 This week's episode is sponsored by HIF Kitchens, the number one online kitchen supply company in Scotland where you can buy your whole kitchen online with all the prices on show, no gimmicks, just straightforward good deals for high quality kitchens and appliances. You can buy your kitchen from the comfort of your own home instead of getting pestered by pushy salespeople. Check out HIF Kitchens, the number one online kitchen supplier in Scotland. Someone was lying and waiting for me to come out of the club to shoot me. So I was storming, storm past us, so I just stood in front of him like that. And he throw a punch at me, so I just slipped it right and I bang hit him with the right hand. I only hit him with the one, bang right. I knocked his toe from the teeth out, grabbed his pint out of his hand right. Poured it over his head, put it down, where was it, and I fucking cracked him, flattened him right. Broke his nose and that and all his mates, whoa, whoa, whoa, we don't want to know that. You know, I lurched it. So as he got to me, I hit him with two shots, bang, bang, and I hit him like that, it was like getting the brick wall. So both hands broke and I knew I knew I'd broke them. I knew it because I had like one shot, you know, like a splinter. Which was one of my fingers and I thought the pain was intense, me hands. But when I hit him there and he went down with all his weight on the child's fly in front of the bar and bust his legs or his knee, he broke both legs anyway. The manageress said she'd worked in the trade that many years. She said that was the first time she thought she had a death on her hands. And luckily for me at that very moment, the ambulances was going up York Road and seeing what was going on and pulled straight over and the paramedics worked on them straight away and then got them straight to the hospital. Because if that wasn't going by then, I think he'd have died. Well, we're on. The day's guess. We've got Street Fighter Richie Crazy Horse Horsley. Nice to meet you, mate. How are you, brother? All right. Well, this is your first interview in what, over 15 years? Yeah, been a long time. Never thought I'd do another one. I didn't want to, you know, but I thought when you reached out to me about five, six months ago, I said no, but I thought I'd watch some of your podcasts and I thought, yeah, go on, just do the one. Yeah, go on. Because I read your book and it was very interesting, obviously, over 150 street fights, which is mega, very well-known man on the streets. And I was like, I need to contact you. And then he says no, I felt, but somehow I knew he would contact again, which is weird. As you know me, I always go back to the start with my guests. I felt when I was what I thought, he's a good guy. He's right, he's right. So I thought I'm going to be in the view of anyone. Yeah, I appreciate that because I know a lot of people try to get you on for the podcasts and shows and you're not doing it. But again, synchronicity of brothers, the timing's right. So as you know me, I always go back to the start of my guests. Where you grew up and how it all began. Well, I believe in an, I'm a very private man. So with all this, I think he's not a private man. Yeah, yeah. Well, I started out as, well, I was given away as a baby, but it was a bit strange because my mum and dad, they had a baby about three years before I came into the lives and she passed away. She was something wrong with her, you know, like kidneys and whatever, lungs and that. So she died when she was about six months old and then they couldn't have no more kids. But my dad's old sister was called Robi and she went to visit them one day and they were living down by in the flat near the sea and Robi said, she had a cup of tea but I have a bit of a chance. She says, I'm going to tell you something. You're going to think I'm crazy. I can see a pram outside your front door. There's a baby coming from somewhere for you to. My mum and dad thought, she's lost the plot there. So anyway, time went on, I don't know, six months a year, whatever. Then Robi called again to the flat for cup of tea. She said, I'm going to repeat what I said last time. There's a pram, I can see a pram outside your front door and there's a baby coming from somewhere for you to, mark my words. And they just thought, she's lost the plot. She's got to have, how can we get a baby? Can't, it's impossible. Well then one day, not long after, my mum was walking down the street. She bumped into an old friend. She'd never seen for years, but she worked with her when she was 16 in the bottle and plant. And this one was pushing two little girls in the pram. And she says, I only got any kids. She says, well, I had one, but she passed away a few a year ago, blah, blah, blah. She said, I'm pregnant again. You can have this if you want, because I don't want it. And I said, really? I swear to God, are you serious? Yeah, I'm serious. I don't want it. I'm pregnant again. And that's how it started. So once you went in to have the baby, which was me, my mum and dad went up and saying, blah, blah, blah, because there was nothing, didn't go through the court or wasn't legal. She says, yeah, you can have this baby, if you're taking this baby home. When I go home, so she was in six days, my mum and dad went up to the hospital when she was coming out. They dropped her off at home. I think they got a taxi or whatever. They dropped her off at home and they took me. And that was it. So when she... I didn't want to say her name. When she... Well, I can't... Yeah, yeah, yeah. Called a violet. So, of course, she had the baby, which was me. She had to register as didn't she, so... She went and registered me, so... Then when she got the birth certificate, she went and gave me mum and dad and them. Then they just changed my name to Richard Horsley, because they were Horsley. But on my birth certificate, it's got a totally different name, Stephen. So they put Stephen as my middle name. So Ruby, my dad's sister, what was saying? There's a pram outside your front door. There's a baby coming from somewhere for yours. How spot on was that? Is she a medium, or anything? She was a medium, yeah. Yeah, she was a medium. That is nuts. So you were giving away at birth and... Yeah, but my coming must have been known by spirit. Yeah, because we'll touch on that. Summit, you know. Yeah, later on. And if you're very spiritual and you read the kind of same stuff I read, like many lice, many masters, you're also a reiki master the same as myself. So you're very spiritual. Even your house is beautiful. It's very calming. So even for that early age, you must have had the gift. You've just never really utilised it through all your madness, but now you're in a good place, you're feeling mind strong. So how was... When did you find a story out at what age? I don't know. I think it was like maybe as I was getting older. But I was told from being five-year-old that I was adopted. They said... My mum and dad told me I was adopted when I was five. But I was mad about the Lone Ranger then. And you know, the Lone Ranger had two guns on his hip. Well, we went to see all these special kids and we picked you out. We took you home. We went for my reaction. I just looked and I said, Did I have my guns on? I'm like the Lone Ranger. But I grew up in a really happy love and home with my mum, dad and me. And it was just absolutely fantastic. There was no... I didn't want for it even though we had nothing. I didn't want for anything. Love, you can't buy, love, you can't put a price on it. And that's what we had. Yeah, love is all you need. Love is all you need. My dad was nearly about 40 when he adopted me. But I just got magic memories. How was your teenage years? Can I just get that back to that? Of course you can. I just want to go back to that. Fantastic growing up. But that will be my dad's sister's. He used to ask for me when he got me Granny Orsley's. My dad's mum. And I'd like Richard to come to see me. Can he come and see me? So I'd go and see her. She used to sit me in a chair in front of her and look into my eyes, right? Her eyes were piercing. Obviously she was in touch with someone and she was getting told someone. And she used to talk about things to me. I was just a young kid. I didn't know what was going on. But I used to say stuff to her. Like where'd that come from? And I used to talk about healing and stuff like that to her. And she thought, well he's going to be a healer when he grows up that lad. But obviously we're more of a fighter. I'll break your bones and I'll heal him afterwards. Yeah, which is crazy isn't it? It's awful. So she was like your auntie? Yeah, yeah. Do you feel like she was maybe a spirit guide for you? I don't know. But it was just like strange. But when she used to ask for me, like I went a few times, but she used to frighten me because why did you say that? I used to say, why did you say that? How tall did you say that? You know, things like that. And I said, I don't know. It just comes out. I don't know. And then I stopped going. When I used to go to McGranny, I used to say, oh, Roby wants you to see her? I'm not going. Oh, not going? Are you scared? Yeah, I used to be frightened of her. Because she was like, oh, she's a father. I'm not going there no more. Yeah, it's crazy the powers that people can have. And some people don't believe in it, but until you actually see it, until people actually tell you things that are going to happen, then when they happen, you go, wait a minute, there's something in this. Because I believe I'm protected by other entities and spirits. I've got friends who are mediums now and they tell me things and say, you're just protected because all the people I've lost that you're protected. Don't ever worry that people are with you. And sometimes it scares the shit out of you, especially if you're in the house alone as well. Yeah, you think your mind can start wandering. You feel something. I feel things. Because they say everybody has a gift. Everybody has a gift. It's just tappin' into it, isn't it? Yeah, it's tappin' into it. People think it's a... Because like we talked about earlier, you go to infant school and junior school, teen school. You're just programmed to think it's a... You're not allowed to think outside. Conditions, yeah. And if people speak out about this kind of stuff, especially a man as tough as yourself, people think he's losing his nut. So you just came into yourself and you don't speak about it with anybody because they'll think he's round the twist. He's lost the plodding. But again, you can feel the presence in the house, how calm it is. So obviously it's clearly something right. And the stuff that I'm doing as well, I feel amazing, I'm doing great things. So it's working for me. I'm not harming anyone. I feel good. So yeah, maybe there is something in all the spiritual stuff in the healing and the positive energy. And yeah, it's a good place to be. So you had a very loving life. Yeah, and I was... Dad loved his football. So I was crazy about football. What team? Me, Leeds United. I was... Because they were brilliant at the day. I was just mad about Leeds United. Loved Leeds United. And also Gordon Banks. I love Gordon Banks. All I want to do is be a goalkeeper. So my dad had to take shots at me outside on the grass. Save this one Banksy. Save that one Banksy and I'd be diving all over saying it. But just really good memories, you know, then. That's a good thing to go back and have a loving memories and really peaceful memories, because a lot of people have trauma for your age. And thinking about yourself and the reputation you had, you would probably think you're raised up in a abusive house or a violent house. A violent house to be, rifflish yourself. Totally different. Yeah, as crazy as that. So I was thinking where the hell is this fighting coming from? I wasn't raised that way, you know. What just happened, just... We'll get into that in a minute. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So the first... I remember watching the football all the time. FA Cup final was a big thing in our house. My dad was football crazy. And I always remember my very first England game was watching them get the lost 3-1 there. West Germany 3-1 at home. Banksy left three goals and I was devastated, right? But one of them was a penalty and he was... he saved it, but it went in off the post. And I was going to say, ah, what? I said, he has to stand on the line soon. He has to stand on the line. I said, well, can he just stand a little bit in front and then he would save that. And I said, no, I googled that. Not long ago to see what date. And it was April 1972 that. And I thought, my God. That far back. Nearly 50 years ago. Yeah, and so like I was football crazy and played for the school time. I went to Grange at that time. Grange was the closest girl. Yeah. And I was always a... I always thought I was a good kid. But I did have my first fight in the junior. In the... Infants was with the lad. I still know it today. It was like a bull. It was called Smile, I believe it or not. Smile of Dawson. He's a... He's a candy lad. But he was like unbelievably strong for his age. And, you know, when everyone's fighting the playtime, having fun fighting and all that, and they've just got serious. And Smile had come for me to do me damage. And, you know, when it just... I got like a shock. Yeah, so I just got old with me. I thought, if he gets older than me, I'm not going to get him off because he was really strong. So just as he got close, I went bam-bam! Busted his nose. I don't know how I got through. One toes. I didn't know about that. And then as you come in again, bam-bam! The nose went and then played the teachers. And I was straightening because they were in the playground. They were with the bells and all that. Broke us straight up. I remember standing outside the... The head's office, waiting to go in to say the head. Shaked myself. I was all... I had shorts on me, so I had a pair of shorts on. I had blood on my hands, off his nose, and blood on my legs. My knees were shivering like that. And that was my first memory of any fight. And then... What was the feeling when your first fight? Were you excited or did you have a buzz? I was terrified. Yeah. Yeah, I was terrified. That was terrified. And then... I think not long after that, maybe it was about seven. And there was a lad two years older than me. Which, when you're from seven to nine, that's a massive difference. Yeah. He used to pick on me all the time. And I used to run