The public has had a long held fascination with detectives. Detective see a side of life the average persons never exposed her. I spent thirty four years as a cop. For twenty five of those years I was catching killers. That's what I did for a living. I was a homicide detective. I'm no longer just interviewing bad guys. Instead, I'm taking the public into the world in which I operated. The guests I talk to each week have amazing stories from all sides of the law. The interviews are raw
and honest, just like the people I talk to. Some of the content and language might be confronting. That's because no one who comes into contact with crime is left unchanged. Join me now as I take you into this world. Welcome back to part two of my chat with englishmen Billy Moore. Billy's had an interesting life, to say the least. He spent eighteen years in prison in the UK and Thailands and survived some of the most brutal prisons in
the world. I'd have to say. One we talked to Billy about his life, what led up to him living in Thailand, and we just got to the point where his life was starting the spiral out of control. He'd been cleaned for a number of years. A couple of things on the emotional front with a relationship sort of steered him in the direction where he fell back into the addiction to drugs and his life started to unravel. Billy, let's let's take it up to when it really did
it unravel? When you get a knock at the door or you get locked up. What happened?
I was getting really indeed mold with this year destruct making loads of mistake shows, buying phones because of paranoid that people were listening to me the start as they really get paramoid on this store, had I a room full of weapons and the enemies. I've lost loads of weights. I could probably hang glads off that skinny, you know. I made the adda of mostly there would say boxers started befriended. That was I was saying a bit in the past. And there was this one ago are you?
It used to give all the time, but he never did, you know. And the last the last time we asked you, I said, now giving you on and then he phones me up. I don't even know what time was it answer phone, It must have been ten am whatever, saying to me on the phone, biddy, I have your shows, your training shows that in my my taxi because you had a talk too. I was like, yeah, yeah, I was asleep. You know, they bring them to you. It's okay.
So where I would follow them where I was with a partner to was and I'll put the phones on the minute to put the phones on. And I was like, why is he around me? Why is he? Why is he? Where? Does he want to go out of his way to bring me something? What's his motors? And I looked around the room. He had cannabis stare. He had a room full of weapons. Like I said, I had a cold forty five or stonegull samurai shorts. It was just ridiculous. Who told me Toda to go to the toe.
And have a little lookus just didn't feel right.
Look, and I've seen these our members up the stairs, you know, and the way dressed in please attire, but a new straight away to it on the cover please. And I shut the door, and a panicked, and I grabbed the pillows and I grabbed the candish, and I shoved down with the shoulders and shine and I shouted with me back to the door. And looked around the shan theo and thoughts, oh my god, there's a there's a gun on the table laid there's this weapons. What I'm going to do? And they were bagging on the
door and I was stolen. There was no way out to do. I was on the fourth floor. There was no windsor to be shing from the back way waved. It was up to the veranda where they were standing, so just that they were please. So I was like, can you prove it? Can you show me any id? And the carts laid under the door. I didn't even have to look at it, and please anyway, I don't know why I was starting, what it was doing with that. I grab a few more moments going over the door.
They were on the floor. The attacked me, put me in a position, but he put cuffs on me, you know, give me a few slaps and then started rather room shadily and picking things up look for the drug with the drugs. He didn't find any drugs. They found a lot of paraphernalia, but it broke DUTs visible. I to the gun, the guy they used them the slogan he pulled out to go. He started to pil up these
mobile phones. I didn't know what was getting down in the background as you back master into this court yard and put into this police fan I'm taking to the local police division, put in this shell that was that you know, I was in there for tea.
When were you When were you taking it to the prison? What what's the processes you kept in caustody with the place? When when did you end up in the prison.
So what happened right was when I was in the police fan, I was explaining to that see what happens to me? I tell you know. And whether it be you don't allowed.
Leave the country, can't bet yeah.
Months you can going to visa. Don't want a month the may man whatever, just to get a samp come back and bang bow. You can do that after three months. But that's the team ons. You gotta leave the cosey. So I have to lead the comy for tuesdays and come back. Do you have a team of visa left the country on a Friday, was coming back on a Monday. By coming back on they have a team month visa.
I didn't have to go to the boorders every every month, but on that the Friday was shape for buying me Yaba pills over the Aca was the tea best apport, all the Yaba pills. They hope you got a boat as well. I was smoke and I thought I was kinda bit shup of time. He and I was going a bike out of defenses because it was quite used to vetting. Little hold. I was driving on the wrong side of the road. No, he had this whistling, A couple of gales standing on the corner. They were whistling.
