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| Ronnie Biggs, face of Great Train Robbery, slips away with perfect timing | Ronnie Biggs, face of Great Train Robbery, slips away with perfect timing |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| The last of the many photographs in Odd Man Out, the autobiography of Ronnie Biggs, the Great Train Robber who has died at the age of 84, shows him dressed as Santa Claus and making a cheery two-fingered gesture to the camera. "Bah! Humbug!" reads the caption. What more timely image could there be for his departure than a Christmas costume and a prescience for all the humbug that will inevitably attend his death. | The last of the many photographs in Odd Man Out, the autobiography of Ronnie Biggs, the Great Train Robber who has died at the age of 84, shows him dressed as Santa Claus and making a cheery two-fingered gesture to the camera. "Bah! Humbug!" reads the caption. What more timely image could there be for his departure than a Christmas costume and a prescience for all the humbug that will inevitably attend his death. |
| "Sadly, we lost Ron during the night," said a brief message on his web-site – yes, these days, even old villains have their own websites and Twitter accounts. "As always, his timing was perfect." Indeed it was. This very week, some 50 years on from the "crime of the century", the BBC is broadcasting its widely heralded, two-part drama on the case. ITV have already paid their dramatic respects, as it were, with last year's garlanded five-parter, Mrs Biggs, based on his long-suffering wife, Charmian. | "Sadly, we lost Ron during the night," said a brief message on his web-site – yes, these days, even old villains have their own websites and Twitter accounts. "As always, his timing was perfect." Indeed it was. This very week, some 50 years on from the "crime of the century", the BBC is broadcasting its widely heralded, two-part drama on the case. ITV have already paid their dramatic respects, as it were, with last year's garlanded five-parter, Mrs Biggs, based on his long-suffering wife, Charmian. |
| Timing was always a key part of Biggs's career. It was in 1963, when he was working as a carpenter in Redhill, Surrey, and short of money after the birth of his second son, that he decided to call Bruce Reynolds, whom he had first met in prison, to ask if he could borrow some money. | Timing was always a key part of Biggs's career. It was in 1963, when he was working as a carpenter in Redhill, Surrey, and short of money after the birth of his second son, that he decided to call Bruce Reynolds, whom he had first met in prison, to ask if he could borrow some money. |
| Reynolds, already well into the planning stages of the train robbery, offered him a "piece of business" with a minimum of £40,000 on offer. | Reynolds, already well into the planning stages of the train robbery, offered him a "piece of business" with a minimum of £40,000 on offer. |
| "I'm in," said Biggs, the following morning and so, for better or worse, he has been in for the last 50 years. | "I'm in," said Biggs, the following morning and so, for better or worse, he has been in for the last 50 years. |
| Biggs escapes. Biggs in Paris. Biggs in Australia. Biggs in Rio. | Biggs escapes. Biggs in Paris. Biggs in Australia. Biggs in Rio. |
| Biggs arrested. Biggs released. Biggs a dad. Biggs kidnapped by bounty-hunters. Biggs in Barbados. Biggs freed. Biggs's son a pop star. Biggs and the Sex Pistols. Biggs and Bobby Moore. And then, finally, laid low by strokes, penury, depression and ill health, Biggs back in Britain. Biggs in jail again. Biggs near death. Biggs and Jack Straw. Biggs in a care home. And, in a gradual descent into bathos, Biggs's mobility scooter vandalised. Ronald Arthur Biggs, whose first appearance in court was as a 15-year-old in 1945 for stealing an eraser from a Littlewoods window display, could never quite get rubbed out of the national consciousness. | Biggs arrested. Biggs released. Biggs a dad. Biggs kidnapped by bounty-hunters. Biggs in Barbados. Biggs freed. Biggs's son a pop star. Biggs and the Sex Pistols. Biggs and Bobby Moore. And then, finally, laid low by strokes, penury, depression and ill health, Biggs back in Britain. Biggs in jail again. Biggs near death. Biggs and Jack Straw. Biggs in a care home. And, in a gradual descent into bathos, Biggs's mobility scooter vandalised. Ronald Arthur Biggs, whose first appearance in court was as a 15-year-old in 1945 for stealing an eraser from a Littlewoods window display, could never quite get rubbed out of the national consciousness. |
