Freddie Foreman (born 5 March 1932), better known as Brown Bread Fred, is an English publican, gangster, former associate of the

Kray twins Ronald Kray (24 October 193317 March 1995) and Reginald Kray (24 October 19331 October 2000) were identical twin brothers, gangsters and convicted criminals. They were the foremost perpetrators of organised crime in the East End of London, Engl ...

and convicted criminal. Foreman was a prominent figure in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

gangland from the 1950s through to the 1980s.

Early life

Frederick Gerald Foreman was born at 22 Sheepcote Lane,

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batt ...

on 5 March 1932, the son of Herbert Albert Foreman.

Criminal history

Foreman was nicknamed "Brown Bread Fred" (‘Brown Bread’ being

Cockney Cockney is an accent and dialect of English, mainly spoken in London and its environs, particularly by working-class and lower middle-class Londoners. The term "Cockney" has traditionally been used to describe a person from the East End, or ...

rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymi ...

for ‘Dead’), as he was known in the underworld for being able to dispose of bodies. For a large part of the 1960s, Foreman and the

' gang The Firm, ruled the streets in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have univ ...

. But Foreman’s association with them ended when all three were imprisoned. At the time of the arrests, Foreman was 36 years old and licensee of The Prince of Wales on

Lant Street Lant Street is a street south of Marshalsea Road in Southwark, south London, England.Lant Street Association ...

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

. Foreman was involved in the disposal of the body of Jack "the Hat" McVitie (murdered by Reggie Kray). He was sentenced to ten years in prison. Foreman was later sentenced to nine years

imprisonment Imprisonment is the restraint of a person's liberty, for any cause whatsoever, whether by authority of the government, or by a person acting without such authority. In the latter case it is " false imprisonment". Imprisonment does not necessar ...

for handling proceeds from the Security Express robbery in

Shoreditch Shoreditch is a district in the East End of London in England, and forms the southern part of the London Borough of Hackney. Neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets are also perceived as part of the area. In the 16th century, Shoreditch was an imp ...

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the ...

in 1983, which at the time was the largest cash robbery in the UK along with

Ronnie Knight Ronnie Knight (born 20 January 1934) is an English former nightclub owner and convicted criminal. On 4 January 1995, 16 days prior to his 61st birthday, Knight was sentenced to seven years imprisonment for handling £314,813 in stolen money fro ...

and Cliford Saxe. and for which he received nine years in prison. In his autobiography, ''Respect'', Foreman also admitted to the murders of Frank "Mad Axeman" Mitchell and Tommy "Ginger" Marks during the 1960s in revenge for the shooting of his brother who had been shot in the groin. He had been acquitted of these murders at an

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

trial in the 1960s. Foreman has served a total of 16 years in prison.

Television

''Fred (2018)''

In 2018, it was announced that a biopic documentary would be made on Foreman, directed by his son Jamie. Rather than glamorizing Foreman’s life of crime, ''Fred'' is billed as a somber and intimate look at the notorious villain towards the end of his life. The biopic was written and directed by

Paul Van Carter Paul Van Carter (born 15 November 1976) is a British film producer, novelist, and music producer. As a producer, his most recent films include the double BAFTA nominated '' McQueen'' about the life of fashion designer Alexander McQueen distribut ...

. ''Fred'' was released in the UK on 17 March 2018.

Personal life

Foreman is married to Maureen Foreman. Together they have three children, actor Jamie Foreman, Gregory and Danielle. Foreman has 3 grandchildren. In 2018, it was reported Foreman was living in a

nursing home A nursing home is a facility for the residential care of elderly or disabled people. Nursing homes may also be referred to as skilled nursing facility (SNF) or long-term care facilities. Often, these terms have slightly different meanings to i ...

with no money, estranged from his family.

Published works

Foreman has authored 10 books. # ''Respect'' (1997) # ''The God Father of British Crime'' (2005) # ''Brown Bread Fred'' (2007) # ''Getting it Straight'' (2011) # ''The Last Real Gangster'' (2015) # ''Freddie Foreman Pictures'' (2015) # ''The Krays "Read all About It"'' (2016) # ''Freddie Foreman in Pictures'' (2017) # ''Running with The Krays'' (2017) # ''The Godfather of British Crime'' (2018)

References

Literature

* 1932 births Living people English gangsters 20th-century English criminals British people convicted of robbery Criminals from London {{England-crime-bio-stub