It is actually man, I looked, you know, by the time I look back, there was a show Taxi's heading my way. I never had the chance to stop. I was, I was. There was a collision. I was heading into it. Hey, David made the bike. I was on winning. They just flew right in the eight under on my chests. The shaft hees broke me. The putting me long because at the amber bable right through the summar the shadow, I
mean literally both the summer. You know, I couldn't breathe, and I remember the these Moatians started picking me up and put short water down me thrown, you know, do things to me, and I have what's going on here? What the what the fuck are you doing here? And they ate the Irish actions, laying malone and every y malone. And he put me in this wheelbarrow, that he should get him liberty the horsball and put me in a
wheel barrow. There was bloodpoorting mounts of everywhere. There was at this shrafter with a blood dained jacket, play both of a pen with these shoe shoulders shaded with banana clicks, taking pictures of me. And they're verstrowing me that I had a big cook the bay becausing my lunch must have they moved. They have bowled from me, from me long at the time, and I have to breathe. And he said to this this this the shot shall to get me out of you, because what was going through
my bus. You had a thousand gabba pills and you put it. And I was thinking, these huge soldiers are year. They were just there because he has a big shure. It was okay. It was a national. He got me to his the partments in a low because he was a T shirt over there proposed me until in the morning I was in I was in a mess. It was ever very bad backstage and stayed at the hospital Laypacrimos. I was in a bad back plate in front of the prison.
So you and those those injuries hadn't fully recovered.
No, no, no, they ended up having two shares of co operations in the same prison.
Jesus, that's that's not what you want. Yeah, okay, so you banged up the bike accident before you're locked up. Now, yeah, you've they've they've got you with phones and weapons or weapon or whatever. What's the time were you're realistically looking at doing?
Yeah, I had no idea, really, I had no idea. I had like images of like imagining myself. Do you like ten to fifteen maybe you know that kind of double figures. The protests have gone from the b station's court to about Creasy's and went to court. I was taking into a cord with another standard waves got taken two changed my prison on this boat. But dish diesel being meats and they institution into the prison established us.
You know, Flip Chase was a showered in front of these prison officer shoes for the bowl on the whistel. The whistles gone. You're putting bowls of water on you, you know, you're washing your shels on and it was it was late, it was all like what mad by this time. Then we had to squat on the floor and four others had to share a ball of ration, some some meal that we couldn't even describe. And a stone gets cold and swarge hovering and above it and
mistinking that comes from there. And we will lease mass into this shell cell block the induction style. That's where name you know that I said in part one has to sleep nest of this dish games And this lady boy called Siffany. You want these big musht breasts and this boot shoe which shed nor money nor buddy.
They're all part of the prison. They're inmates in there, lady boys.
Yeah, the de have all parts of the prison which places would have been there at the same So, yeah, there was a fief experience, to say the least.
When you when you say freaky, it seems like, yeah, it's a horror experience going in there, and it's something completely foreign and the environment that's foreign to But also you would be standing standing out. There wouldn't be that many foreigners in there, and everyone you know your way around prison. You don't show weakness. You're in a foreign jail. You don't really understand the rules. Did you have fear for your life? Like I don't think I'm being too dramatically.
Did you wonder whether you're going to survive?
Plenty times? Plenty of times? Being game? I was. I was latter to revel that I was the cause. And I'm verieing the actors, you know, and if you speaking to me and miss Gene Gonci and it was then and you know I've asked because as only as a pastime, I've been bullied to shed some of an early aid call up. But I wasn't taking a number. So you know, I come where I stood, you know, be ground with anyone.
Couldn't care that you was. But that was the problem with me up shape the environments, you know, kept quiet, rational face, see what was going on. It was like going to a football stadium. You know, the way you walked it was huge, there was you know, it was it was really it was. It was overwhelmed with the meats.
How many Knights are in there?
It was and they had four thousand in meats.
Yeah, so that's a that's a big prison in any for either here or over in the UK. That's huge.
So you can imagine this was like this was like sheds to a shell.
And here I was reading something that there was just looking at the dimensions you're talking about. I self twenty five football fifteen feet, which is four meters by say three and eighty prisoners that that top.
Do you think even those of three to drop the middle and the bottom?
Ah? Right, okay, in low show.
