The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins

By: John Pearson

Narrated by: Martin Shaw

Heroes or villains? You decide....

In the 1960s, 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.

On the March 17, 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. Five years later, Reggie Kray died of cancer, thus closing a particularly dark chapter in the history of London's underworld.

Read by acclaimed actor Martin Shaw, this is the true story of their rise and fall.

©2012 The Copyright Group (P)2012 The Copyright Group

Very interesting

Enjoyed the back story of where the twins came from and about life during mid-century England

only issue was with the performer was the constant swallowing/spit / mouth noises. ..can't these be edited out? His overall reading was great and all the different accents were wonderful

Intriguing

The narrator's nose whistle and constant swallowing and slushing of spit is very off-putting . Takes one right out of the story. Accents were great though.

Intriguing story

I find the Kray twins fascinating and this book captures their story very well. Enjoyed it so much listened to it for a second time. Great narration!

Incredible Story, Writing is Dated

Incredible listen, absolutely fascinating source materials obviously. The two twins that came to run half of England's crime scene? It'd be a challenge to muck that up. That being said, I feel both several of the authors comments, especially when addressing homosexuality are quite dated. Also, the author attempts to shoehorn in a message regarding morality, and the issue of how societies should be organized and present themselves instead of simple supplying the listener/reader with the facts and a compelling story. It is frustrating that when I'd simply wished to hear about these brothers and their story, that I also must suffer the posh intellectual musings of an author who clearly has his own agenda in his writing.

great story aand it is true

Would you listen to The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins again? Why?

yes - very interesting

What about Martin Shaw’s performance did you like?

exceptional - has a great voice to listen to. He gives each character a personality.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

ruthless

A Gripping Crime Story - Perfectly Read

I have always been fascinated by the Kray Bothers and this book provides a vivid , compelling and well-researched look at their lives and their crimes.. Martin Shaw reading is forceful and witty bu not obtrusive. A real pro, he dies a great Cockney accent.

Excellent non-fiction

This is better than fiction! Gives bare necessities of background and concentrates on their “professional” career and how they were finally imprisoned for good at the age of only 34.

seen the movie Legend

Great story wish I knew the mafia parts before. I never knew they were real till the movie.

Mouth noise

Mouth noise. No editing whatsoever. Great content. Horrible production. You can even hear the narrator drinking water at one point. Amateur production.

Interesting audiobook hampered by technical issues

I enjoyed the reader and the writing, but the audio of the final chapter suddenly got very scratchy and grating, and the musical cues at the chapter starts didn’t really add anything and we’re somewhat annoying, even.