| So why – or, if you pick up another newspaper today, more likely, why-oh-why? – is someone who took part in what was essentially a botched robbery half a century ago still the subject of such deep and enduring curiosity? | So why – or, if you pick up another newspaper today, more likely, why-oh-why? – is someone who took part in what was essentially a botched robbery half a century ago still the subject of such deep and enduring curiosity? |
| Partly, it was to do with the robbery itself. The theft of a train was the stuff of fantasy and movies. Black Bess rides into the 20th century. Indeed, the 1903 black-and-white film, The Great Train Robbery, which first laid claim to the title, had already realised the mythic power of stopping a train in its tracks and removing the loot from its carriages. In addition, the Royal Mail, whose bags, stuffed with banknotes, were stolen, was then a revered national institution, unimaginable that it could ever be flogged off to plug a hole in the economy. Robbing the Royal Mail was, as the trial judge, Mr Justice Edmund Davies, told Biggs, "a crime which, in its impudence and enormity, is the first of its kind in this country." | Partly, it was to do with the robbery itself. The theft of a train was the stuff of fantasy and movies. Black Bess rides into the 20th century. Indeed, the 1903 black-and-white film, The Great Train Robbery, which first laid claim to the title, had already realised the mythic power of stopping a train in its tracks and removing the loot from its carriages. In addition, the Royal Mail, whose bags, stuffed with banknotes, were stolen, was then a revered national institution, unimaginable that it could ever be flogged off to plug a hole in the economy. Robbing the Royal Mail was, as the trial judge, Mr Justice Edmund Davies, told Biggs, "a crime which, in its impudence and enormity, is the first of its kind in this country." |
| But it was, perhaps, the 30-year sentences the robbers received that played a major part in creating the myths around them. Had they been given the normal terms of the time, between 10 and 12 years – even when violence had been involved – they might have made fewer attempts to escape, as Biggs did so successfully. And had he not escaped and then skipped from continent to continent, Biggs would never have ended up on so many front pages and leading so many bulletins. | But it was, perhaps, the 30-year sentences the robbers received that played a major part in creating the myths around them. Had they been given the normal terms of the time, between 10 and 12 years – even when violence had been involved – they might have made fewer attempts to escape, as Biggs did so successfully. And had he not escaped and then skipped from continent to continent, Biggs would never have ended up on so many front pages and leading so many bulletins. |
| Once the rope-ladder had taken him over the wall from the exercise yard in Wandsworth prison in 1965, Biggs embarked on a lifelong, symbiotic relationship with the media. While to Scotland Yard, his presence on the run was a constant irritant, to the press, Biggs was a constant rolling story. Eventually he realised that if you can't beat 'em, you might as well join 'em. Always a sociable character, Biggs sensed that, although he was always wary of the press, he might as well make money from his notoriety. | Once the rope-ladder had taken him over the wall from the exercise yard in Wandsworth prison in 1965, Biggs embarked on a lifelong, symbiotic relationship with the media. While to Scotland Yard, his presence on the run was a constant irritant, to the press, Biggs was a constant rolling story. Eventually he realised that if you can't beat 'em, you might as well join 'em. Always a sociable character, Biggs sensed that, although he was always wary of the press, he might as well make money from his notoriety. |
| During his 36 years at large, there never seemed to be a shortage of a reporter with a chequebook to hand. He was the pimpernel, the odd man out, the great escaper, the prisoner of Rio, the lovable rogue on the run. Even after his final release from prison in 2009, when he was on his best behaviour and with the parole board looking over his shoulder, one newspaper was offering him £20,000 for a photo session at the scene of the robbery in Buckinghamshire. | During his 36 years at large, there never seemed to be a shortage of a reporter with a chequebook to hand. He was the pimpernel, the odd man out, the great escaper, the prisoner of Rio, the lovable rogue on the run. Even after his final release from prison in 2009, when he was on his best behaviour and with the parole board looking over his shoulder, one newspaper was offering him £20,000 for a photo session at the scene of the robbery in Buckinghamshire. |