You you'd be you'd have to come all down, have the legs of Brad Browns and you'd wake up. And if someone hugging yet and what's going on? It was? It was all what I mean, you had no escape and the way pain was if you have to go to the holy really, I was, you've got to death over It was way playing it a fucking game of trying to find a gap because you have to step over the body to get your bits of calabrity. And it was I remember bounding on a few people's feat
and arms and that's mean. But not one of them reac think pip off, which was I think they were all understandingly.
I suppose I cast them to it. But yeah, yeah, we've always leave just just on that surviving and going to the toilet. I imagine the food that you're eating wouldn't be agreeing with your stomach much so there would have been a lot of sickness from it.
Yeah, definitely the entirety year. And I remember, like the trollt You've got eighty people by the way in the slot. You've got to chaste on the troll and be like them all looking like you understanding there and the troll to you, Well, you're like, this is embarrassing. You know, this is the highest show up chession.
Yeah, yeah, you know, little toy here.
For lang for lang for lank em in there'm I I'm like, oh, you know the speaking seeing in this language. You've got the way here? What sha you know? You just go away? I just want to use the trolling and PC but you can't. You know, you've got a bin next to the toilet which everyone washes. It washes the ash with, washes the teeth with, washing the place with all your chances that I've got. Yeah, you think this is dis questioning, you know what I mean?
Well, I know what your mind just the way you're describing it. So what attitude did you hold to survive in there? Like you said you were you the arc ap like you wouldn't take ship from anyone? Is that, No, you're suss the situation there and then stand up for yourself. I would imagine you would have got into quite a few fights, isn't it.
She was a few foreigners, right, It's not many would have bumped into an Australian guy. There was. There was Australians and an Iranian that was bullying everyone.
I heard that in your book. Billy gave him a good spray. You didn't like him.
And there was a Menathon, an Italian John Andaldo. They were they were quite old. That's been probably my ease now back then, you know, and they were all fit, physically overweighted, you know what I mean. They were harmless, but they were getting a hard time barely off these these young you're Australians. Me being me, I was listening to this, you know, through the show, because there's no doors and throw the gates. You should, you know, you should see what's going on and I should look leave.
And I was saying, in give them a rest, you know from our only know our own culture agent. Can you be just taking easy on them? And you know there was they were. They was travel at me and I was shotting back at them, and like whatever you seen in the morning to that. Then in the morning them should have me and they she just went off. I ended up fighting with them all give it as good as we go. God, I've got a good ide
and white Brook I'll still be ground. By doing that, I ended up getting removed from the western part of the Pisian culture, the tires and Westerns, Westerners mixed to just the type population. This became very did you and like?
And it would have had to be earned, But did you? Did people leave your line? Did you? Everyone's going to take advantage if there's a weakness in prison, someone's gonna sweep on it. Did you hold your own through?
Yeahs nave for me for lang bar, it's crazy go it because it was always.
By Okay, that's probably a good reputation of carrying there.
Yeah, sure they just fang bar. Just people wave only crazy.
You know.
I was very volatile that if we have to fighte with anyone and everyone taking drugs getting in jest, I've witnessed a few horrible things in there. People getting raped.
Yeah, they were in your in the movie. There's a signe and it's fairly graphic in the someone getting dragged off and raped in in the toilets or in one of the cells. That would have been fairly frequent in prison like that, I would imagine.
Yeah, that was that was that was a regular occerdence. You know, people committed shoe It was another thing. You know, you walk past the shell and you see, you know, someone anger off the bars and what my thing was used to have like a twenty four hour watching the show, so you know you have and then mate sitting off hour after hour watching the nest of the inmates because colectively as a shell, if anyone you know died, then you'd get published. And that was one of the rules.
You couldn't make super shy, ye had they? I think it was sense aswelve rules that they shouts over the tower no feeling that she learns of course, you know, no shoe shod and he's going to be asked. So yeah, I've done a presiding every morning. You'd have to stand to attention to, you know, the national lantern while the flag was being raised.
Did you did you start to pick up the language? Did you learn learn the language in there?
Yeah? Because I needed medication feeling I was getting all the wrong medication at the time, and I was like sand explained that I needed painkillers and not parta someone that needed op bait pain killers because you had these injuries. Who's going with Candice. I was already addicted to opiots anyway, and I was getting high off them, so you know, it was another of bonus Sol's just be that happened, you know, and just be here, I'd say, enough that clue.
It's dense because the batter the reading rated reading race because I was bored and there was no English. Letisacial. You know, it was all about I have read it would be the bit of tay, which is useless anyway because I don't understand it as much as it force would like to.
But it started to pick it, pick it up.
Yeah, I picked it up with them once.
