WEBVTT - How the Great Train Robbery Worked

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class from how

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<v Speaker 1>Stuff Works dot com. Hello, and welcome to the podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm editor Candice Gibson. Joint today as always by none

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<v Speaker 1>other than Josh Clark. Hey, Candice, how are you? I'm

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<v Speaker 1>doing fabulous? How are you doing, Josh? I'm doing pretty good.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm doing good. I feel very connected to India right now.

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<v Speaker 1>I've been perusing the Times of India lately. You ever

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<v Speaker 1>read that news agency's website. I stick to the Times

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<v Speaker 1>in New York. Thank you. This is it's pretty good stuff.

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<v Speaker 1>It's like a whole different worldview, you know. But um,

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<v Speaker 1>apparently what I found out is that there's been a

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<v Speaker 1>rash of um daring and kind of ham fisted train

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<v Speaker 1>robberies over there lately. Have you heard anything about this?

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<v Speaker 1>Now you're gonna have to fill me in. Okay, So

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<v Speaker 1>the most recent one was on the pears Nath Express.

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<v Speaker 1>And basically this gang of miscreants that's the Times of

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<v Speaker 1>India's word for them, uh. And they're in there like

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<v Speaker 1>mid twenties, and they come board these passenger compartments of

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<v Speaker 1>these trains brandishing guns and lathis, which are like these

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<v Speaker 1>cane poles, used for beating um in the Indian martial

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<v Speaker 1>art of Lathey. Right, it looks like a sheep kind

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<v Speaker 1>of except without the hook. Imagine just the cane part

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<v Speaker 1>the pole. Yeah, and you would not want to be

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<v Speaker 1>beaten about the head or neck with one of these things. So,

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<v Speaker 1>which is why the people have been handing over their

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<v Speaker 1>cash and jewelry to these thugs um and so far

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<v Speaker 1>on the on the Parasnath Express, they made off with

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<v Speaker 1>about a hundred thousand rupees worth of stuff, which is

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<v Speaker 1>actually like forty dollars in America, which is pretty significant.

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<v Speaker 1>Hall and this isn't the only time that has happened.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the third one since may Um and they're

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<v Speaker 1>similar ms. They think it's the same people, but actually

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<v Speaker 1>one person died from it. But they weren't beat with

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<v Speaker 1>the Lathey. They were actually drugged. Uh And once they

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<v Speaker 1>started to go unconscious, um, they they were relieved of

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<v Speaker 1>their valuables. The problem is that the kid who was

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<v Speaker 1>drugged ended up lying. So if this gang of miscreants

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<v Speaker 1>gets found, they're going to be in a lot of trouble.

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<v Speaker 1>It sounds like it. It actually sounds pretty reminiscent of

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<v Speaker 1>one of my favorite crime stories of all time. The

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<v Speaker 1>Great Train Robber, that's one of my favorite too. That's

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<v Speaker 1>a that was a good hoist, wasn't it It was?

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<v Speaker 1>It was. That's a pretty memorable cast of characters there,

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<v Speaker 1>and the very famous mustachioed Scotland Yard detective Jack Slipper

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<v Speaker 1>forgive him, I know. Now, the guys in the Great

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<v Speaker 1>Train Robber used a tremendous amount of finesse, especially compared

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<v Speaker 1>to these Indian miscreants, would you agree? I agree? And

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<v Speaker 1>you know, an antique stealer and a hairdresser. Essentially, they

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<v Speaker 1>got their two gangs together, the Southwest Gang in the

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<v Speaker 1>Southeast Gang, and they they ended up making off with

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<v Speaker 1>about oh gosh, it was like two point six million

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<v Speaker 1>pounds sterling. Yeah. Today actually translates into like fifty million dollars, Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>fifty million US dollars. It's the most significant train heist

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<v Speaker 1>since eighteen fifty five, when a training route from Harris

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<v Speaker 1>to London was was relieved of its gold bullion. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>it took a lot of work, like you said, to

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<v Speaker 1>pull this off, and it was worth it in the end,

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<v Speaker 1>and originally they thought that they could do it was

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<v Speaker 1>just a handful of men and no way. It took

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<v Speaker 1>a whole lot more fifteen total. And there were a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of accomplices to a man whose alias was Peter,

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<v Speaker 1>who was supposed to be the train driver. And then

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<v Speaker 1>there was a Mr One, Mr Two and a Mr three.

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<v Speaker 1>And I'm not going to bore you guys with all

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<v Speaker 1>the names because we would be here all day. Yeah, fifteen.

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<v Speaker 1>But the big mastermind, we think, was a man named

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<v Speaker 1>Bruce Reynolds, who was an antique stealer. I mean, these

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<v Speaker 1>are like the most interesting gang of bandits I've ever

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<v Speaker 1>heard of, Like you said, a hairdresser. One of them

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<v Speaker 1>was a club owner who used to be a boxer.