in crying. And Mum and Dad used to say, get out there. You know, let it stick up for yourself. Stop running in here crying all the time. But two years is a big difference. I think, oh, he'll kill me. He'll kill me. And every time he'd say me, he'd bat me. And I would like that. And I'd run in crying. This one day, I don't know what. But I just... Someone came over at me. And when I was saying straight, I shouted, I just shouted names at them and all that. Like a red rag double ball. He came storming after me. Right. Because it was a sunny day and my Mum and Dad was sat on the bench, on the... on the step. There was a few steps. They were sat on there and enjoyed the sunshine. That's probably where I got a bit of courage from. Thinking he's not going to rip me where these are. And as he got close and said, Mum, Dad and the step, he stopped. But he still came for me. He slowed down to a walk. And he came for me. I thought, he's going to rip me here. And I knew he was. But as he got in reach, I fucking bang! I put this right hand there. And I always remember it. And right on the ear there. And he was in shock. But his eyes just filled up with water. And he was holding his ear like that. And I think he was in shock. And he walked away. I couldn't believe what I'd done. My Mum and Dad were like over the moon. And that was like my first fight. I'd slain the dragon type of thing. Get a bit of power then. A bit of power there. But I didn't know how to throw a punch. Yeah. But my Dad used to sit in the chair. And he used to say, Come here, son. He'd sit in the chair. And he'd say, How we ate me? So I'd try and hit him. And he'd be blocking and slipping this. And he laughing and blocking him. I just couldn't hit him. A couple of years I couldn't hit him. So I'd try and faint. And then catch him or something else. But he was just... I never ever got him. So I'd punch him on the arms and that. And they'd just go, Oh, get them flies away from me. So things like that. And then my Mum got cancer. My Mum was bad with cancer. And she was in Newcastle for a month or six weeks or something. How old were you then? I was about six, seven. Still young? Still dead young, yeah. So my Dad used to go and visit her through Newcastle. Obviously didn't want me to go all through while she was going through all that bad treatment. So I would go to meet Granny Orsley. She was always breaking. 80 then, you know what I mean? She was 80-year-old. Her mother was a Macintosh from Inverness. Yeah. So she had the Scotch in them. And she lived like 96-year-old Granny. She'd been through the First World War, the Second World War. She'd seen a lot of changes. I always remember her sitting in her chair. She used to have a bowl of Scotch Porridge Oats every day. And she'd always have a cup of tea with a bit of whiskey in it. Every single day. 96 when she died. Yeah, unbelievable. Unbelievable. And obviously had other family and cousins in that. My Dad's other sister, she had a family of four. And one of them became like a world-famous rock star. We used to go around when I was a kid and visit them and the oldest son. I called him Yannick because she married a Polish man. And Bob, who was a lovely bloke. Yannick, bring your guitar in and give them a chill. So Yannick was only young then. He was like about six, seven years old with me. But he was like bang on this chair. I was like, my God, how can he play that good? Anyway, years and years later, when he joined Iron Maiden, he's been in Iron Maiden for 30 years now. That's unbelievable. Yeah. So did you ever try and reach out to your mum or anything? When you got older, as well. I did because it was until I was 19. But before then, like my mum had always been in touch with her. Stole just to find out how you were adding stuff? Yeah, just like... Obviously, she had to sign Deepwool, because when I got my name changed officially by Deepwool, because she was classed as the mother, she had to sign them officially. So when I got my name changed to Richard Arcy, it was only by Deepwool. So there was no official adoption or nothing like that. But because they wanted to know where this baby was, where Violet was, where this baby was, so the social services would come out and visit me once every six months. And seeing how I was getting looked after and great. But for all of what we didn't have now, we never went without now. I always remember my dad having a sheep's head in the pan, a pig's head in the pan, cutting rabbits up on the table and making rabbits to own all that. I always remember having a sheep's head, eyeball stuck to me and screaming, got it off, got it off, you know what I mean? Good fun, great days. How was your teenagers? Teenagers. Well, just before, I won't be a teenager. Yeah, about 13, too. Well, just before that, my dad died. So you lost your mum and your dad? No, my mum survived the cancer. And then my dad was getting problems with his kidneys. So my mum would just survive cancer and my dad was getting problems with his kidneys. So they had to go through to Middlesbrough three times a week because no one had cars then, for dialysis. So I would go to Granny Horsley's and I would go to there. So that was going on for a bit. So the counsellor said, you can't have this going on like that, but it was through the hospital. So they said, we'll have to get in the three bedroom house and do the back bedroom out as a room to, you know... Yeah, machines and stuff. Yeah, they're all that. What was I saying there? About your dad? No, I know about the... Yeah, the dialysis. The dialysis. I keep... Yeah. The dialysis, yeah. And they threw the dialysis machine. They had all the things, all the tubes. And life just went on as normal as possible, you know. And then obviously, one day, he just wasn't working no more and he just became really ill and then he died. So... How old were you? I was 10, coming up 11. I was in the last year of... Prime Minister's Junior School, going into the same school. Yeah. As a top age to lose that. Just... Father figure. It ripped my heart out. Yeah. Something, like a piece of me died that day, you know what I mean? It was just... It ripped my heart out. And I went like... I was like... I couldn't stop crying. Yeah. And I just... For ages after... I just went into a shell. I couldn't be bothered with anyone. I didn't want to make friends. So when we moved into the... Jumped into the... Yeah. Senior school. I didn't... Everyone wants to know I was the best fighter in the school, the test year. And you all make new friends. I wasn't interested. I wanted to just keep myself to myself, you know what I mean? Because I was still grieving. Were you angry? I wasn't angry. I was just... Went in within myself a bit withdrawn. A bit like... Intervated type of thing. And... I didn't know about that at the time. But now you get... Child-believement counsellors and all that. I mean, that would have done me the world a good then. That's what I needed. Someone to... Sit down, talk to me and explain... Explain things to me and... You know, I think I would have... Handled a bit of that and said... I just... Proper... Proper rip me out of that. Yeah. But towards the end of first year... Seniors. That's when I started to... Come out, Michelle. You know. Did you do the bill? I didn't do the bill, but... I remember... I forgot about this fight, but... Oh, Kevin reminded me of... Remember that fight in Jutland Road? Blah, blah, blah. He said, why didn't you put it that in your book? I was... I forgot about it. I was just starting to come out and I had a fight in Jutland Road. This laddo was a few years older than me. And he... Snake me twice, two big shots, one under the eye and one in my lips. I was hoping... We were battling in Jutland Road and I beat him. And so... That was near... Not far off my birthday. Round about the sum of 76. Yeah. And I was... I excelled, you know, at... The 100 meters hurdles. Mm-hmm. So I'd done that. And I ran for the school. I had about five races for them. Won them all. And I went in the town championships. Right. I thought, there you are. This is it. Gushty. I got to the final, right. But the final, you were just waiting for the gun to go off and we're out of ones... There was eight. Eight in the race. Waiting for the gun to go off. I'm thinking, fucking hell, where's this gun at? And then my mind wandered a bit and my mind wandered a bit. The gun went off and everyone's waiting. I thought, shit. And I went so... I come six out of eight. No, you're joking with me. Mm-hmm. The athletic career was over then. When did you start boxing? I started boxing... Well, I first got into boxing. But we'd moved into a caravan for six months. I loved it up there. The caravan upstate in Coral. I loved it. It was brilliant. Peace and quiet. It was just nice right by the sea. Mm-hmm. But the school was miles away, you know what I mean. The other side of town. So I was like, I know what to get to school, you know, getting buses and that. Mm-hmm. So boxing gyms were the other side of town. So I went to boxing. Yeah. My mum got on with a bloke called Ken then. And we were living in the caravan. And obviously Ken used to get a paper every day. So I used to look, read the sport at the back and there was this big fight coming up that got me attention. And I used to read it all and read it all and bit and thought, hey, this is going to be a crackin' fight. And it was John H. Streacy versus Dave Boygrain. That was the fight. And I thought, well, what's on the radio touching such? I'm going to listen to that. I can't wait for this. So I put the radio on at that time and listened into the big fight with them too. My God, it just was unbelievable. Mm-hmm. The fight was fantastic. That took you to another world, that. You were actually in there. There was a re-captain of the commentator. You were actually in there. You could hear the, you know, the microphone. You could hear the punches landing, bam, bam. And all that. I think, my God, it was in the roar of the crowd. I think, my God, that was unbelievable. And that was your lesson to it in the radio? So I could imagine that. And that's what triggered my imagination. And I could imagine going back years to the days of Joel Lewis and all them. When there was no TVs, you used to all sit round a radio, loads of them, listening to that fight. I bet that was magic, because that was magic, listening to that. Your imagination of a fight. Yeah. And then I watched the fight on sports night. What a fight. It's one of my favorite fights. I love it. And that was what I started with the boxing. But I went once with my cousin, my God. And to do a bit of training. But it was in the town hall then. There was a boxing gym in the town hall. I don't know how long it was there. I only went the ones. It was just too much of a trek. The big trek to school and back. It just wasn't enough hours in the day. So I left. I thought, I'll go back to that when I'm close to the gym. So when we moved out to that caravan, it was just not long after Elvis died. We moved out. Everyone knows where they were when Elvis died. I was living on the caravan side. So not long after that when we moved into the town, close to the school, close to the boxing gym. Then I started going to the boxing gym. And I couldn't believe how brutal and hard the training was. Oh man, it was a killer. The training was a killer. And you'd get in the ring. They'd put you in the ring with people who had a few fights. And they'd knock seven calls of shit out of you. So you either took it, never went back. Because a lot of people came in that gym and thought they were tough guys. Got in the ring, got a good pace. Never seen them again. So either took it, went back. So you used to take it if you wanted a box. Take it, go back, take it, go back. And that's what was happening. But the training, I've never done training like that. It was a killer. It was brutal training. So I was training for a few months. And I was thinking. And then in that summer, as long as the sun or the Daily Mirror ran every day, a sports thing, everywhere, champions, Joel, Rocky Marciano, all of them, I was reading them. And I was thinking, oh, brilliant this. So I was really hooked into the boxing. And they'd get me a medical to have a fight. But I was getting pains in my legs in the bottom half of my legs. And I was touching me heel. My heel was in terrible pain. I went and see the doctor. And there was a summer called Osgood Schlatter's disease, which in layman's terms, you grow on too fast. And all these tendons are sat near there. So I had to have bandages on my knees for about six months. And a quarter of an inch built up on me. All at a time. But I had double them boats then. They were all the go, daily boats. And flares, good job flares were then because I couldn't have all the drain pipes. I couldn't have all the bandages on my knees. So you're growing too fast? Growing too fast, yeah. I was 14. I was 14. But I was there. So I got a doctor's note. Not to do no physical exercise for such and such. For so long. And I couldn't go to Piggy at school or nothing like that. So that's what happened. So by then, obviously the discos and the youth clubs and all that was going down to the boxing I got put on the back burner. Well, my gligs were getting red. I knew I was going to go back to it, but I was enjoying myself too much at the discos and it was great and grace came out. Happy days was on the telly the funds and you know all that was just great times. The leather jackets and the slack back, yeah. And then a switch to the punk rock and everyone ditched the old gear and the dye in their hair and spiking their hair up in punk rocks. I tell you what I don't. I went to a shop. It was called The Nut House. It was air dresses. And I got my air coat. Short. I got a dyed blonde. Right. And I got question marks. I didn't do it all over my head. And you know when we were walking on the people on the bus looking like that. And they grow straight out like but it was just like What was that for? Just some of different you know what I mean. And I was writing the sex pistols and punk was massive all over the town then. Used to go to the discos but when he used to go to the different discos there was always a hierarchy up there and there and there. He'd go to the discos full of bikers and they hated the punk rockers. So there's always friction. They'd always end up fighting. Or somewhere else. On another patch. We went out to town one night at this big punk rock disco and they didn't like us at all. They were bumping into us on the dance floor and all that so when we got outside they all followed us and we had a big fight outside. And one of them ran over and stabbed the tyres on our van. Just one tyre. So one of the lads pulled his big chain out the back of the van started wrapping it around the edge. There was hell on all over the place it was a sporadic fight all over. It was like Davey Crockett at the Alamo Honest then the police pulled up the panda vans and they got all of us and they said by the time they got the stories just in the street they said look change that tyre and fuck off or you're going to get locked up. That's what he said. I was only 14 then. So then the other lads were older obviously so we drove off. And the first knuckle fight from 1979 it was 79 or something. I was still 14 when I fought this biker. There was three of them that came looking for me and we had a bit of a chill so I was going to kick off anyway. They found me, made me pal so I said yeah let's fight oh then yeah let's fight I'm not afraid of you mate. So we found somewhere to fight it was a Saturday afternoon we found some wasteland which incidentally a few years after that became an health centre and doctors. So I was getting ready to fight and I was just stood there with a denim jacket on safety pins and that sex pistol I was just unbuttoning each button like that and staring into his eyes saying I don't talk folks about your son. So took my jacket off and let me make it and we squared up just jumped on me and tried to take me to the floor we hit the floor and I thought I'm not getting about on this floor I want to keep that range so I managed to get up because he was wanting to gouge and all that shit. I got up and then just got him in range and bang it to mother jab Bust his nose, bang it to him again and I thought I'll just move about him here because he didn't know what was going on here he said oh a boxer there I said fucking yeah and then I was moving about him like I thought I'll just soften him up with a jab and then I'll put a bad driver right hand into him and just at that these old women were shouting shout right and within like seconds of the bobbies must have been going past and flagged him down so the bobbies came and come running over and the other lad scarred but me and him just stayed I thought we just settled and disappeared with our fists like you know you should do do you shake hands or anything well the bobbies interviewed us both by fighting blah blah blah I'm on a caution now name and address Richard Austin How old are you son? How old? 14 the bike said fuck I didn't know you were only 14 man I wouldn't have fought you I didn't know you were only 14 How old was he? 19 No way he was embarrassed I embarrassed him so that was so you were starting to become fearless where you're willing to fight anybody at any age so I don't know where it come from I just you still had the fear you always had the fakes you always had the adrenaline but then you've got the issue you've got the period with your mum being born and then you've got your dad dying so you've obviously got your trauma there where you probably think the only thing you probably get a sense of relief and the pain taking away is fighting or and battling the people where you're winning and you're feeling good because then it becomes a lonely journey as well try to figure it out and when you've not got a father figure there having attention when they go it's like the shackles come off as well and you don't know where to channel your energy my mum's my mum got married by then to Ken we'd never had no kids my mum married another man called Ken they were really good together they were really good for each other but I didn't get on with them we clashed all the time I just thought yeah he's great for my mum but I couldn't look at him as a dad father figure because that was my dad you know what I mean no one could step in his shoes as far as I was concerned so Ken couldn't understand the way I used to go on so I was just I don't know I probably thought I was alright but I was probably a little bastard but again you're just thinking about your dad and just that but again if they're happy then that's the main thing that's the main reason that we can't stop other people being happy but you're just thinking about the way you speak about your dad you clearly love them you clearly showed you a good life and a good path and this is why you probably made all the changes to be where you are now when did it start slipping for you though when you were 14 and 15 when did you start getting into fights more often then when I was fighting quite a lot of street fights are you there and everywhere I always knew I was going to go back to the gym and I thought punk locks fading out a bit now I need to get back to the gym and channel my energy into boxing or something before some of daft happens where I get locked up or I get charged with something well actually I did get charged I forgot about that but it was only horse play because it was me and few lads me and few lads we went we decided to go take the picnic anyway the first thing we come across was this massive A-stack like a big bouncy castle so we were 13 we were just all jumping about on the thrones of each other just having a good laugh and all that then we were surrounded by firemen and the firemen the police got called and we got took the police station and we got charged the criminal damage of his A-stack but the the firemen wouldn't settle out the court because he was a magistrate and he wanted the compensation so we all got six quid compensation and a conditional discharge for the guy for him thrown A-stack about that's it I don't want to believe it and there was a big article in the paper horse play blah blah horse play horse play anyway when I went back the box and Jim after biting my legs were all right and I thought well there was a lad in the gym a really experienced lad he used to paced me when I went to the first time I thought I'll get in and have a go I said do you want a spa? he was well experienced he had no way and he brought and he was really good at it probably about 100 fights really good southpaw I thought right I'm going to get in there I'm going to really have a go and see if I do all right so I didn't give no ground and he didn't and we stood slam banging at each other it was the second round or the third round the coach he was bloodied and I was bloodied and the coach says right that's enough gloves off gloves off before you kill each other and when he said them words I just thought yeah I've I've got some of it then take the bloody nose and think it's all right somebody can't take it yourself I could take it I went with an experienced guy that you could take a punch oh I had respect for starting to get the buzz full boxing I was still only 15 then obviously I left school at 15 I went straight to work building a sea wall humping bricks all day for eight hours and then having to go to boxing gym you just take your fitness for granted as you're young and then started fighting I was never dedicated I was boxing I went to work one day getting a crockie on that back someone's foot went through the spokes over the lip come up it's a bit of a scab on my lip my lip was fat I had a fight lined up and I thought fucking shit if I was going to be cancelled now anyway the coach Duncan said I've cleared it with a doctor son says nice one when I was seeing the doctor the doctor said it's all cold so and so they really smacked at me and went to the doctor so I boxed that night and I won thought great anyway I got stood at the quarterfinals of the national championships and the night before one of my workmates was getting engaged so there was no monk like things for me in bed early ready for the big fight the next day on the baby pissed no sleep pissed how was the fight then fighting the next day in the national quarterfinals I'm thinking fuck I remember walking up the steps to the ring and my stomach turned over and I'm thinking fuck you know shape yourself up you've got a big fight in your hands and I don't know how to write in the first round I thought I won that first round I sat on the stool and the doctor said it's frying day man get torn into them it's frying day but what I didn't realise at the time he was a counter puncher he was waiting for me to throw a fist and the southpaw awkward and then obviously we just clashed he caught me with his head and his eye and I was boxing I just you know I thought someone would throw a pint of lager of water somewhere in the ring because I just did it at the canvas but I didn't realise it was my eye it was my blood I don't know it was Elbow or Ed Ed was about to strike the hospital got six stitches why weren't you dedicated why did you say that because the training the training was that hard I wasn't used to it I didn't get used to the discipline so that's why and looking back in hindsight I should have dedicated my life to it but I'd go from fight to fight without training and never actually getting the ring fully set talent will only get you so far but it's the dedication that will take you to the elite level the next level I won three or four five on the row and then I was in Northern Counties Final what weight were you feeding light everywhere twelve and a half stone and I fought the British champion therefore he was six for three and he was knocking everyone out he was called Gary Crawford but when he turned professional he changed his name to Crawford Ashley he won British, European, Commonwealth titles won the Lonsdale belt outright had three world title fights great fighter when I fought him he hit me in the right with a right hand I thought he'd snap me neck and a half I thought I was good I'd give it that to the referee the referee started counting over me and he because I wasn't stood like that he just waved it off so it stopped by him and then obviously I was doing the skinhead scene and all that then as well so I left the gym alone for about six months and I walked back in the gym it was October I remember walking in October because the season normally started beginning of October, boxing season amateur boxing like October to May normally it used to be years ago anyway never been in six months, nowhere near Duncan says just the man, just the lad I want to see so what he said I was going to come round your house after the gym tonight I won't see where I was he says no he says will you fight Glenn McCrory on Thursday I said Glenn McCrory Thursday I said I'm not being in the gym for six months I said three days away I said I've got no chance I said where's it at he said in concert like on their own club show I said the only way I'll fight Duncan I said phone back and tell him I want some money I said I'll fight but I never got the fight so he must have phoned back and said shake your get got someone else but then I fought I fought in championships again against he was a lovely boxer this lad he was a big tall, light heavy, strong as a bull right and the lads come to me one of the lads box and come up to me he said fucking hell Richie I've just seen your opponent warming up he said fucking hell and fucking hell he's awesome he says oh thanks for the confidence poster mate he's looking at me as if to say he's gonna fucking marry so I curiosity I looked at him and he looked serious to him he was putting them in he's really experienced this guy he's good I thought we'll see how good he is when I stick one on his chin so anyway we were fighting bang bang bang I was landing something to the body and the big shots I was trying to get on he said they were just missing him and he just jumped on me bang bang bang let them go onto me I took some on the gloves but I took some good head shots but they didn't affect me I was alright and the referee jumped stop boxing one, two I says what are you giving me account for I'm not even dizzy what are you giving me account for he ignored me so he comes in again bang bang bang and I'm fighting back bang so we were taught to talk then he I was on the ropes and he hit me with about 3, 4, 5 shots a few on the arms couple got through stop boxing referee this time I pissed off what are you telling me stop boxing stop boxing I had a couple head shots had a bit of rant at the referee and then he just went it's all over I thought you're a bastard so I was filming I was fucking filming he stopped me he called it up that's it probably because I wasn't stood there like that reading the box I was fucking shouting at him saying what are you stopping him for what are you giving me account for blah blah blah and then he just weaved it off he must have thought you're a cheeky bastard so on the way back oh I'm filming I said I've had enough of this boxing like it's fucking shit I said I've had enough it's just piss take you can't take the punch to the head without stopping the fight what's the matter with them he said safety blah blah blah I said I'm not going to do this he says Richie don't wrap in he said I'll get you a fight a return fight with him I said will you he says yeah I promise I said right I want that return fight so he called it as the return fight with him and it was up the calories on the club show so you're getting nervous I think we'll see if he does it again he's better he's a better man and we'll see if he does it again so I get weighed in at the show and when I see him come in I thought oh here he is he spotted me he comes straight over to me he said I'm not fighting mate I said why he said I don't feel so good he said I'm not fighting I said ah I'm fucking out so when I don't get it off he was right I thought can you lad him I was sat drinking orange drinking orange shows and I sat next to him and we just sat watch the show and we were just chatting away and that same lad he he done pretty well and then he boxed at every weight and he said right I want to put a bit more muscle on to get a bit more power and he had such natural symmetry he was just looking awesome and he went in the bodybuilding so he went in the amateur shows and became British champion all ten professional so he left the boxing to go bodybuilding yeah and he turned professional and was getting podium finishes and then he won Mr Universe he was a professional and he won it five times in a row and he beat Arnold Schwarzenegger's record who was it? Eddie Elwood that's unbelievable that's the guy who beat you at the boxing and then he ended up friends he started live he's got a gym down the road I often pop and say he's a good bloke he's a really nice man but when they say about bodybuilding well it's just can't fight because some of them can't fight they're just big muscle ins he can't fight can he still move? he's a magnificent specimen he was that wide when he was I don't know if he's holding something he was just unbelievable I want to say him good guy and did you leave the gym then? I left it for a bit and then I went to the pro gym I went to the pro gym after that how did you get into it? I just want to touch on bodybuilding just for a little bit a few little run-ins I've had with bodybuilders why? I was about 19 I used to smoke a bit of ash then and my mates were in this nightclub so I went to the nightclub I was on my own, I was dizzy and I thought knocked on the door there was three dorms in there there is in and there was a doorman big muscle man sat behind taking the money he'd said something to me and I called him a daff cunt or an idiot you know like he must have had a ride raise jumped up grabbed out on me I was like 12 and a half stones and he threw me through these double doors the double doors and I just skidded on me ass and then he comes dorming after me and the other two dorming shut the doors behind him and I'm on the stairs on the floor if he kicks me in the head I'm knackered but he didn't he done me a favour he picked me up slammed me into the wall knocked on the window to me and then he slammed me into the other wall and I'm like trying to get me burning something I'm freaking out you know and then he just slammed me a couple of times and as he came in this third time I caught him right on the chin with the right hand and he went down but I was just stood staring at him just stood like half limp looking at him and he just looked up at me like that saying I wasn't going to do nothing else he got up pushed himself down and he looked at me like that and went walked back in the club and I walked away and after this thing I was like I was lucky to get away with that and then he has laid another couple of muscle muts one of them staring at me all the time I was working the door so I waited for them to go and the wall passed me and there was this one in particular just staring at me and as he wall passed he stared at me and I called him out on the street and he says I can't remember the exact name I called him I called him somewhere to you know like to fire him up and he turned around and anyway he came at me I am trying to think of the words I actually said to him I called him I called him somewhere to round him up and he just ran at me and I knew he was going to grab me on the waist so I measured him because it was just all happening so quick and he just ate him with his right uppercut bang! he was on the floor ghost and I said yo pick your f*****g made up you know go on type of thing and I went back in the club and I gave him five minutes I walked back outside to see if they were still there they were gone so when I went back in the club I looked at me and those false tannels of me those false tannels did you think you always like to pick people who are big and strong and older than you as a challenge me no, I lived and used to look at people as a challenge they used to look at me as a challenge I used to I want to fight you because I was dead wanting to fight me there was another lad another professional bodybuilder like years later him and his wife apologised to me I was at the party this night and he was there selling cocaine the big I am cheap on his shoulder the lot ripped to death just stibials and people just being a piss taker taking the piss out of people selling cocaine but just you know just being a wanker and I said I said calm it down man I said I'll take you outside and I'll knock your fucking head off he looked at me says yeah outside so we went outside yeah I hit him with his right hand right but I put my right hand right through his head like that put it right through his head and he was gone just the only one shot and he was delayed just grown and gone finished and I thought I'm gone because you don't hang about if people call the police oh done with him years later him and his wife came up to me somewhere in the club or somewhere and said I'd like to apologise for that night he said what a wanker I was and you made me see what a chip on his shoulder I had and I changed my words after that and stopped being a prick and blah blah blah and his wife says thank you I want to thank you because after that night he changed his appearance yeah is that when you started getting your reputation from the streets well I had a bit of a reputation but not a reputation as the men man but because I was still young then I had a reputation with people of my same age yeah but there was this other guy who was a really good scrapper I had a fight outside the club with him because he was going around knocking Darman out and he would come to our club and I wouldn't let him in and there was a bit of ruckus in his system in the middle of the road so we had the fight in the middle of the road but everyone would have given me arranged and said they were still fighting on Thursday everyone would say he'll kill Richie but I fucking butchered him I paged him outside and people were saying what the hell did you say that in a league of reputations because I know Brian Cochro is a good friend of Lee Duffy did you ever come toe to toe with him at any point because I know he had a big reputation down his neck of the woods he did yeah well a lot of my friends knew Lee and a pal well when I knocked that lad out that night but I've just said that George when I was working with a lad called Andy and he was a good pal of Lee and he used to do business with him and he used to go through that sea Lee and all that and he but there was no my bar of phones out then he used to say George I was still on there when I'm going to throw him and I'd take his home and eat him but every time he came out I was never in and there was no like texts and saying I'd be around in ten minutes I'm going to throw there was none of that and then one day he'd said one day he'd said to me I came to your house the other day I was with Lee we just called and there was no one in so I never met him you know what I mean but I was boxing in the pro gym and sparring with the pros like Paul Spike Foster and Phil Gibson and that and you know big Dave Garcyde well he was a he was a heavyweight contender then a big lad 16 stone or someone big Dave Wellex I think he was in the top 10 and he said to me let's have a few rounds Richie I said well 12 and a half stone man I said I'm getting in there with you he'll punch holes in me he said I'll just have him over on take it easy so I've done a few rounds with Dave and he was totally his word but that gym was great it was excellent getting in knowing the big fights were coming up it was just being in the gym where the lads were training for the big title fight and just that and the others George Feeney John Feeney Billy Hardy it was just a great atmosphere and I enjoyed going and then I got my first house and it was right over the road from George Feeney I got my lever to when George was training George won the British title didn't he they got fight of the year and come over the hour house with the Onesdale pout and got some photos to God knows where them went but on the back of that fight George got a fight with the American World lightweight champion rare boom boom Mancini and it was in Italy but it was live course to course to cross Italy, America and all that and because George lived over the road I says I'll come and do road work with you on a morning so I used to go do road work with him three times a week and he would do eight miles and I'd do four miles you know over the San Jones and all that kill me that so I used to do that and then the big fight in Italy for boom boom Mancini Mancini was wanting a 10 round title fight to warm up because his last fight he killed the Korean didn't he went the 14th round and he died in the ring the carry him over the ring and he never regained consciousness so Mancini wanted a 10 round warm up and Feeney needed to beat him he had him rocking all over in the 8th round and so they loved him in America then George so he got this big he got a big fight after that was Howard Davis who was the number one Olympic gold medalist number one contender for the title and him and George fought and the winner got the title shot and Howard Davis was such a beautiful boxer George couldn't get near him and he out boxed him at long range when I used to run three times away with George for that fight as well so it became friends with George Excited when you seen them going far being contenders and potentially going for world titles did you regret not giving a full potential to see how far you went I would have loved to have been made but I didn't have the dedication to do what they were doing living like a monk everything is set you can't have this like dead John, I remember that what was your weekly routine like then I'd just go when I wanted working boxing, fighting I wasn't working the doors then I was just that coming like a couple of years later before after the Mancini fights and all that but there's a good story to this the Mancini fight because many years later I think it was 30 odd years after they had fought George there's a friend down there Wolverhampton that's this big sportsman's place get's all the sportsman personality's over he was getting bone bone Mancini over he got in touch with me and he says I'd love it if you could bring George Feeney for this VIP night with bone bone Mancini get them to meet for the first time since the fight so I did and George took his long jail belt last night it was just an amazing night they got on like house on fire to judge and bone bone brilliant good memories got some name on it bone bone yeah he was a convert at Southpaw really that's why he had such a wicked left bone bone Mancini what is, did you start working on the doors? I was 23 yeah I was what I was doing I was at the boxing gym fighting it was everywhere then out in Manor and my pal with a coach who had known many years was working the doors and he was saying why don't you come work the doors man why don't you come work the doors I think yeah I work my doors now it's not for me it's just come down Mancini there's hardly any fights I said ah you get this much and I think could be tempted so I was fighting as everywhere had a few fighters everywhere and then the TV cameras came because you know we needed sponsors and that you know to travel about this fight and that fight so they made an appeal on the TV if there were any sponsors and I was on the punch bag in the background bang bang bang bang bang and I had this fight lined up and it was on like the local news so I went to this fight and the club turned up and said where's the everywhere there ah he hasn't turned up he said he's not fighting him not fighting him on the TV he says he's not fighting him he's just been watching that look north program seeing me on the punch bag and said that's him I'm not fighting him he never turned up so then I worked on the doors with the lads and it was a good it was a good atmosphere but it was a really it was at that time where it was just bouncing everywhere we had the bottom floor to look after the top floor and it was just heaving constantly so we had like five or six lads on a couple four or three on downstairs and two upstairs just making sure everything was right and you get a few fights but everything was sound but I always have kills outside and the lads let me out I learned how to stop the kill when you know you just learned all the tricks of the trade not there yeah so I enjoyed that and I was training for the ABAs I was calling the ABAs at every weight and I trained hard for it and I thought I'm really going to give it a shot again and I had a few fights on the doors and I thought I'm going to I've always dreamed of winning the ABA title and I thought I'm going to have a big go and I thought this this strong as an ox guy from Sunderland he just came at me like a bullet from a gun throwing everything at me bang bang bang I dropped him I stopped him and he was supposed to be in the ABAs as well but when I got the ABAs that day we were 10 minutes late for the weigh-in and the wound was weighing so there was a big argument of the skills you're not weighing in you've had your letter I said letter what letter I said every club got a letter they had to be here by a certain time or the weigh-in getting weighed in I said first time we're dead but afterwards we found out that there was a letter but the letter was sent to the outmaner club instead of sending it to the coach they sent it to the outmaner club so whoever was in charge of the outmaner club opened the letter and the boxes had to be such and such put in the drawer until nobody about it so maybe a dream was going what happened, what did you leave to have a laugh at that then and all the time how long what's the longest fight you've ever had longest fight they're normally over quick just not people they're normally over quick normally you don't see many street fights that's very long only if you do if they're laying on the ground pulling each other's air not much action going on I've seen people one laying on the floor the other one on top of them both all need each other's air for about half an hour that's not a fight the fighters you just get stuck in bang bang bang normally when you're taking big shots with nothing on your hands bang bang bang not many people can take them shots how did you get to take such a hard deck how can you take punches because you get conditioned in the boxing gym because you get that many punches in the boxing gym you get smashed all over that boxing gym and you've got to take it so even though it hurts a lot when you get smashed without a glove on you're used to it because you're used to getting like your brain scrambled and your senses all over you're used to that but other people are not who've never been in the boxing gym you've still got your teeth you've still got your teeth how's that do you wear a gumshoe during the film when you're doing street fights but you have still got them all you must have strong teeth I've got a swipe too do you remember your toughest fight do you always say toughest fights but I think the toughest fights are always in the gym you don't get no tougher fights than what you do getting in the gym like you've had brain damaging fights in the gym like fucking hell everyone just smashed all over someone watching this is barbaric this but that's how you learn to absorb punches and toughen yourself like when you're in a situation so I moved from that place I was working in another place bar downstairs this is when the pump up the gym that was crazy it used to be lifting all the time bouncing great there was a few of us on the door there this one night there was a lad in the last year coming all the time he used to think he was a bit of a jack the lad this night the music was quiet you know in between he just went off it with him he must have been having a big argument all the glasses had just been washed they were all on the bar the most fucking, just the bar was full he went over to the bar and he started smashing them all they were all over the floor I was flinging them everywhere smashing everyone was looking everyone just looked at the door thinking are you gonna do anything about that but he was in a rage at the time I thought I'll just let him finish what he's doing and he had to walk past us to get out so he stormed stormed past us so I just stood in front of him like that and he throw a punch at me so I just slipped it right and I bang I hit him with the right hand I only hit him with the one I knocked his toe front teeth out and as I knocked them out at the time I just hit him with such a shot he went down and he was going I teased that out I looked down there was a bit of tooth still stuck in my hand I don't know if you can say that they were still in there so they took him in the tyres and cleaned him up on that but he had no front teeth and he was being knocked straight out a couple of weeks after that police come lock me up over it he obviously put wise to come so I said look it was self defence I've got loads of witnesses my witnesses went and gave statements to say he throw a punch at them and it was just self defence so they just kicked it out so how many jobs did you do in those loads, loads did people ever come at you and say I heard you've got a reputation let's go out the back don't have a fight so how was that arranged well what would that one would be people would know about your reputation and they'd come to the pub with a couple of tough guys all the back up they'd lock him in there and then they'd have a drink and then they'd start being clever working the tickets we call it working the tickets I don't know what you guys call it working tickets, going and being clever so wanting a reaction from you so you go out and calm it down lads calm it down, we all fucking talk you know how lads do you go out and fuck it outside one night Slad said to me, he shouted at me because he was in the crowd and he was wanting to be because he used to be a boxing he'd done a bit of jail and he was out and he was like feeling feeling his feet like I'll have him I'll have Richie, he's got the reputation I'll take him so he shouted, how you turned on and looked at him and said yeah you outside now me and you what's that he started telling me yeah you fucking get outside says right I thought he was winding me up you know I thought is this for real because he used to be a boxing I thought he was going to get outside he was going to say hey I got you there but as I took me caught off to go outside he shouted I'm the best 14 stone you'll ever come across so he shouted I said 14 stone wait were you then I was about 17 stone there so he was outside waiting for me big glass window so everyone could see outside so he was stood waiting for me so it goes out and I waited for him to come to me and I thought that's what I thought he was going to say I got you there but as he got a bit too close I grabbed him there banging up I couldn't try it I thought this is serious shit I pushed him away to get me get me distance and I hit him bang with the right hand hit him with the left oak and then he went down and when he went down I knew he was finished and I felt like what a fucking anti-climax that was yeah all the shouting yeah so I bent over him and I fucking cracked him a couple more times bang bang on his jaw and someone run out screaming I leave him and all that but he was finished so I went back inside and people said I'm glad you've done that he was being out but cheeky and mouthy and being the e-man all night so they phoned the ambulance ambulance come for him and he was still laid there and I thought is he going to be alright so this is funny because we met McSarby and his pal they were sat in the chair but they were they were full of he and that and they were sat looking out the window McSarby told me this later he says when the ambulance pulled up about 10 o'clock in the night someone it was dark ambulance pulled up he said Ronnie what the fuck is an ice cream van down outside this town the night he said what the fuck was an ice cream van what was it like what was the ambulance and then the cat so do you become a target then for people because obviously the reputation was growing but he got his he got his job broken in four places still play tennis and clubs a lot but I didn't feel bad about it because he brought it all on himself of course man and I think people need to be learning the lesson just like the boy you says and he changes a person people change until they actually get a beating their ass kicked so anyway I used to be fighting constantly on the doors everyone used to come for a pop and I would get out the back and I moved to this other place which was the in place at the time it was called Fifth Avenue and Paradise Alley downstairs upstairs and I went in last night there the doorman was saying oh yeah he said there's this lad who comes in every Friday he's a bastard nuisance he won't see his drink off he's a proper piss take so you have all the doormen stood around him I would see your drink off so he'd pick his drink up and go like that to see his drink off taking the piss I said there's no one dragged him out so they just stood there and he was taking the piss out of them and at night I'd be nipping it in the bullet when it would be happening again and I think so anyway at the end of the night clearing away getting everyone out and I looked on I'd seen the crowd of doorman and killed some lads and I thought I wonder if that's that lad I wonder if that's that lad so I goes over I said what's going on here and he said oh that's a fucking lad he says he won't see his drink off he says he will now so I stood in front of him and I said right you've got 10 seconds to see your drink off I'm taking it off you he looked at me smirking he says one, two, three grabbed his pint out of his hand poured it over his head put it down cracked him, flattened him broke his nose and all his mates no we don't want it out I'll latch it he never came back in the club until he got word to ask me if it was okay if he would come in for a pint and he would leave soon as he had it so that nipped that in the body didn't like people taking the piss like that I think that's the best way you've broke your hand how many times 10 times lots and lots of times very very painful I'll tell you about a few times in Brooklyn one time when I I thought this big guy 25 stone but the build up to that fight was knowing people whisper Chinese whispers he said this about you he'll do you and he and there was this well respected man who fought he was getting into his 40's but he was still still an animal he was like well respected everywhere and he was known as a fighting man and I had a lot of respect for him and he looked like and then that was that and then there was another guy I called the caveman he gave me the biggest iron of my life he was a big man but an animal he was knocking everyone out big right hand it was called bragging and all funny enough but everyone was terrified because he could bat and he was knocking tough guys out all the time and I'd been working it was New Year's Eve it worked from 12 o'clock like 12 o'clock in the night bouncing, drinking chucking people out this that the other and then I was back at a party I was at house party it was about 4 o'clock in the morning and I was licked and that's and there was something going on and I gave someone a clip and it was bragging's mate I didn't even know I'd give them a clip because I was that drunk and I was I remember sitting on the toilet because I was on the toilet and I was in fucking get him out of here now I wanted him out of here it was bragging screaming for me, wanted me in the garden and that was the thing if I wasn't so pissed I'd be straight in the garden with him I was thinking I can't go out like this I was walking halfway down the stairs and I just sat on the stairs a couple of lads locked the door one of them was me pal he said well I'm going to associate the one you're from school Dano's like long dead now Richie you're not going out there mate I won't let you go out he says you're not fit to go out there fucking kill you so I sat there so I sat there for about 5 10 minutes and then that time I was sitting there I thought I'd sobered up I thought like that so and he was still there and I said fucking get me out there as I walked out I took the first step off the step onto the grass the lights went out he was just still waiting for me he took my head clean off bang down I went down like a sack of shit and then he just got on top of me and I remember laying there I couldn't face my hands to stop him it was just smashing smashing and I was thinking stay with it because I could feel myself slipping away with every punch because he was hitting me that hard and I could feel myself slipping away I'm thinking stay with it stay with it and I thought is he ever going to fucking get off and he was smashing the fuck out of me I thought I'm going to die, I'm going to die stay with it, stay with it and when he finally finished he got off I think he must have hit me about 30 times I took an absolute first beating so that was that and then obviously I went around the town how was that feeling though for getting that? It was horrible but because I was so drunk you don't really count it yeah because I had such a hammer but maybe the drink had numbed a bit of the pain pain but next day and over the next week I saw you should have seen the state of me oh man there was no, nothing broke I thought both cheekbones were broke because they were that bad my nose was broke I couldn't see out of my left eye because it was just all grazed couldn't even see a thing so I went to the Sundland Eye in Fermi get checked out because I thought that was maybe going blind because that was like I thought they'd been sliced or something and just said all your eyes all grazed it's going to take a while you get your vision back but luckily there's no broken bones my cheekbones are not broke my nose is not broke I couldn't believe it so anyway I've left licking my wounds then wasn't a bad bad defeat, took an absolute hammer nearly killed me but I would stay a saint myself, stay with it and that's me strong mind kept me there because other people would have slipped away and died so well Brian the caveman I called him he was the new king wasn't he so he and his reputation just went crazy what age were you then? I was about 27 then and then I just sat there I stayed off the doors recovered because I had to recover properly and I had to recover mentally were you embarrassed? yeah I was embarrassed but I had to recover mentally as well as emotionally physically the lot because questioning yourself all the time I'm not obviously not as good as I think I was and he's the better man but I had to find out who was the better man so I knew once I was properly healed and got my mind right and I was ready I'd be going to fight him and if he beat me I would have shook his hand and said you were the best man so I don't know how long I took I might have took six months I have no recollection of how long I took but when I was ready I knew I got feeling myself I'm not far away now before I'm right and I want this fight so when I was ready I thought right tonight I'm going there because he used to go to this club there was a lot of them drinking in the club I got vulture a couple of other lads to watch me back and as we were going up to the club but the flyers this is like a big thing for you if you get beat then you're finished aren't you but I would have shook his hand and said you were the better man because that's what I was like so they waited over the other side of the road and I walked over to the road the club big windy he had his back to me I thought there he is put the flyers going there was a lot of them in there banged on the window they all turned around when he seen me he stood up like that I said you and there the fuck that was on there it was on so they all come spilling out then but I'd give myself a bit of distance I walked over to the middle of the road near the cab I was ready I was prepared for them I knew he was relying on this massive right hand because that was his that was his that was his in goes bingo on it so and he stood on the step of the club and he looked over he said do you want another fucking good hiding there he says yeah come on bring it on all his mates and he come out and we met in the middle of the road there and I was prepared for this big right hand he saw this big right hand it was a money shot I slipped it but I also had that blocked I slipped it and took whatever whatever he had there and I come back with a shot and then he went down and when he went down I got on top of him and I smashed away right because I knew I was thinking about what he did to me and I smashed away and broke my hands yeah but I had to get off him because he was giggling on his own blood and all that and I thought I'm gonna kill him if I don't get off so I got off and that was that was one all yeah that was one all and he went to hospital and he was in a bad way bad way but he survived and then I don't know how long after that but as far as I was concerned I beat him fair and square when we were both sober and when I had forgotten about it I hope he forgets about it but it's forgotten about as far as I'm concerned so one night it was Fulcher's birthday and we went downtown for the drink yeah that's Fulcher he was a good pal of mine he was on Macintay's underwell and I used to work the doors with him and so it was his birthday and we were out having a drink and I walked in this bar and nobody's seen it but I did I spotted him at the bar the caveman the caveman he was with his bed and another lad in loss and I thought I'll just ignore him pretend I haven't seen them go around the other side of the bar and just it's forgotten about as far as I'm concerned but obviously I'd been spotted so when we'd had our drink and the dead left and when we'd had our drinks in one of you when we would go to the next pub Fulcher was stood out in the doorman and the other lads went out walked out first and then as I walked out the door I just set foot on the pavement and the lights went out the lights literally went out smash he caught me bingo he took my head off my shoulders but I fell right back into the windows of the pub what kept me up I was stood there like that and that's why I didn't go down they bang bang and hit me another couple of times and I was I just the only thing I could describe it was like an anger in the head going off in your head that was like that white flash and then just complete darkness and then I just didn't have a clue what was going on and then he hit me three times and I was still stood there and when my mates jumped in and shouted wow what's going on here and he he took a couple of steps back and shouted fucking come on in fact I laughed yes he was right up for it he was right he must have been a tough bastard he was a fucking animal mate and then and he was saying that I was like coming round you know I was groggy my lips were burst as well blood coming down I tried to walk forward and my legs were like jelly and and then I realised it was bragging doing this fucking hell no and one of my mates said right let them fight let them fight and I'm thinking let them fight if he catches me again I'm finished because my legs are like so the lads stopped the cars because we was in the middle of York Road the lads stopped the cars getting past and we were fighting in the middle of the road and he was coming to land big shots and I was like don't be best at this I slipped them and slipped them I was just fighting on memory there and probably muscle memory or whatever and I was trying to get revive myself, revive myself throwing a few shots missing glancing she blows landing and then I just pulled this big left oak out the fire bang right I watched his eyes roll on his head as he went down bounced off the floor and as that left oak landed broke my hand and broke his jaw so I dragged him off the road and the cars go past and then I got on top of him again and I thought you're a bastard so I hit him a few more times and that's where fucking care of it you're going to kill him get off so as I got off he looked at that he was going to die because he was giggling there was blood coming out of every orifice and luckily for me at that very moment the ambulances was going up York road and seeing what was going on and pulled straight over and the paramedics worked on him straight away and then got him straight to the hospital because if that wasn't going by then I think he'd have died not that judge I think it would have been manslaughter or something yeah yeah self-defence is impossible as well yeah long after that we became friends and you know we had a bit chat about fights he said I had always had people whispering me you were scared of it and he didn't have another fight he said that was just playing on my mind all the time do you know what I mean people Chinese blah blah blah horrible there was another guy who was a good fighter I was out this night and you know you're just sick of fighting and you want a peaceful night because we were working on doors all the time I thought I'm going to have a nice peaceful night I am not going to hit anybody even if they want to they want it I'm looking goes into this pub crowded pack pushed me way into the bar he goes oh the fuck you're pushing just ignore them fucking chill chill means trouble I just ignored him he says you better not fucking chill if you know what's good for you I thought I looked at him and you could see he had been a bit of a fucking scramber but I didn't know it later he had a good reputation it's like so I took my drink and I stood on the other side and he was talking to his mate and fucking him over there but I thought oh fuck's sake be the bigger man who walked away but I couldn't I couldn't so as they finished the drinks and were walking out I just walked and stood to the entrance I said yeah I don't want fucking chill I hit him with a right hand man fucking Paul asked him I was a big cunt over here whatever and the ambulance came and I didn't police and I just done one of the way he said I hit him with a glass ashtray so the majority of people you beat me up lying because they were tough guys and they were embarrassed how was it then going out every night and people many of us tried to challenge you all the time were you up for it or were you just like sick you got sick you got sick so it seemed like every loan now radius was coming what's the person who you fought the most the caveman three times three times he's alive he's a cannibal as you get older you mellow out you bump into people you remember it's all water under the bridge now so you have healthy respect for people don't you then people liked Big Bride caveman they all stood on toe-to-toe bare knuckle fighting and that's how you sorted your troubles out like the old school they don't like men how's your face is fresh considering the punches you've took there's no many scars on that I don't know how you wouldn't think if you see my nose under it looks like it's been through a chopping board because people will see me unrelenting bloody hell Rich you've seen your nose it's as if someone's been calving calving things in your eyes, your eye sockets there's no denser I've been very lucky I've been very lucky anyway it wasn't about him he got a price put on my head it was guys coming to take I thought it was a £1,000 or £2,000 going back a long time ago it was a feel good so all the tough guys coming I love a bit of that so they're all coming he's coming down he wants that money another lad from Wingard, supposed to be the artist he came down when he got involved he put a bounty on me so they're all coming down so he'd come down with this guy from Wingard John big lad came down with a lad called Keith I didn't know them but I found the names later anyway that Keith was a smaller one I could see Keith shoveling off all that there we go there we go so I just walked straight down hit that Keith bang bang right then he was gone, left dog he was gone and I'd done it that quick that John, big John was shocked I hit big John and Paul axed him they got the ambulance Keith and John got took to hospital Keith had his jaw broken three places I don't know if I broke John's jaw but John had spoke to Mick Sorby my pal and said when he hit me he was getting hit by a hammer and then big John calmed down then because I'd threw the calories and all that he was a big tough guy and they'd been flat no one bad so being calmed down years and years later I met that big John he was a bit cheap he had a shop stalls and that I'd spoke to him a few times but he never mentioned that but he was a bit cheap did you ever come across any of the japsies but I spoke to a lad who knew him well and he says when you flattened out flattened him it took some allowed and you changed a lot of people did you ever come across any of the japsies well I knew quite a few of them but never really I had a few boxing fights with them what ease did you start getting calmed down about and getting tired of at all well I'm trying to I tell you when I packed it all in I was going that was my mum died in front of me my mum died she had a an attack in front of me just me and her she was talking to me I was looking in the drawer and I said something she never said no I said something again she never said no so I turned around she had an attack fuck I was shocked so I was shouting I thought I've heard that the last thing you hear is the voice so I was shouting I heard loud in there if she'd wake up type of thing but she didn't I was shocked I didn't know what I'd known I picked the phone up and they said can I have a taxi can I have a taxi she said you got the wrong service I said I made the ambulance anyway so that was just a big mad shock I was I started drinking all the time then acting daft coming down the tower you know like seeing people we had had a previous grievance with old said bad things behind your back about you and because of the dark place I was in with my mum I had to sort everything out I was only making I was grieving I was suffering a lot and that's how I reacted I would I busted there through a fucking flat name and I felt like the next day I'd feel like shit and then this last night the very last night when I said that enough there was a boxer I didn't really know him a good boxer and he came and I was out with an X boxer friend a man called Philly Bailey who's dead now well Philly, me and Philly used to have some brain damage in the gym in the early 80s and he was he was the main man the most man they used to call because Philly got into the football all again and he was like the main man for Artly Pole Philly go round out fighting the main men of all other places so me and him were having a drink and we were down and winning this bar and then we were just having a drink man our own business on the chat and I'm obviously still in this dark place because of me and my mum but no one I need to come out the other side, I need to come out of it because either I'm going to get killed or someone else is going to get killed and this boxer comes over and I thought he's saying stuff like that for us I said get yourself away mate get yourself away before you get hurt so he went and he was stood over with these couple of mates and I seen them looking over I thought he's come over there he's probably said I've just offered Richie out I'm going to get him out so he came back over giving it the big one and I said I've told it to go I said I want you to go now I'm going to knock it out and he wouldn't so I knocked him out I buried him on the right hand square in the jaw and he was like on the floor grown you know like in a spasm and I thought I said Philly I'm going and so I decided that was it that night that was my finish never again because I'm going to end up in jail or I'm going to someone's going to end up killing me I'm going to I was 40 so that was the age when you started that was the end yeah I had been shot well not shot there was a few dodgy things happened when when I was a bit younger when I was the fighting going on and people have grievances and I was in a after party one after drinks in this barn the I'm the sponsor team basting the dad we didn't know what was going on he says yeah here I am why we just wanted to check if you were here they didn't really say much but what had happened was someone was lying on the club to shoot me and obviously somebody who knew what was going on had a conscience and formed wound up in that place so you could potentially have been murdered was that an revenge for the past your past attacks well it could have been an revenge for all sorts when I beat this 645 drug dealer once I had a grievance with over something it could have been bad I followed him in the car and he pulled up at some shops and obviously loads of people there thought I wouldn't do that so he gets out in the car I was with Mick and he says me and Mick what's going on here I said you don't know what's going on so I said about him I think I broke his ribs and he ran over the road and he shouted Richie I'm going to have your shot he says oh yeah right or whatever I've had it all before so I took no notes of it and just one of my old friends was like a serious gangster if you want to call him gangster or a pirate or whatever you want to call him I had a word with him I told him what had happened with him and I threatened to have me shot and he said Richie he said you know what he says that man he says I've known that man for years that's the first time I've ever had anything like that happen to him he said he's going to be embarrassed he's going to want revenge he says take it seriously he says take it seriously mate he says get inquired so I seen someone else and they put the failures out and yeah there was a hit man coming down the shoulders and it got stopped it got stopped still a bit of things like that but it's scary isn't it when you think about it so how did the story about your company fight Charlie Bronson when he was coming out the jail well I got offered the fight because Charlie me and Charlie we became a pinpally and really good friendly terms anyway my sister committed suicide because you know when the two girls in the pram when I was a baby I met them when I was 19 we were pals my sisters and then one of them committed suicide and when Charlie found out he sent us a lovely letter and all that and about it and talking about suicide and all this and all that and so we come close with letters and then I get a letter one day from Richie I'm getting my artwork displayed in Leeds this, that and the other it's all going to be for Zoos Hospice or something he says and you're my guest of honour so you've got to be here you've got to phone this bloke up the organiser and all that and I thought oh well nice to be asked really but I was busy at the time you know I was waking and I was doing that and I thought I don't know if I'm going to make that anyway I forgot about it then I get to another letter Richie, you haven't phone so and so yet you've got to be getting in touch with them by blah blah blah and all that and obviously maybe I'm being incarcerated but it was my big thing to him you know me but to me I just said oh I've got a fucking camera for that I'm doing it, I'm doing it so I just forgot about it a few weeks later I get to let them off for you it's that you're a fucking game disrespecting people blah blah blah and then put the guilt trip on me it's about Zoos Hospice it's that you're a fucking blah blah blah and I thought oh you're talking oh you so I wrote my letter back I said oh the fuck do you think you're talking oh you I'm not at your beck and call it's nice to be asked but I do my own thing I'm my own man and all the fuck do you think you're at I said you never will be fought nobody bums I said you will be fought bums you never fought anyone who could fight you never fought anyone the caliber I've fought I've fought at much higher level than what you've fought you've just knocked the idiots out you wouldn't last around what mate made so just you know putting the type of thing and I fuck I knew what he was talking about I thought he'd been doing these press-ups and saying I'll fucking kill that bitch I'll kill him so anyway I was waiting for a letter back but I didn't get one of him I got contacted off one of his really close pals who's dead now and told me to phone so I phoned him we had a big chat and I said yeah I'll fight Charlie he said Charlie's gonna get parole it's definitely it's on for parole and he wants to fight you I said yeah I'll fight him he said but it's gonna be 70 30 split he said because he's the big name the media the TV the papers they'll go crazy for him a man who'd been incarcerated for all that time they'd come out to fight one likes the other two of those big names involved wanting to be involved like well I should say Roy Shaw Joe Pryland wanting to be involved running about the big market in London and all that you know all the big it's gonna be massive and I thought well 70-30 I thought it'll be a few quack quack and I sure could out of this and anyway cut a long story short he got knocked back on his parole I was fucking gutted I was gutted me like so never spoke for years and years after that and then got in touch and we would just whatever it would be you know had feelings friends again after that and I said he's gonna be all again soon and I think he's he's been in that I've had a lot of people on the show who's close with Charlie's when they actually see he's a nice man they see he's actually a nice great man the stuff he put in them let this to me sentimental stuff about my mum die about my sister killing herself and I really not spoken by a mad man spoken by someone with feelings who's who's seen a bit of life what about the tax man, big Brian Cockrell who I have good friends with he's a great guy well me and Brian have been friends for 1994 we became friends but we didn't start out as best of pals because you know with all the Chinese whispers people whispering in my I've had Brian Cockrell wants to fight you just to see there's a rumour going on Brian Cockrell wants to fight you tell Brian Cockrell I'll fucking fight you so and I think people were whispering in Brian's here saying he wants to fight you and he says he wants to fight me he says he wants to fight me so it was like that and now people were trying to bring us together for a fight you know like they did with David with the Chinese whispers whether it was true or not whether just people were trying to move you like pawns playing the game did you enjoy that though as well but not a fuck it's just defeat people just fight because what were you getting out of at the end people are bad and there was a crime family well I got sick of hearing so I phoned someone up and I said I've had Brian Cockrell wants to fight me tell him I'll fucking fight him if he wants to fight me so it's alright I'll tell him there's rumours going on all over so anyway there was a crime family got involved and wondered were friends with Brian but there was a little bit iffy with those because we needed to break the ice again so we had to meet them in a pub somewhere so me and my pal pick we went to meet them and Brian wasn't there I said where's Brian he said oh he hasn't come we've come we sorted it all out then he said we don't want you Brian fighting because someone's going to get killed blah blah blah he had a fucking big magnum took him away fuck like that he had but anyway so after a range of meeting we went with Brian that's right yeah nice one so we met went out of town met Brian but from that day we were great friends really good friends you just get impression of somebody without meeting them they'd say all these bad things you're having an impression of someone before you even meet them people used to say bad things about me so the name was oh it was horrible have you sat down at a cup of tea and spoke to them why make judgements then when I met Brian I thought he was a big fuck but then he actually listened to him he's bang on man he's very intelligent very smart when he got his tone half yeah driving offence he went right down to about 18 or 19 stone I went to visit him person right and being one of these family there we went to Joseph's so we went to visit him and when he was on the visit he was fucking huge and he'd lost about 3-4 strokes because he wasn't pumping any hormones or jocin to him but he looked he said I said fucking hell he was like 18 18-19 stone but he just he looked small compared to what he was but he was still big he was still massive one day he formed me up he says any chance of tone as a favor he says friend of mine just had a parrot nicked he says the family are heartbroken I said parrot what do you want me to do there like he says can you make inquiries man it's over you always he says right anyway in the paper he was the family broken over the parrot someone had bagled the house some bag had bagled the house shot the parrot sold it on it's anywhere found out found out where the parrot was went to the geyser I think the geyser paid for this parrot for this parrot I said well tough tough shit mate you've lost the parrot now because the the blog didn't know it was storming I said well you've lost it because that parrot belongs to this family I said there's the parrot in the paper there I want that parrot that's going back to the family he says really can I come can I come to the house with you so the geyser came he must have thought I was going to take the parrot and sell it on to someone else so anyway he come with us took back the family he said he's the parrot they went off that mountain buzzing so they got the parrot back put the I don't know the parrot's name but wrong John Silver anyway I said she says the male will want to know the paper will want to know about the success story and how did I get the parrot back I'll take my name out of it I don't know publicity so anyway she put in the male reignite with the parrot and holler and the cockerel phone and said oh thanks for that big favour and people take the face and I said let's see ask the pet detective spoke to the dealers ask the pet detective and then another time Brian okay what will you do as a favour there's going to be a bear-knuckle fight me pal we'll come through so few of us went through this bear-knuckle fight and when we get there we all get out the van I think Brian's told the story isn't he and we all get out the van we walk on over they all come spilling out there's supposed to be one to one fight then all you use van windows are going out like this I mean one of them could have just did you in there so we don't jump back in the van all the van all the windows shot out drove away one of the lads that was with us got shot twice dropped him off at the hospital and drove on he shot that on himself man shit like that you just get sick the death of living that way do you kind of self-lucky still be here so through all your madness everything you've done and because we've spoke a good few times now you're very well respected on these streets especially with the fight and still very well respected you've written books but the spiritual side of things you're very spiritual you're very connected which is funny to see not funny but it's from a man with your calibre anti-rake spirituality all that stuff how did that come about it's always been inside me it's always been in me you know so I always knew I wanted to delve into that even from being a kid when I was to sit up I said Robi and she used to say stuff to me and Pius and I used to fight on the level to me but I was doing a bit of security and this lad was telling me about a book he'd been reading about this medium and it just so much just struck a chord with me inside and I think wow I'd like to read that book he told us the name of the book and I went to the library got that blah blah blah was called Voices in My Ear by Doris Stokes and I read it and I thought wow I couldn't put it down I thought this is fantastic if this is true this is fantastic and I got another book and read that so when I took back to the library I said is there any mediums in Alipol spiritual or something she says and she says I've got the name of a medium oh there Robi same name Robi but Robi Webster she was called she lived right over old Alipol she said there's a phone number there if you want to give her a ring so I phoned her up and she says oh yeah we have a little she had like a little sanctuary over her house she did Elan and I chose the night people went for Elan and on a Thursday night was like a philosophy so I went over and I just sat down thinking wow this is fantastic this she didn't give no messages but she was talking all things and I was thinking my god she said to me if you've come here for messages you've come the wrong place so she said I don't give messages but I noticed she had give a couple of messages and I thought if you're wondering if I get a message I'd love to get a message of me dad if this is all true so I had this photograph of me dad and I said dad I was talking five minutes every day just in my mind nobody else knew like dad I've been going to this place there spiritualists blah blah blah and I know if it's all true is there any any chance you could come through give me a message just to let me know that we do survive so-called death and all that I was just talking I was like five minutes every day with this I'm not going this week dad because I'm just going to talk every day to you and just like to build up this to let you know wherever you are that you can hear me so anyway the stairs I was going around when I was going I was saying I'm going on Thursday night and if you don't come through I know it's all a lot of shit because if it's possible to come through I know for a fact you would come through if you can hear me I knew I know you'd come through so if you don't come through then I know it's bullshit and then I can do other things and not waste me time doing this coming over here it's a lot of crap so anyway I go to the stairs that night I just sat there I was thinking I wonder if my dad comes through so anyway she done all the nice spiritual philosophy and all that and then finishing just finished up wrapping up doing everyone's about just about to leave and that I was thinking bastard I was thinking I like it here I like it here but I'm not going no more because obviously a lot of shit and and I say nobody right she went and held onto some of it because she thought she was going to fall over she's going to fall over and she steadied herself my ears pricked up I'm looking and she said I've got a man here I've got a man here she was looking she said someone in here knows him it's a message for someone in here I've got a man here Tom, Tom that was me dad I'm sat there like I'm like I had to describe the feeling but it was like a eureka moment you know and I couldn't open my mouth I couldn't say it's for me it's my dad I couldn't say I couldn't I was just so you went there for your message I got it he came through and but she blew me away by the things she said because this man right right okay I can't he's starting to get his message she said he wants to get a message to his son she said now this man who's getting a message too that's got a whoever he's got a photograph of this man here they've got a photograph of him and they've been talking to him with the mind what's exactly what I was doing I need to collapse then you know what I mean she said well no one can take it so I'm no one can take it she said well just give a bit more evidence this man with the jobs I was just blown away by getting like for the full week after I was like walking on hair thinking wow that's true it is true you know so I wrote there a letter saying that was my dad I just couldn't open my mouth because I was like the spot in shock and like in a realisation wow he's answered but you would be protected as well so from then I've always known so I've always like investigated sat in circles and learned how to meditate learned how to breathe so that's helped me a lot I was going to say never been violent it's always been controlled aggression when the fights never lost me rag cos it's always controlled it's always when you're fighting it's always controlled and I've always had it in a piece I've always had it in a piece since I've learned to meditate calm the mind yeah just so I've always had it in a piece and I've always had it yeah try the channel so if I was in a gang of people in the room no one knew me and just the name that you asked that you are him there him that's a jolly the quiet one there because I'd be the quiet one I wouldn't say that cos that's always me and the others are loud and noisy and I'd just be for all I know I'd feel a part of them I'd feel separate as well I'd feel like I was on my own type of thing that's the only spiritual journey very lonely but again there's the quiet ones that are always the ones for watching the loudest men I always say is the weakest I believe they're always the ones that's hiding so going through your spiritual journey and then to be an offer as well which will name the books here which people can get on Amazon you've got 10 books here you've got On the Chin what one's that about well that was when I was I was in hospital with Ernie I was jotting a few things down about my life because I was in a book called Straight Fighters Jolien Davies and I was on the front cover of that as well and Jolien says my god Richie you've got some brilliant stories write your own book and I was thinking nah I'm not bothered about that mate not bothered about that so when I was in hospital I had to rest up with this Ernie I thought I'd just jot a few things down so I'd jotted some bits and bobs down and I got a few copies that I printed called On the Chin and everyone who read it said brilliant that, brilliant you should get a published anyway did you ever write beforehand before you started the only time I'd ever wrote was writing to friends in prison and these are all because you've wrote books from 2017, 18, 18, 18, 19, 19, 19 so that's one, two, three, four, five seven books the last three years you've got Born to Fight which is in 2005 Battlin' Boz, what is that? Battlin' Boz Battlin' the books over there it's Jody Boz George Boz he was a great fighter in the 50s and 60s and he was the coach of the Finis and all them when I went to the pro gym he was their coach so I always thought well he also listened to his stories and he was thinking I bet he's got some great stories so I went to see him to do his book and he says yeah great, great Richie so I had a list of questions I was going to ask him so I went over all these