‘Black Widow’ killer Linda Calvey reveals moment she slapped ‘most hated woman in UK’ as she tells of time behind bars
THE notorious 'Black Widow' killer has revealed the moment she slapped the "most hated woman in the UK".
Linda Calvey gained her nickname ever since one police officer with whom she had dealings claimed "every man she has ever been involved with is either in prison or dead".
One of London’s most notorious gangsters, she later became a public face, taking advantage of her reputation by speaking about her crimes.
Now a 75-year-old great grandmother, she lives a far more quiet life than the one that saw her lead armed robberies.
But she has a number of infamous tales to tell, with her latest book 'Life Inside' detailing encounters behind bars with some of the country's worst female offenders.
In 1985, Linda Calvey was found guilty of armed robbery and sentenced to seven years in prison.
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And during her first stint behind bars, she came face to face with one of the Moors Murderers, Myra Hindley.
Along with Ian Brady, Hindley had cruelly killed five children between 1963 and 1965 - four of whom were sexually assaulted.
After being moved from HMP Holloway to HMP Cookham Wood, in 1987, Calvey was given a job in the library.
When she went in to do her laundry for the first time, convicted killer Calvey claims she slapped Hindley, reports .
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In an extract from her new book, Calvey said: "I walk into the laundry. Someone is singing inside. It’s a happy tune.
"I look over and I see a woman with dark red hair, so unlike the brassy blonde in her police mugshot. I see her thin, high cheekbones and sallow skin.
"She’s unmistakable. Myra Hindley looks back at me. She stops singing. I keep looking, unable to believe my eyes. I feel a rush of pure anger."
A furious Calvey recounted: "‘You f******’ bitch! How can you sing when you’ve murdered innocent children?’ Before I can stop myself, my arm propels forward and I slap her face.
"Myra freezes and puts her hand to her cheek. For a moment, neither of us speaks. ‘You’ll go back to Holloway for that!’ she says."
Calvey described Hindley’s stare as "unnerving and very intense" and said that she spent the rest of the day expecting to be taken to the prison governor - but it never happened.
Instead, vile killer Hindley continued like nothing had taken place.
How can you sing when you’ve murdered innocent children?"
Linda Calvey
Calvey was drawn into a life of crime after her first husband Mickey Calvey was shot by a policeman during a botched robbery attempt in 1978.
At first, Calvey was just her husband's getaway driver, but then she eventually started wielding guns herself during the robberies.
The criminal and convicted killer said stepping up and taking his role in the gang was the “natural progression”.
She was first convicted for armed robbery in 1986.
Just 18 months after being paroled for her sentence, Calvey paid criminal associate, Daniel Reece, £10,000 to kill her lover, Ronnie Cook.
However, Reece did not go through with the crime, prompting Calvey, herself, to shoot Cook.
She was sentenced for 18 years in prison for this in November 1991.
For some time, Calvey was Britain's longest-serving female prisoner.
MARRIAGE PROPOSALS
Linda previously told how she was proposed to by gang boss Reggie Kray and caged armed robber Charles Bronson.
She said: "Reggie asked me to marry him over the phone. He phoned me twice a week and I used to get bouquets of flowers from him.
"I said it wasn’t good for either of us, really thinking it wouldn’t be good for me as I’d still be sitting there now if I was Mrs Kray."
Reggie died in 2000 aged 66, five years after twin brother Ronnie passed away.
On Bronson, Calvey said: "He proposed to me so many times...but he’s a serial proposer."
He affectionately referred to her as 'The Black Rose.'
After her release from jail Calvey found love again with retired businessman George Ceasar and they married five years later.
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But in 2015 he was diagnosed with 12 tumours and died within a month.
Who is Linda Calvey?
LINDA CALVEY became one of London's most feared female criminals when she was sentenced to life in prison for murder.
- Now aged 75, she was a feared criminal during the 1980s and early 1990s.
- She grew up in East London, where she explained criminal activity was not uncommon, however she managed to avoid it until her twenties.
- Linda first got involved in crime after marrying her first husband, Mickey Calvey, at age 22.
- She met him just after he had been released from prison, having served eight years for armed robbery.
- After, she became involved with her husband's "work" and began assisting him and his friends with their crimes.
- The east Londoner later became widely known as the "Black Widow" because her lovers either ended up dead or in prison.
- Calvey was first convicted of a crime in 1986, where she was sentenced to seven years in prison for armed robbery.
- She had been part of a criminal gang, in which she had assisted in a series of post office robberies.
- After Calvey was first released from prison, it was not long before she was back inside again - this time, for murder.
- Her new lover Ronnie Cook was fatally shot and a jury found she had paid a hitman £10,000 to kill him - then pulled the trigger herself when he lost his nerve.
- The "Black Widow" was sentenced to life in prison in 1991 and was not released on parole until 2008.