I suppose in that environment give you an advantage anyway to to understand or make life a little bit easier. Yeah, when it was more force, Yeah, well you got you've got no option. Yeah. You talked about saying people get
sexually assaulted and and violence. There was one and I think it's in one interview that I've read that you did where someone was chased down and just stabbed to death in in in front of you do you want to just tell us through that story just to get to give people an understanding of what we're talking about here. This is not the this is yeah, this is a violent world that you're inhabiting in a prison like this.
Well, what happened is I've got central prisons.
It's a worse reputation, isn't.
Yeah, Well I had like eighteen thousand and makes eighteen to twenty thousand. It may see, it was a bigger complex. It was along more violence that they had shutting size Northern size and censil sage. You know, Muslims in there that I've overfielded, different Westerners in there, Australians and Meta Hills, Ranians, Guines,
you had. The nationalities were saying there's quite quiz a lover of them in there, and and most of the nationalalysies shame buildings being so we have a fousand and it may saish one unit when I was and I never really got along with Potows with the ties in the end, and remember we were ship in the library. It was hot as well as there's always want to force his ring egg on the pavements. We get a little bit of schad to the za and they knew
there was a few like little gangs there. There was this young lady used to have a bandanner see with the bands, and so we stood out and his chop for bands and had to use all over them and the roll zig zagging. And then he came and running packed his library, you know, one afternoon and he was gaming and he had the the fliff flocks scheiders on. He had had m you know, flopping as he was running, and there was a guy running behind him with her with a mite. You know, it was quite big. This
is mad days. Then Warnin's drowning. There's a guy that high guy from running out from next to me with a chair, one of them metal chairs with wooden sheets like an old steel shir shruggling out and he whacked this this guy with the bandanner right across the chest. His claps it's for the guys on him and he
starts stabbing him. But it's like and it was like it wasn't like it was like cold and calculated and there with death shots and he was targeting like his lunch, his neck, you know, they were going in very deep and he could the inhumans that will come up from this the bows of this man's game. This was done. It was like it was it was, it was had a flying it was wow.
It was a.
Frightening I all have to do with today. I was just locked in and the crowd starts as a form and it was late about forty to fifty people, even arm arm and the new roof tired the science to understand what they was shoting. That was Shane, kill him, kill him, killing the interesting, encourageing him and you know, he was just stopping the wistful blue everyone of the space and his boss was left in a pool of blows. And I'm saying Mary and passing felt guilty for not intervening.
But at the same time of the databeat line and I replayed that moment vividly in my mind every night while it was in Michelle and in Bangkok, I couldn't
sleep with Ketley vision repeating. They show motion that was quite like you always yeah, you didn't shock and everything show motion like valuable life was and how they devalue because the guy who got you know, Core for stabbing this kid and killing and we ended up getting four years for the Yeah, I think that was the maximum that could give, you know, made.
Vision different, different world. There was another with the gangs in there. I read with the samurais infected.
Yeah, they had them. They were like they had ahead of the Yeah, although they would time. I never why they called them shemage.
So what was there again? They are hi very infected and would threaten people with syringes and.
Yeah, they were injecting their shells with would make shifted engines made out of barerel. Shame they can improvised a very clever since the main line of those who were doing what they could, they were like they were covered in tattoos from heads to top. But they were very very late. Guinny you romnsic case. And you know there were roads at the hospital once a weeks to pay
for pace ivy medication. You know, I remember they getting in debt with them over over drugs over ahead of them edything again usual couldn't stop, you know, it was they were just in his shape. You know, they pulled us a shringe full of blood, but were really a bit of floats off everything, pay the chests, pulling home drums out for the having me with rape one violent physical abuse and it was just they was just kind of it. That's very fright. It got to a point
better force. I'm going to tell you I really am. I was getting to a point of turtle of shepts in this Perasian beer. I didn't think of there ghettos alive. Yeah, that's where I was at one point.
I don't think it's some reasonable belie describing the environment you were in. That's yeah, very ununderstandable. And I said at the start, say it throughout. I think the human spirit's amazing because the situation you found in mate, you didn't have much going for you. It would have been easier, the path might assumed easier. Just okay, well if I die here, I get some peace, but you you found some degree of salvation and purpose getting back into your
fighting in my tie. What what happened then?
