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Think you know Britain's underworld? Think again!
In New York, Boston and Chicago they'd be known as the Irish Mob. In London, elite criminal gangs of Irish descent have forever come under the common guise of Cockney diamond geezers and gals - that is until now. Because scratching beneath the surface of the capital's dark criminal underbelly we soon discover a tough and ruthless breed of top-echelon brigands with the green blood of Mother Ireland coursing through their veins. From Billy Hill to Mickey Greene and from Alice Diamond to Josie Daly, no other ethnic group has reached the summit of London gangland so ruthlessly and successfully as one of the capital's oldest immigrant tribes - the Cockney Irish.
Featuring unique access and interviews with the major players and their associates, Green Bloods reveals the true story behind their headline grabbing multi-million pound heists, bloody turf war slayings, international drug smuggling rackets, dramatic courtroom escapes and feuds with the Krays, the Turks and the Triads. Forming close bonds with the IRA, the New York Mafia's deadly Five Families, the powerful Corsican Unione Corse, Colombian drug cartels and Hollywood stars Frank Sinatra, Richard Harris, Errol Flynn and Peter O'Toole; the story of the Green Bloods is a bloody and often brutal London Irish tale interwoven between abject poverty, prejudice, tragedy and sometimes redemption. This is as up close and personal as it gets. So, for the very first time meet London's Irish Mob; meet the Celtic criminal chieftains and clans of the treacherous Big Smoke...
'Green Bloods is a must read for anyone interested in the history of organised crime and in the complex, ingenious mindset of Irish criminals. This really is Nolan's debut masterpiece, a book he was born to write.'
Noel 'Razor' Smith, ex bank-robber and author of A Few Kind Words And A Loaded Gun, Raiders and A Rusty Gun
'A talented musician, film-maker and podcaster, Nolan can now add published author to his name with the much-awaited release of Green Bloods. It's an engaging and entertaining read covering the wild, colourful, but often elusive history of London Irish criminality. Steeped in mad urban capers and skulduggery, this masterful work of essential research and Celtic humour is sure to go down in history as an important real crime classic.'
Michael Keenaghan, author of London Is Dead, Smiler With Knife and Cocaine Eyes
'A gripping insight into the history and conditions that created many of the most powerful, daring and creative figures in that famous ancient city's underworld. Full of great imagery and storytelling, Andy glides us through a birds-eye peak into many shady parts of London I had never heard of and only certain Londoners know about. The Krays were in the ha'penny place compared to most of these bucks - a dozen film scripts that have never been written can be found within this heart-pounding true crime epic.'
Damien Dempsey, Irish singer/songwriter
'Andy Nolan, long respected on the musical and literary London Irish scene, now uses his incredible talents and passion to delve deep into the city's darker side, London's Irish criminal underworld. Buckle up and get ready for the ride!'
Siobhan MacGowan, author of The Trial of Lotta Rae and The Graces - journalist, actress and sister of the late, great Shane MacGowan
'Screenwriter, producer, one-time Pope, BibleCodeSundays lifer and a man who is to the accordion, what Stéphane Grapelli is to the fiddle; Andy Nolan wonderfully imparts his London-Irish pedigree and distinct artistic merit on Green Bloods, his debut true crime book, which spectacularly details the thrilling true story of the Irish conquering the London Underworld.'
Will Russell, Hot Press Magazine
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