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<v Speaker 1>So these are these are your top of the line

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<v Speaker 1>interesting bandits basically right pretty much? Yeah. And so the

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<v Speaker 1>idea was that they were going to take this train

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<v Speaker 1>called the Up Special, which was essentially a mail carrier

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<v Speaker 1>for the most part. It was en route to London

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<v Speaker 1>from Glasgow. Yes, it had been a bank holiday weekend

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<v Speaker 1>in Scotland, and they were going to pretty much empty

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<v Speaker 1>the car of all of its contents, which totaled one

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<v Speaker 1>sacks of cash. It's just like a ton and a

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<v Speaker 1>half of money, yeah, it really is. And Their plan

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<v Speaker 1>was pretty ingenious. They decided that they would stop the train,

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<v Speaker 1>unlatched the car and the engine, and then drive it off.

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<v Speaker 1>I like the way that they stopped the train. One

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<v Speaker 1>of the guys um, you know, trains follow traffic signals

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<v Speaker 1>like cars do. Uh, So they went to one of

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<v Speaker 1>the signals that sears crossing I think is what it is, um,

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<v Speaker 1>and they actually used like black cloth or something to

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<v Speaker 1>cover up the green signal. Right, Roger Quadrey decided that

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<v Speaker 1>this would be the best way to work this. It

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<v Speaker 1>works almost like a stoplight, a regular stoplight at at

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<v Speaker 1>a traffic intersection with a red, green and yellow light. So,

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<v Speaker 1>like you said, he covered up the green with black paper,

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<v Speaker 1>and then he waited off in the distance, and when

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<v Speaker 1>the train came exactly at the place where they wanted

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<v Speaker 1>it to stop, he used a battery in a couple

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<v Speaker 1>of whi ours to rig it up and flash the

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<v Speaker 1>red light, which is just beyond cool. So the train stops,

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<v Speaker 1>and uh, these guys board and they're pretty much intent

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<v Speaker 1>on taking the money. So they actually hit the driver

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<v Speaker 1>over the head. Poor Jack Mills, yeah, he I saw

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<v Speaker 1>a picture of him in this in the article. And

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<v Speaker 1>how the Great train robbery worked and his head is

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<v Speaker 1>all bandaged. He looks a little confused. Yeah, it's it's

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<v Speaker 1>always kind of comical the way it's just wrapped around

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<v Speaker 1>his head. And even though it's a pretty significant injury. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>he couldn't work again after that. Yeah, but his was

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<v Speaker 1>the only injury and the whole robbery. Yeah, it's true.

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<v Speaker 1>And the funny thing was Peter uh the the accomplice

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<v Speaker 1>that you mentioned earlier, supposed to drive the train. Apparently

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<v Speaker 1>they found out during the heist that he had no

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<v Speaker 1>idea how to drive the train, so they actually tossed

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<v Speaker 1>him off of the train and they get the the

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<v Speaker 1>original driver, the guy who's supposed to be driving the

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<v Speaker 1>train back into the the the the I guess the

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<v Speaker 1>engine to drive it head injury and all, and what

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<v Speaker 1>he drove about a kilometer and a half, Yeah, one

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<v Speaker 1>and a half miles to Bridego Bridge. That was their

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<v Speaker 1>unloading spot and it was pretty close to this old

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<v Speaker 1>farmhouse called leather Slade Farm. And this is where the

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<v Speaker 1>men have been hiding out essentially right waiting for August eighth,

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen sixty three. And they had been having a pretty

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<v Speaker 1>good time at their safe house. They had you know, uh,

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<v Speaker 1>some food and some drinks and sleeping bags, and they

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<v Speaker 1>passed the time playing Monopoly. And here's where the story

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<v Speaker 1>gets kind of interesting and sort of goes down into

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<v Speaker 1>a urban legend. So so basically they unload the money

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<v Speaker 1>from the train and they go back to what was

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<v Speaker 1>it called leather Slade farm. The British have the coolest

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<v Speaker 1>names for their farms. But so they go back to

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<v Speaker 1>leather Slade and they divvy up the money and actually

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<v Speaker 1>apparently hung around for a while because they were playing

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<v Speaker 1>Monopoly with some of the stolen money, which you know,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean it makes a Monopoly game that much more

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<v Speaker 1>interesting when you're playing for actual cash. And then they

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<v Speaker 1>all go their separate ways, right they do they need

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<v Speaker 1>to take their share, they go their separate ways, and

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<v Speaker 1>within a day Scotland Yard is all over that and

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<v Speaker 1>they even appoint a special team called the Flying Squad

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<v Speaker 1>to investigate. It was headed up by Tommy Butler, who

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<v Speaker 1>had a reputations being the sort of this rough and tumble,

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<v Speaker 1>tough talking guy, and one of his famous investigators that

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<v Speaker 1>we mentioned earlier it was Jack Slipper, and Jack Slipper

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<v Speaker 1>became a household name over time, because although they caught everybody, right,

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<v Speaker 1>eventually all fifteen guys were caught, is that correct? Not

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<v Speaker 1>all at once? But weren't they all eventually caught? Not

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<v Speaker 1>all of them? Oh? No, okay, which one wasn't? I

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<v Speaker 1>can't tell you his exact name. Again, there's so many names,

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<v Speaker 1>but twelve or fifteen. Well, the thing is these guys,

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<v Speaker 1>even though they were hairdressers and antique dealers and club owners,

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<v Speaker 1>they were not content to just sit in prison being caught.