| The final four years he spent out of prison before his death were somewhat quieter than the raucous ones in Rio that had offered him sanctuary for so long. He went to watch Brazil play Scotland at the Emirates stadium and saw the relaunch of his updated autobiography, Odd Man Out: the Last Straw at Shoreditch House, in east London. In the foreword to his updated autobiography in 2011, he reflected: "After so many years on the run and looking over my shoulder, I hope to now have the opportunity to gaze on England's green and pleasant land and make my peace with my homeland. | The final four years he spent out of prison before his death were somewhat quieter than the raucous ones in Rio that had offered him sanctuary for so long. He went to watch Brazil play Scotland at the Emirates stadium and saw the relaunch of his updated autobiography, Odd Man Out: the Last Straw at Shoreditch House, in east London. In the foreword to his updated autobiography in 2011, he reflected: "After so many years on the run and looking over my shoulder, I hope to now have the opportunity to gaze on England's green and pleasant land and make my peace with my homeland. |
| "It would be nice if Arsenal could pick up the odd trophy along the way, but beggars can't always be choosers." | "It would be nice if Arsenal could pick up the odd trophy along the way, but beggars can't always be choosers." |
| Perhaps, with that keen sense of timing, Biggs felt that the moment to depart was when his team were still, if only just, top of the Premier League. The twitterati, who can apparently never let the death of famous person pass without adding their own baleful contributions, have already been busy. "Ronnie Biggs was a violent criminal who evaded justice for decades," tweeted one Tory MEP candidate. "I find today's gushing eulogies slightly offensive." | Perhaps, with that keen sense of timing, Biggs felt that the moment to depart was when his team were still, if only just, top of the Premier League. The twitterati, who can apparently never let the death of famous person pass without adding their own baleful contributions, have already been busy. "Ronnie Biggs was a violent criminal who evaded justice for decades," tweeted one Tory MEP candidate. "I find today's gushing eulogies slightly offensive." |
| There will be more, much more, of the same. | There will be more, much more, of the same. |
| Biggs was often asked whether he had regrets about being one of the train robbers and his final answer was: "No, I am proud to have been one of them. I am equally happy to be described as the 'tea-boy' or 'the Brain'." But he did add: "I do have regrets about the crime. It is regrettable, as I have said many times, that the train driver [Jack Mills who was coshed, but not by Biggs] was injured." | Biggs was often asked whether he had regrets about being one of the train robbers and his final answer was: "No, I am proud to have been one of them. I am equally happy to be described as the 'tea-boy' or 'the Brain'." But he did add: "I do have regrets about the crime. It is regrettable, as I have said many times, that the train driver [Jack Mills who was coshed, but not by Biggs] was injured." |
| Among the other photos in his autobiography is one of Biggs and Jack Slipper, the dogged detective superintendent who pursued him to Brazil, only to be rebuffed by that country's legal system and sent home empty-handed. The two met up again in Rio years later. "Time heals most things," says the caption of the presence of the forgiving Slipper. | Among the other photos in his autobiography is one of Biggs and Jack Slipper, the dogged detective superintendent who pursued him to Brazil, only to be rebuffed by that country's legal system and sent home empty-handed. The two met up again in Rio years later. "Time heals most things," says the caption of the presence of the forgiving Slipper. |
| Time, however, does not seem to have ended the public's love-hate-love relationship with the robbery and its protagonists. | Time, however, does not seem to have ended the public's love-hate-love relationship with the robbery and its protagonists. |