Well, yeah, I got into a lot of faith again. One of the pleasure officers, he was fond of me. He gave me the suggestion, and I thought, okay, just total by the weather spoke to you know, the box and the gi. Yeah, he kind of refused me, and see gave him he she get it you again. He let me in. I got a pair of mates, started it in the back. You know, when I went every day and on a davy basis. She started as a
feeling every stronger than this city. I was laughing a bit more with me and Durance, and you know, and then the starts to speak to them. The starts to speak to me, and I became really friendly with them. He starts to talking about the theentire New Year and where they get involved in, you know, moveside competition with the best of the best in their prison. And I said, yeah, go on. He moved me as a a shell. But she'd call a home that geeler, which was the sports
and it sounds very very good. You're only sports shell. That's okay, you get better, Tod. There's lesson in mats in there. There's a bit of cammaraderie, ship and a bit of units. He colectively. I felt a little that taste uh rol moves in. Unless started to become a little bit better. You know, I was eating well and I was on a good relationship basis with the rest of these size do you say boxers. It was just
an incredible feeling. It was like the season and the applause and the chaptains had gone left somebody, Yeah, I can understand. Yeah, they had this choicely moments as belonging, not.
Just belonging to you, you get some respect back about yourself. I would imagine the whole whole thing an environment that you feel comfortable in and you're respected for the effort that you put in, if it's in the boxing gym like that. But yeah, it's it's incredible that what you've been through and you can look back at this and and and talk about how did it get to the point where it was the prisoner transfer when you went back to the UK prison you spent three years in entire prisons roughly?
Was that the Yeah, that's they're pretty easy. I mean, it's not a hell of a long time. You know, if you look at.
From where I'm sitting in a way you described it, it's a long fucking three years.
You know, I think I'm read for a way that way. You know, a year in a Thai prison compare to ten years in the in the US. Tennant sensity. Yeah, you can look at like because it was that Austin and it was that bad. It was run by inmates, the pigeons. It was quite volatile and violence every day. It was like a fight, you know what I mean.
Yeah, you survived that. To get through the dy and survive is an achievement.
I'd wake open the day who knows Regardian It was a hypnotic beat travel right the prision and it was inmates, the Buddists praying bace. After that, he did, you know that the Fajar is when we called the player, and so you did these that the Muslims praying, and then the Buddhist praying and people are praying, you know, and then the doors opening, you know, leads into this and to the gates of hell, you know, where there's like market stores and people living on Lately, he'd say on the top of.
Yeah, I'm really interested in the fact that I didn't realize that was the basis of the name of the movie in the book. But that makes a lot of sense, and you've created that image very well. I can imagine it waking up to that type.
Of just wait, they've just beached the wake up. They'll slowly be coming through the windows. And it was just before the all or the fourth place. Every morning it waked me up in the place. In the beginning, it was annoying, but then it became shows that they comfort and then it go. I was unlitially what had happened into the place system, but yeah, the pasted the ace. It was after three years, you know, the embassy were
coming up on a regular basis. You know, it eventually came, but it was a bit of a It was a bit of a tough time. It was a cheap out of ten in March two and ten and Bangkok at the time was on fire. People were shutting brain I remember that.
Yeah, yeah, it was like there.
Was like a political party, the Red, the Red, the Yellows or something then so people were shotting fire as the buildings do. A block in the airport. Bangkok was your upthrow Tyland was It was a mess. I had this twice, a date that had been given to me, and it was I think it was the twenty twenty seven to short of mark. That day came and of being excited to go, and and it got canceled because of the airport was surrounded by a political mession protest protesters in the and and the I fell and I
thought that's it, sending me back. But then a couple of days later, without any notice, I was called so we called up his sell and taken to reception and putting this quite. I'm come from like this grimy, deady environments into the christ Gleaming room with a big oval table with these supersishisial officers shipping on both sides, the Prevision Governor and May and a few of the Vision or forties sit in there.
Your senses must be like this is this is crazy because it was just.
Cheering of me. It was it was it was the handing over to the British policies. It was just jello of me. So you know they make a big show and sad like passing your onto to the British. The fabrics and you know I was taken from one to immigration, stayed in there five Chike showers and Sony flight with you. And it was midnight and I was taken to the airport by these che personal officers and you know I was handcuffed and they bought meal mass ls, you know,
the quite sorry for asking me questions. Yeah, they've got a plane going on the plane as well that Jamie back to the UK. And you know it was freezing cold when they got off in March. The fatty face two times in a ten and then I was sound said was treason you know, I was another get again, another the stocks of the system of culture shot pay them a lot of things.
Master look felt like luxury over themgand compared to what you come from. But I also imagine to a degree you're in the mindset that you're still backing in Thailand.
