The Profession Of Violence; The Rise And Fall Of The Kray Twins. Heroes or villains? In the 1960's London's gangland was ruled by two men - Reggie and Ronnie Kray. Building an empire of crime by intimidation, extortion and terror on a scale never seen before or since, they feted stars of stage and screen, sportsmen and even politicians to gain the respectability they craved. Listen to the story of the rise and fall of the Krays. On the 17th March 1995, Ronnie Kray died suddenly of a heart attack while serving a life sentence for murder. His funeral was watched by over 50,000 people. Reggie died of cancer in 2000. Read by acclaimed actor Martin Shaw, probably most famous for his role as Doyle in The Professionals, he is hugely respected and talented and a regular favourite on TV and in the theatre.
It was a strong face, certainly - the eyes pale grey and very cold, the mouth was hard, the dark hair - grey-streaked now - still fell in the authentic comma over the forehead.'
This is how John Pearson reacted to his first encounter with the real James Bond, an encounter probably unique in the annals of thriller writing. He went on to write the bestselling authorised biography of Ian Fleming. At the time, like most of the world he assumed that James Bond was nothing more than a character in Fleming's highly charged imagination. Then he began to have his doubts. Doubts which were reaching such a pitch that the British secret service were trying to warn him off the scent. Despite this, he finally became convinced that James Bond was not only real, but actually alive.
Thanks to a change in policy within the secret service he was invited to embark upon a companion volume to his life of Fleming. This resulting book must be one of the most extraordinary biographies of our times - the authorised life of a myth, the official biography of James Bond.
Here Pearson reveals amazing adventures, situations and incidents only hinted at in Ian Fleming's books; the story of Bond's life, the Bonds of Glencoe; the night he lost his wallet and his virginity in Paris - and found his first love; his first assignment - to save the bank at Monte Carlo; his duel with the S.S.; his women, scandals and tastes - all here revealed. This promises to show a side of Bond never seen before.
