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Gangsters, Guns and Me
Right from the start, his world was one of contrast and contradiction: he grew up surrounded by London's criminal elite, living by their code of honor and respect, yet he himself was brought up to be a "straight goer." The backdrop of his home life was to differ greatly from his time at school as, at seven years old, Jamie found himself in the unlikely surroundings of a boarding school. The happiness of his family and school life was snatched from Jamie when his father was sentenced to ten years in prison for his involvement in the killing of Jack "The Hat" McVitie. The subsequent years saw Jamie without the father he adored and the whole family was put under enormous strain. At 14, Jamie decided that his passion was for acting and, having been encouraged by Barbara Windsor, he discovered yet another new environment at the Italia Conti Stage School. Jamie thrived in the acting world and was soon enjoying success on both stage and screen. By the time of his dad's release from prison, Jamie had carved a "straight" career for himself--but after years apart, there was plenty of lost time to make up for. Soon, he was dividing his time between acting and assisting with Freddie's "business." Whether on the streets or on the stage, there was never a dull moment; Jamie was living life at 100 miles an hour and loving it. Before long, though, life took a surprising turn when a drug deal his father was heavily involved in went tragically wrong and he was forced to go on the run to America with his dad, which marked the start of a whole new adventure.
289 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
5 people are currently reading
31 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 17, 2012
What an absolutely fantastic read. Gangsters and the underworld have fascinated me for many years since I was a kid. I love reading about it and watching it, but especially when it's a true story. I think a lot of people will have heard of Freddie Foreman and I have read quite a few books on the Krays but this book by Freddie's son Jamie, now known as Derek Branning in EastEnders lays bare things I haven't read about before.
A lot of the time it was easy to forget that you were reading somebody's true life story and it was like watching a movie or reading a novel. The first half of the book was pretty slow going but the last half of the book was unputdownable. Reading about Jamie having to go on the run across the world was just amazing and despite the circumstances surrounding why he had to go, it sounds like such a great adventure. I am a massive believer in fate and also the paranormal and there are some things in this book which prove that such things exist, I won't ruin them and say what they are here but again it's so hard to believe that such things can happen and again it's like something in a novel except its not, it's real life and it actually happened.
I loved the relationship Jamie has with his father and the fact that no matter what he was always his idol and he always looked up to him. Despite the fact hat he [Freddie] did do some pretty bad things, like a lot of East End villains he still had a set of morals and rules that he lived by and that's good in my opinion. The only thing I wish is that the book was longer and that we could have learnt more about Jamie when he got back to the UK, but the book is a musts read for anybody with an interest in this sort of thing and I would love a second book from Jamie picking up where this one finished. It literally is jampacked with fantastic stories, he certainly has had an eventful life, the sort of life which could easily be made into a TV show or movie.
A lot of the time it was easy to forget that you were reading somebody's true life story and it was like watching a movie or reading a novel. The first half of the book was pretty slow going but the last half of the book was unputdownable. Reading about Jamie having to go on the run across the world was just amazing and despite the circumstances surrounding why he had to go, it sounds like such a great adventure. I am a massive believer in fate and also the paranormal and there are some things in this book which prove that such things exist, I won't ruin them and say what they are here but again it's so hard to believe that such things can happen and again it's like something in a novel except its not, it's real life and it actually happened.
I loved the relationship Jamie has with his father and the fact that no matter what he was always his idol and he always looked up to him. Despite the fact hat he [Freddie] did do some pretty bad things, like a lot of East End villains he still had a set of morals and rules that he lived by and that's good in my opinion. The only thing I wish is that the book was longer and that we could have learnt more about Jamie when he got back to the UK, but the book is a musts read for anybody with an interest in this sort of thing and I would love a second book from Jamie picking up where this one finished. It literally is jampacked with fantastic stories, he certainly has had an eventful life, the sort of life which could easily be made into a TV show or movie.
January 3, 2014
I like reading true crime and so I had to read this. Other reasons are that I first knowing saw Foreman when he played Bill Sykes in Oliver Twist (2005). He's the best Sykes I've seen since Oliver Read had the role in the musical.
Other than that I enjoyed him as Derek Branning in EastEnders. He a nice bit of menace to the square.
As for his family life, his life with his father, the gangland boss, Freddie Foreman, well it makes an interesting read. Him growing up in a crime family but he seems protected from it all but his obvious devotion to his father sees him almost but not quite going down the same road.
I think to sum up, it's a bigger read for true crime fans than for lovies.
Whatever your taste, it's well written, informative and entertaining.
Other than that I enjoyed him as Derek Branning in EastEnders. He a nice bit of menace to the square.
As for his family life, his life with his father, the gangland boss, Freddie Foreman, well it makes an interesting read. Him growing up in a crime family but he seems protected from it all but his obvious devotion to his father sees him almost but not quite going down the same road.
I think to sum up, it's a bigger read for true crime fans than for lovies.
Whatever your taste, it's well written, informative and entertaining.
October 20, 2013
I read this over a few hrs as had trouble sleeping must admit found it a bit gruesome and have no idea y they were allowed to get away with so much not stating the obivious Jamie seems so proud of his dad don't know if I would have been of mine if he was a gangster can not understand why Barbara Windsor was so involved with it ummm family isn't it !! must admit was a page turner though in a creepy sort of way
March 13, 2013
Dad here and there, thats most of the book. Sadly the combination of crime and acting falls short. The story of Jamie Foreman is definitly less interesting than the on of his father. Overall it is ok, but the potential of his biography is much greater.
Want to read
May 20, 2013I really wanna read this. I liked Derek Branning in EastEnders. I've became a fan of Jamie Foreman and want to read this to find out more about him. I'm gonna try and buy it on Play.com.
June 5, 2016
An interesting life story showing Jamie was much more closely involved with his father's "activities" than I first realised. A good read
October 7, 2022
Interesting read on his upbringing and about his fathers activities
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews