Shadowland: How the Mafia Bet Britain in a Global Gamble

by Douglas Thompson

An astonishing, first-hand account of an unknown chapter in Mafia history A revelatory and dramatic true-life thriller spanning much of the 20th century, this page-turning chronicle tells of an elaborate Mafia plan to "invade" Europe, taking over its gambling, by using 1960s London as a bridgehead. The capital city of the Swinging Sixties was a world of gambling, guns, and gangsters. Several veterans of the era are astonished that they survived it and some feel protected enough—now that most of the killers are themselves dead—to reveal to author Douglas Thompson the details of one of history's greatest criminal conspiracies, and of how world-champion boxer Freddie Mills really died. The tension is ferocious as the tale moves from London to New York and Las Vegas, down to Miami, into Havana, on to the Bahamas, and back to an unexpected denouement in London. This brutal, terrifying, intrigue-packed account of the Mob's Machiavellian global manipulation of governments and officials even unearths a London connection to the assassination of JFK. Recounting events from the viewpoint of the pawns as well as the kingmakers, this chronicle includes big players of Mafia history, controlled by the gangster genius Meyer Lansky, but it also considers the hit men, the fixers, the hoodlums, and the wiseguys.

304 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2011

About the author

Douglas Thompson is the author of more than 20 books. A biographer, broadcaster and international journalist, he is a regular contributor to major newspapers and magazines worldwide. His books, published in a dozen languages, include the television-based anthology Hollywood People and bestselling biographies of Madonna, Clint Eastwood, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dudley Moore, John Travolta, Nicolas Cage, and Leonardo DiCaprio. He collaborated with the billion-dollar dancer Michael Flatley on his top-ten story ‘Lord of the Dance’.

His books have been serialised in newspapers and magazines throughout the world.

With Christine Keeler he wrote her revealing memoir 'The Truth At Last'. He worked as a consultant on the tie-in television documentary on the Profumo Affair.

Following the death of John Profumo the book was updated as ‘Secrets and Lies’ and published to huge interest in 2012.

Working with eminent psychotherapist Pauline Sutcliffe, he told the poignant story of her brother Stuart, who named and helped found the Beatles with John Lennon, in The Beatles’ Shadow.

His book‘The Hustlers’, about gangsters and gambling in 1960s London, is being developed for the screen and was the subject of a Channel 4 documentary.

His latest successes include the trilogy ‘Mafia Princess’, ‘Mafialand’ and ‘The Dark Heart of Hollywood’ which are all being developed for film.

In 2012 his authorised biography of international statesman Youssef Nada, ‘Inside the Muslim Brotherhood’, was published in English and Arabic.

Douglas Thompson divides his time between a medieval English village, the Middle East and California, where he was based as a Fleet Street foreign correspondent and columnist for more than 20 years

Reviews

[Justyna]

Total gibberish. Full of negative emotion, devoid of sense.

[Wilde Sky · Rating 3 out of 5]

An analysis of criminal activity related to gambling across the world.

The first few chapters contain so much detail that the narrative is confusing but the later chapters are more logical and interesting

[Shane Kiely · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, though as someone who reads alot of true crime/organised crime history much of the ground has been covered before.

[angela · Rating 1 out of 5]

boring