questions tape recorder blah blah blah blah went for his reaction can't remember didn't know he had dementia shit his wife said he's got stupid dementia but we haven't told him yet she says but I didn't want to tell him just in case it affected him anymore I thought oh shit so she says what I have got so I've got a big thing here scrapbook so that coming really handy and then I was going down the library and I knocked the book open like there's a tribute to George Battlin' Boys he died not long after and then you get a nice northern warrior and northern warrior that's a bit of the born to fight and on the chain a lot of stories took out and a lot of different stories added and that was that one that I wrote yeah this is northern warrior here so all these books are on Amazon but we'll go through every one of them you've got 30 years as a fighter that was Kevin Bennett Kevin the Bulldog Bennett when he came to Attlepool he was a Combined Services champion four year in a row and when I went to the boys well-fitted a bit of boxing coaching and him Billy Bessie came up from down the road Portsmouth and to do just a full a full season up here and Kevin stayed ever since but Billy went back but we had them all in the national ABA finals three of them in that year and then the 10 professional and I got my pro licenses as well and I used to do a corner work corner work with Neil Fanon and that and we just went down a great journey like years later when I was doing Penny's book remember James James Quinn have you seen the film Knuckle the book Knuckle the gypsy bear Knuckle fighter James Quinn I probably would have seen it but he contacted me and says I've got a bear Knuckle show I like to be a judge to fancy coming down so anyway I went down and I was a judge at that bear Knuckle show and then there was bear Knuckle shows all over Newcastle, Lear there and everywhere and I was getting asked what was the chance of being a judge I thought oh yeah I'll go and be a judge watch a free bit of Knuckle so I was judging at these shows just watching bear Knuckle fight said to me Penny he was four times national combined service champion and he was Commonwealth Lightweight Champion as a professional he'd been excited for a bit I said I've worked at these shows so Wendy used to come with me Wendy enjoyed doing the bear Knuckle shows what should it be on Knuckle shows do you want to be on that you do but you know you long past yourself I did you got in there you got a good eye so I said what do you find me thinking Penny he said oh yeah beat any of them me so I went to another one he says oh you do I said we'll take one fight at a time because you might just break your hand straight away and then be over so we went on a bear Knuckle journey together and I was his trainer then he was the fighter and we well he won the world title that'd be a good film that he won the world title he won the world title then he made two defences in the second defense he fought Conor McGregor's made it was the guy with the cage fight he was like that tough as Liam Germs he was tough as I was but we got comfort and Penny would destroy but as soon as the bell came I know do you want to get on with that in the first round he jumped on Benny he grabbed Benny on the head he punched him in the forehead and it was like it was like it was no rules he thought he was still in the UFC so and then seconds later Benny had a big massive coating and the fight would stop but you know one eyed bass he was the referee so he stopped the fight to get the doctor in to look at Benny so the doctor brought Benny over to me he says I can't let him continue I says give him to the end of the round he says I can't let him continue he cleaned it out he says look you can see the skull it was a round all like that you think you'd be in it with a pickaxe not a fucking knuckle so there was L on over that because Liam had they brought this rule out where you had to wear these special bandages signed off by them you couldn't wear any other bandages but when Liam had these bandages signed off he took them off and put a different pair of bandages on bandages what he wearing so he went over that saying was that not cheating? yeah it was cheating but the organisers didn't want to see it like that so I think they were a bit embarrassed because they didn't want to change they knew they had the facts in front of them but they didn't want to change it Liam's won and that's it like at a lumbar type of thing so there was L on over that he could have disqualified technically he could have just called it a no decision rematch but they wouldn't so then we had the rematch and Benny stopped them in two rounds and regained the title and then week later he retired but Benny was nearly 42 when he retired and I said because he had his first fight at 11 and his last fight at 41 so that was 30 years so I scored a 30 years of fighting that's his journey it's a great journey so the Cinderella medium that's about Irene Wilson Cinderella medium was because she lived a life like a Cinderella she was the oldest of 13 kids like a lot of kids but she was more like housekeeper nanny and all that for all the rest of them so when other people were going out enjoying themselves she had chores to do she had to get the kids ready for school she had to make the tea she had the house to wash it was like Cinderella that's what I call the Cinderella medium it was a job from a cage fighting story to the Cinderella story because I was comfortable I'd been in both worlds I'd been in the fighting world and the spiritual world for a long time that's good, that's amazing on the chin well on the chin was that first I scribbled down and when I was writing when I was with Warcry Warcry old on the other books said I've got that on the chin he said there's a copy of it on Amazon I think it was 95 quid or something someone had had one from years ago and stuck it on he says I'm going to buy it to what you want me to so he bought it and then he transferred it all like as a download and called it on the chin revisited going back to the stories in there that's not in there higher frequency higher frequency is the Cinderella medium part too the follow up and there's just loads the mind blown stuff energies, frequencies I love that kind of stuff, I'm going to get that by the way Angel with dirty hands, I like that name Angel with dirty hands is a true story about a pal of mine, I've known Mollowethro School good lad anyone mentioned his name when they're just known for stay away from him he's a druggy he's alcoholic, as soon as he had a drink he caused us trouble, he was like that but I knew him when he hadn't had drink and he was a really nice lad so he had all his life he was addicted drugs, drink I'm robbery he was in the nutty ward in and out of prison and all that afflictions couldn't get away from it and drop an acid everything he used to do on a daily basis but like high quantities of it and then he ended up getting sectioned off and whatever and then he sorted himself out but when I met up with him years later I used to sit and talk to him and we'd talk and talk and talk and talk about spirits and things to him and he'd done his Reiki he'd done his Reiki, with me and he'd done his Reiki and he learned how to meditate and I'd give him an old perspective and he wanted to get off the drugs and the drink and all that and then he got a phone call from his ex-wife that she had terminal cancer so he just dropped everything and says I've got to be down there so he went down alone looked after her through her terminal cancer and while he was there it was lagging all the time because obviously they didn't get on when they were together and the kids I'd like this stranger in there I was telling them what to do so he got a little place around the corner but he still wanted to be there looking after her starting volunteering that drug alcohol centre because he was he'd been and done it and he'd been through it all and worked he was very, very good at his job so he'd done that 12 week programme got clean and he was a different man totally different man now and because he was so good at his job he got a full time job then he got to manage his job and then there was a big position coming just from all over London and now going for this job and he got the job ahead of all them and he's actually sat in Westminster on the table discussing the future the way forward with drugs that's amazing man and that's Ronnie and I called it Angel would hit the hands because he's an angel now he has nothing but good good good for people and he has that debt but he didn't want I've called it Andy Glen he didn't want his real name sources we'll call it something we'll call you Andy Glen I think that's the beauty of life that when you hit dark places that's where I believe you find your growth that's where I believe you find your calling when you go to dark places when you start digging out the light when you start making it better you don't want to go back to that darkness because the pain's bad he's ten years clean he's a new man I love it I was going to say there he's a new man I was going to say something there I did a probation work before I thought I'm going to I went to volunteer at the probation service I thought I'm going to help put these on the right path so anyway I got accepted as a volunteer mentor with the probation service so every time I'd go into the probation it'd be like the waiting room where I'll everyone sat there alright Richie, how you doing Richie I didn't even nine times out to ten I didn't know them but they all knew me and the probation I was going to say I don't know them we haven't been in trouble Richie you know that's what I'm saying is you get someone in the probation like that for instance you get these young scallywags they're not going to respect a person who's never done that with their life they've just read books and never experienced it where they'd listen to someone who's been there and done it and reformed and want to tell them the right way and the wrong way to respect that person much more the last book here is more than just that was it called The Girl? more than just The Coloury Girl that's Fred Robson another medium all these mediums keep coming to write the books for some reason but Fred has been a medium since he was a kid yeah and why I called it that was because when she met her husband many years ago and her husband took her to meet his mum his mum was stuck up and she said I would say Dave I would Dave's other girlfriend I would Dave's other girlfriend was much prettier than you you know what I mean and she said you're just a Coloury Girl that's what I call it more than just a Coloury Girl and all these books are on Amazon they're all on Amazon they're all available on download put the books most of them are available but they're locked down everything so going forward for the future Richie you've got your past what's the future for you well hopefully win the lottery and then go on a world cruise that'd be lovely wouldn't it and well obviously I work for I'm on the cable fare I'll see me last few years out with him before I retire and then get more into my spiritual work and maybe his people want books right and I'll do that I'll take each stage I did but enjoy it you know what I mean enjoy it have I have your life story turned into a documentary film there was another fight I forgot to tell you about when I fought 25 lads I ended up in hospital but I put nine of them away before I succumbed because I was getting it over the back of the head with bottles and mistakes and that another story forgot about that film would you ever turn your life into a film if it came across I don't know would anyone want to bring back a lot of emotions speaking about all this stuff no because it just seems that long ago now because I've distanced myself that far just seems that long ago and like I'm 56 in August I'm an old man now compared to that but probably I think my best years are ahead of me I met my wife Wendy 10 years ago she's amazing she's like opened my eyes to a different world and we've just we're just going on foreign holders and we're seeing different places and we're experiencing all different things together and I've never been as happy and as content as what I am now and that's what life's all about but it took me a long time to find the right person of course but you had to go through your transition do you know what I mean can you imagine everyone you met when you were going through that they would have to have been crazy to have accepted that do you know what I mean coming home every night with blood in your shirt and your hands but for let me come into your house today and tell your story because I know this is the first time in 15 years I know but the very last unlicensed fight I had in London I right you say it on video Liam Galvendon video of it and I look grotesque a big fat look like I've had a foot pump I was massive is that Marcello or Marcello? yeah that's the one well that's how people judge me on that and that wasn't me in the gym for god knows how long but because I had a big punch I thought yeah I'll take the fight I didn't train I wasn't a big train anyway I didn't train so I thought I'll just go down and I'll put the big shot on him put him to sleep and then get paid and we'll all go home whatever but this Thursday the fight was on the third I came down and with flow on the Monday it turned right into my body and it was right through my body on the Thursday I shouldn't have been fighting I was ill, I was weak shiver and horrible I still got in that ring and I should have been in bed and what was the fight? from that fest bell and I threw that fest jab there was nothing in my body at all no strength, no power nothing so I just took an amaranth for them and people judged me because that wasn't me I didn't there was nothing in my punches I might have looked like it but I was just giving it that there was nothing in my punches because if I had been strong there I would have took them out because I would have been putting everything in them there was just nothing in them and do you still think about that? I do because I think bastard and they're judging me on the thing they've never seen the other 150 fights when you're spanking everybody else they've never seen that but for letting us come in your house Richie and meeting your amazing wife it's been an absolute pleasure all the best for the future and I'm always here mate if you need a chat I'll keep calling you mate if I need backup