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<v Speaker 1>One of them did actually surrender a share and played guilty.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that was Cordrey, the guy who actually did

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<v Speaker 1>the signal um but arrest of them. Actually, when they

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<v Speaker 1>went to prison, a couple of them plotted to escape,

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<v Speaker 1>and one was actually very successful at it. This was

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<v Speaker 1>Ronnie Big. Yeah, he was not going to just roll.

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<v Speaker 1>Ronnie Biggs had his mind made up that he was

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<v Speaker 1>learned behold going to escape, and he sort of roused

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<v Speaker 1>the forces and was going to get his fellow great

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<v Speaker 1>train robber Rebels to go with him, and they backed out,

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<v Speaker 1>and so they were being held at this one prison,

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<v Speaker 1>and then they were transferred to Aylesburg, which is sort

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<v Speaker 1>of like the Alcatraz of Britain, and from there he

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<v Speaker 1>made his escape and a feuded a van and he

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<v Speaker 1>was on the land. Yeah, he went and got plastic

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<v Speaker 1>surgery to disguised his face, and he went off to

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<v Speaker 1>Australia first and then Brazil. And then Brazil very settled

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<v Speaker 1>because Brazil isn't big on extradition, no, no, so he

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<v Speaker 1>really got away with it for a while. And then

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<v Speaker 1>you know, it's really funny because back in two thousand one, uh,

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<v Speaker 1>he decided, you know what, I'm tired of being on

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<v Speaker 1>the run. Well, Jack Slipper actually had shown up at

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<v Speaker 1>his house in Brazil once and there was also a

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<v Speaker 1>kidnapping attempt by some X S A S guys. Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>And apparently he still remained in Brazil. But I guess

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<v Speaker 1>I imagine after those decades of of you know, having

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<v Speaker 1>to look over your shoulder and worry every time somebody

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<v Speaker 1>knocks at the door, that's got to wear you down,

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<v Speaker 1>especially considering these guys only made about eighty thousand pounds each, right, right.

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<v Speaker 1>And so he ended up turning himself in and he's

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<v Speaker 1>going to serve out the rest of his days in prison.

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<v Speaker 1>And it's actually a pretty nice little place. It's prison

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<v Speaker 1>for the elderly. So um. Plus he's got a new face.

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<v Speaker 1>He's got a new face. He had a new alias,

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<v Speaker 1>Michael Michael Haynes. Now he can be Ronnie Biggs again

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<v Speaker 1>and just and he's still around, right, He's still around.

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<v Speaker 1>And two thousand five, Jack Slipper died unfortunately, so he

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<v Speaker 1>outlived his his his his ness. That's a great word

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<v Speaker 1>for Here's the thing I had heard and I know

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<v Speaker 1>a decent amount about the Great Train Robbery. Here's the

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<v Speaker 1>thing I understand that they were actually caught because of

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<v Speaker 1>that Monopoly game. Is that fact or fiction? Is that right?

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<v Speaker 1>That is mostly fat? Oh? Yeah, yeah. The detectors were

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<v Speaker 1>able to lift fingerprints from the Monopoly game and a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of bottles of cat shots sloppy, sloppy exactly. They

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<v Speaker 1>should have been playing with those leather gloves that Roger

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<v Speaker 1>Querdry used when he rigged the wires, exactly, But they

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<v Speaker 1>weren't that careful, and so I got a couple of

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<v Speaker 1>the guys. It was really strange how it all boiled

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<v Speaker 1>down in the end, because some of them played a

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<v Speaker 1>hand and beating up Jack Mills and others were responsible

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<v Speaker 1>for arranging the safe house and others were responsible for

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<v Speaker 1>actually stopping the train. They all got approximately at average

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<v Speaker 1>outs here about thirty years each, but some of them

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<v Speaker 1>only got a handful of years. Others got even longer.

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<v Speaker 1>So yeah, thanks to good old Monopoly. A note to

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<v Speaker 1>you young miscreants robbing trains in India, do not play

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<v Speaker 1>monopoly while you're you know, divving up your money or

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<v Speaker 1>at the very least we're gloves if you do right.

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<v Speaker 1>Sounds good to me. And if you want to read

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<v Speaker 1>even more about the Great Train Robbery and get all

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<v Speaker 1>the fabulous British names that we glossed over and didn't mention,

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<v Speaker 1>you can read How the Great Train Robbery Worked on

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<v Speaker 1>the how staff works dot com. For more on this

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<v Speaker 1>and thousands of other topics, VI is at how stuff

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<v Speaker 1>works dot com. Let us know what you think, send

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<v Speaker 1>an email to podcast at how stuff works dot com.