. (Didn't move to Halifax in the end).
wildcat45 said:
I was prompted by a post in the "Would you buy a notorious house/building?" Thread where someone talked about being Ian Brady's paper boy
That was my cousin, who was about ten at the time. Hindley and Brady used to invite him into their house for "sweets"......fortunately he's still around.I used to watch Ian Brady be brought to magistrates court every day from my school window. He later went on to Chester crown court.
My cousin lived just round the corner from their house on Wardle Brook Avenue, Hattersley, in Hyde Cheshire. The house has now been demolished.
Dale Gregan, who shot the two young unarmed policewomen a few years ago did it in the garden of a house half a mile away, also on Hattersley estate.
Dr Shipman's surgery was in Hyde town centre, a mile or so away.
Life on Mars with Philip Gennister was set in Hyde.
Not sure if this counts but when I was a kid, me and my older brother had been playing in the local woods, as we were leaving an old boy asked us if there was a swing in the woods. We said yes and he asked us if we would take him there. We Said we were waiting for our parents and watched him disappear into the woods. After a few minutes we heard someone screaming help me, we were convinced it was him trying to get us to come into the woods.
Not long after there was a local guy convicted of killing a school kid.
Also my brother sold a car to a guy who had just been released from prison for killing his wife with an axe after finding her in bed with his mate. He told him it drank oil and needed checking at every fuel stop. He seized up about a week later and came back into the pub, my brother nearly shat a conker but he walked over, shook his hand and said 'you're right'!
Oh how we laughed
Not long after there was a local guy convicted of killing a school kid.
Also my brother sold a car to a guy who had just been released from prison for killing his wife with an axe after finding her in bed with his mate. He told him it drank oil and needed checking at every fuel stop. He seized up about a week later and came back into the pub, my brother nearly shat a conker but he walked over, shook his hand and said 'you're right'!
Oh how we laughed
I've interviewed people for rape, various levels of other sexual assault, possession of indecent images of children, serious assaults, murder, attempted murder, domestic violence... I wouldn't say any of them have actually been evil (although I'm sure there are offenders who are). I'd describe them more as inadequate, or a bit slow.
That doesn't lessen the impact on the victim, but "master criminals" are few and far between (you could say that's fortunate. Thinking of some of my colleagues, I'd be inclined to agree).
That doesn't lessen the impact on the victim, but "master criminals" are few and far between (you could say that's fortunate. Thinking of some of my colleagues, I'd be inclined to agree).
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