1966

England had won the World Cup! I was watching the game at my grandparents house with all the family, and remembering my uncle Fred running outside in the street cheering as the immortal lines "It is Now" had finished! The only one missing was dad, who had another fall-out with my grandfather over his way of life. A few days later back at our house in Mill Hill, he turns up with a black Vauxhall Wyvern. It belongs to Jack "The Hat" Mcvitie, who's girlfriend at the time was living in Muswell Hill. Dad had borrowed the car for a few days & every morning before school, I had to fire the thing up for him. Mind you, at 10 shillings a time, a lot of money in those days, I was sad to see the car returned!

My earliest memories of dad's associations, was being taken to a house full of people and left in the kitchen with an elderly bloke & an exotic bird which never stopped talking. And I don't mean Whitney Houston!! It turns out it was old man Charlie Kray with a Mynah bird, one of many his son Ronnie used to keep turning up with! Dad had a good relationship with his mum, and it was only if granddad was away collecting produce for his stall, that dad could go round to see his mother. One occasion he had Reggie Kray & the club owner Dave Barry with him. Reggie had commented how on earth did they all grow up in the two up, two down house they were standing at....but looking back, Vallance Road was even smaller!!

It was only towards the end of their reign, that I realized who they were. Every year a christmas card would drop on to the mat from the Kray family, and mum would be furious and blaming them for the way that dad was, but in retrospect, even if they hadn't had come into his life, I don't think it would have made a bit of difference...his fate was sealed the day he went to St.Vincents approved school.

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