| Most of the main players have departed the scene now. Bruce Reynolds died earlier this year and Biggs was present, along with a two-fingered salute for the press, both for his funeral and for the burial of Reynolds's ashes in Highgate cemetery some months later. | Most of the main players have departed the scene now. Bruce Reynolds died earlier this year and Biggs was present, along with a two-fingered salute for the press, both for his funeral and for the burial of Reynolds's ashes in Highgate cemetery some months later. |
| Charlie Wilson was shot dead in the south of Spain in 1990. Buster Edwards killed himself in 1994. Jimmy Hussey died last year. A few of the others, such as Gordon Goody, who lives on in ill-health in the south of Spain, survive. But with Biggs departing for the great exercise yard in the sky, perhaps the nation's fascination with what happened at 3am on an August morning at Bridego bridge some 50 years ago will finally start to dissipate. Or perhaps not. | Charlie Wilson was shot dead in the south of Spain in 1990. Buster Edwards killed himself in 1994. Jimmy Hussey died last year. A few of the others, such as Gordon Goody, who lives on in ill-health in the south of Spain, survive. But with Biggs departing for the great exercise yard in the sky, perhaps the nation's fascination with what happened at 3am on an August morning at Bridego bridge some 50 years ago will finally start to dissipate. Or perhaps not. |
| A life on the run | A life on the run |
| September 1963 Biggs arrested after gang is tracked down by police led by Scotland Yard detective Jack Slipper. | September 1963 Biggs arrested after gang is tracked down by police led by Scotland Yard detective Jack Slipper. |
| January 1964 Biggs stands trial for the robbery and is jailed for 30 years. | January 1964 Biggs stands trial for the robbery and is jailed for 30 years. |
| 1965 After 15 months, he escapes from Wandsworth prison by scaling a wall and jumping on to a mattress in an open-top van. Biggs takes his wife, Charmian, and sons to Spain after having plastic surgery in France. | 1965 After 15 months, he escapes from Wandsworth prison by scaling a wall and jumping on to a mattress in an open-top van. Biggs takes his wife, Charmian, and sons to Spain after having plastic surgery in France. |
| 1969 Biggs tracked by Scotland Yard to Melbourne and flees to Brazil. | 1969 Biggs tracked by Scotland Yard to Melbourne and flees to Brazil. |
| 1970 Train driver Jack Mills, who never made a full recovery after being coshed during the robbery, dies. | 1970 Train driver Jack Mills, who never made a full recovery after being coshed during the robbery, dies. |
| 1974 Biggs agrees deal with Daily Express amid rumours of his surrender but the paper contacts Slipper, who arrests him in Rio de Janeiro. Biggs's extradition is blocked because of his Brazilian dependent – a son, Michael, by his girlfriend, Raimunda. | 1974 Biggs agrees deal with Daily Express amid rumours of his surrender but the paper contacts Slipper, who arrests him in Rio de Janeiro. Biggs's extradition is blocked because of his Brazilian dependent – a son, Michael, by his girlfriend, Raimunda. |
| 1977 Biggs visits British frigate Danae in Rio. Surprisingly, he is not arrested. | 1977 Biggs visits British frigate Danae in Rio. Surprisingly, he is not arrested. |
| 1978 Records No One is Innocent with the Sex Pistols. | 1978 Records No One is Innocent with the Sex Pistols. |
| 1981 Biggs kidnapped and smuggled to Barbados but allowed to return to Rio. | 1981 Biggs kidnapped and smuggled to Barbados but allowed to return to Rio. |
| 2001 After three strokes, Biggs returns to UK and is sent back to prison. | 2001 After three strokes, Biggs returns to UK and is sent back to prison. |
| 2009 Biggs released on compassionate grounds. | |
| • This article was amended on 19 December 2013. In the earlier version, a subheading referred to a "botched and fatal heist". In fact no one was killed during the 1963 robbery. Jack Mills, who was injured, died in 1970 of leukaemia; the West Cheshire coroner decided not to hold an inquest into the death and said it was not connected to the injuries Mills suffered in the robbery. | • This article was amended on 19 December 2013. In the earlier version, a subheading referred to a "botched and fatal heist". In fact no one was killed during the 1963 robbery. Jack Mills, who was injured, died in 1970 of leukaemia; the West Cheshire coroner decided not to hold an inquest into the death and said it was not connected to the injuries Mills suffered in the robbery. |
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