The notorious Kray twins were remembered for their ruthless control over London’s underworld but were also well-known figures on the capital’s club scene.
At their nightclub The Double R Club, they mingled with some of the biggest stars of their time, including Carry On legend Barbara Windsor and future James Bond Roger Moore.
But one celebrity who narrowly avoided a run-in with the infamous gangsters was the petite comedy actor Ronnie Corbett.
A resurfaced interview with writer Barry Cryer for the My Time Capsule podcast recounts how the 5’1″ star was performing at a Soho club called Winston’s in the mid-1960s.
(Image: PA)
The club was a typical late-night Soho haunt, frequented by actors and gangsters alike. Corbett was on stage as part of a revue called Travelling Light when someone in the audience threw a bread roll at him. In an attempt to throw it back, Corbett accidentally hit Ronnie Kray square in the face.
Fortunately, as Cryer explained, the Krays were big fans of Corbett, who was already a well-known figure thanks to his work on BBC1’s The Frost Report and various films.
As a result, Ronnie Kray chose not to take offence. Barry recalled: “Ron was on a little glass stage at Winston’s one night and somebody threw a bread roll and hit him in the face.
“He threw it back and hit Ronnie Kray in the face… thank God they laughed. “
(Image: Getty Images)
He further revealed that despite their criminal activities, the Krays were sticklers for good manners. This was evident when someone swore in front of Barry’s wife, the nightclub singer Theresa Donovan. Barry recalled: “Ronnie and Reggie knew that Terry, my darling, was in the show and we were newly married.
This was a nice girl so a man got smacked very hard in the face one night for saying ‘Bloody’ in front of Terry. “”You killed people, but that was business.
You did not swear in front of a nice girl.” The Krays, at least as far as they were concerned, ruled the city during that period.
(Image: Getty Images)
Film director Peter Medak shared an encounter he had with the twins while filming Sparrows Can’t Sing starring Barbara Windsor in the East End. He said: “The crew was pointing at me and said, ‘That geezer over there’. Then these two guys came over and said to me, ‘Who gave you permission to shoot here?
“Because nobody asked us. I said, ‘Obviously the police, because we have permission for filming in all the streets of the East End’.
“And they said, ‘Nobody asked us and you could get into big trouble. ‘I said, ‘Like what?’ and they said, ‘Like getting killed’.”
Barry Cryer recounted how the notorious twins would often invite guests for an after-party at their home post-Winston’s 3am closing, though he wisely never accepted.
(Image: Getty Images)
He recalled: “They used to invite you somewhere this is 3am, after our show. I used to lie, saying ‘Oh mate I’ve got to be up early in the morning, I’m filming.’
“Don’t go anywhere with them, you’re on your own turf here, with Danny and the gang. Stay there don’t go anywhere with the Krays. God knows what would happen. “
Ronnie Kray wrote fondly of the happy nights when he rubbed shoulders with entertainment titans. “They were the best years of our lives,” he said.” They called them the Swinging Sixties. The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were rulers of pop music, Carnaby Street ruled the fashion world… and me and my brother ruled London. We were f***ing untouchable.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
