Micky Fawcett’s Krayzy Days memories
In a blog last June, I mentioned that, in the ‘Revised and Updated’ 3rd Edition of John Pearson’s highly-respected book The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins. it was implied that legendary London gangsters the Kray Twins had killed their driver Billy Frost in the 1960s but, in fact, I had tea with Billy Frost in 2009 and we had exchanged Christmas cards ever since.
Micky Fawcett’s book Krayzy Days clears up many myths and misconceptions about the Kray Twins. I was chatting to him this week at his regular haunt The May Fair Hotel in London.
“I know how that strange story about Frostie got round,” he told me.
“Is it in your book?” I asked.
“I don’t think so,” he told me. “There are so many things. I could have written two books.”
“I hope you will,” I said.
“A fellow I know named Willie…” Micky told me. “He’s from Aldgate – his real name is Wolf – and he was brought up round Petticoat Lane. He was a very shrewd guy – a sharp Yiddisher guy – and he used to make a few quid, which attracted The Twins and he was terrified of them.
Micky Fawcett at the May Fair Hotel in London
“One day, there was a knock on his door and a couple of fellers asked for him. He wasn’t there, but his wife got him on the phone and they said to him: The Twins want to see you.
“Well, I can’t drop everything and go and see them now, he told ‘em. He said: I’ll meet you outside The Beehive – a pub nearby. They’ve got a car park there and, if you pull in, I’ll come with you then.
“We was having trouble with The Twins at the time and Willie was a good friend of mine. A good friend. He told me and two other guys what had happened.
“We told Willie: We’ll give ‘em a little reception party when they arrive at The Beehive.
“So we go there and wait and, when they come along, we make our presence known and we’ve got guns, which we show ‘em and they run – jump in their car – and, as they pulled away, I took a shot at one of ‘em through the back window just to let ‘em know we were serious. Nothing more than that.
“I turned round and said to Willie: Well, THEY won’t come back, will they?
“And he said to me: You’ve hit him, you know – That hit him!
“I said: No it didn’t – It missed!
“And he said: Mick. I’m telling you that hit him. I saw him slump.
“I told him: I’m sure it didn’t.
“It took a little bit of time – no-one heard nothing. Willie lived over in Essex, but his brother Davey still lived in Aldgate. So he told him: Have a listen round. See what you can hear about it.
Billy Frost – still sending Christmas cards
“So, a bit later, Willie got in touch and told me: I’ve found out who that was. David said there’s a geezer called Frostie. He’s disappeared. No-one knows where he is.
“And it went on from there and Willie would still probably think The Twins had disposed of him out of embarrassment.”
“Even to this day?” I asked.
“I think he would,” Micky told me.
“Are you on Billy Frost’s Christmas card list?” I asked.
“I’ve never met him,” said Micky.