So yeah, have a both back and tie, you know. And I was very shrub mission. Yes, you know, because you've been beaaten into me or drunned into me in Thailand, you know, because you're very you know, you had to really like you couldn't be above the patent offices. You have to lower yourselves, you know, you have to yeah, bounce down and you know everything was shipping on your
knees and you slept on a wall. So when I went into the shelf in the UK and there was a massage on a bed, I couldn't cope place to sleep on the floor, and I put the matter on the floor. I was sleeping on the floor. I was it was seizing cold so old ones of the pipes. It was, you know, it was cooling off the shell. And I was speaking time half English and calling everyone's Shane and it was just Bob. And then he got like the couseuling it. Who speaks to me? You know,
he wasn't weird. I carded to be fair, you know, I mean he was asking me chilly questions and that's all. I was just kind of to a tap. That's that kind of culture and that environment was it was a difficult process.
You know.
I was listening to the people complaining of the chips and that's shipping amaze. As you just see what I've been eating, right, I've had painting heads stop still with the weak on it and an eyeball and stinking you know what. That that's the kind of thing with that meeting, and you're complaining about the chips here and the chiffing. I don't like the fish might now made Yeah, apend stating months so I don't see usually montioned total.
Was there you once you were released? You where did you write the book? Did you write the book when you were in prison or when you released from prison?
Yea fast was writing the book when I was in Thailand. So astu factual information because afford the tear, you know, and writes it down. I'll document it so you have little notes. And then kind of it came to suation when I got to world. Later, I knew what I was writing. You know, it was memory, it was it was there, It was physically in mad environments and I've witnessed the show, so I write it down and it was fact. So it became a you know, chronologic female.
I said, introduce your shelf and talk about me your back short and you know where that led the count to beauty factors and me behavior and you know what changed our final initiating situation is it?
You know you find that find that cathartic like going through that telling the story.
That's pretty much have ward. It was any healing because there was speaking that people are both as well. So
it was a vision of telling them my story. They look on me alas with shock or he couldn't intensively, he couldn't release what you've seen this, you've seen she wanted to have them shot on the chest and you were just it was normal, y. Yeah, you know you've seen someone, you know, taking them shoves off this and you've seen people and they were looking at me a bit strange and I thought, hell, I can't even name self on the shorty without them bow. Yeah, that experience.
I wrote it down. It was very it was very healing the process where he said.
With the book, you've you've got it published. Then when did the film start to take off? When did people get interested in turning into a movie.
So that was probably a boss I was feeling into the book was publish. You know. I went about silently shows to get a documentary or show him because it was it was You got to remember it was. It was before the podcasts and take off, you know what I mean. It was in two thousand and eleven, twenty eleven, should Out the twelve of the book was published. Shootout the twelve in this Lee and not was really online as much as it is today. Yeah. Sure, I was
shunting the busy. I remember walking down of the street called Huxley has seen a little shine seeing hurricane film ship the bid I walked in and refused to see me as an officiate manager. Yea, the share don't come back and kept coming back. They kept mess In the end they thay, can you leave your manuscript on your
book and it's okay. I left it with its twelve months later that he got in such in me like we were delighted, we want to make this into a movie, Like they invite you in to have a chat about it, and that's when they I went in and I was thinking, you know, she's been a little a little homemade basically movie or something more or budget low budget. You know,
wasn't it the best in the game. You know, a great director to be involved, the script writer, you know, and I'm up and coming actor from from from the UK to be you know, playing the role of Michelle.
It was very exciting giving to know you in this check now he now nowed you to that actor in the movie The Painkillers.
I have, Jimmy, you don't have in infamily and told you do tramadol for three, that's free for you. But Jimmy, it's not three. I've just seen you give it to five people in a row.
Need to pay.
No, No, I've got no money. I've got no money. I've been told it's free.
You have to song for me.
I don't have have no cigarettes. I've got no I've got nothing. But this is all not right.
Give me.
There's a lot of time with that act as you'll call it. Became really friendly with and still preens with him today. He was still in contact. Yeah, he understands the.
Very complex Yeah, that's that's what came across Billy, That's what came across in the film and chatting with you now like it's there was the zanga, there's the sadness, there's all the emotions here. He saw the capture that you could relate to him the way that he portrayed you in the in the movie.
Yeah, I was very I was very impressed with that. We proceeded Michelson. I believe the time that he spent with me in the the method after he did was was it was spots on Yeah.
Yeah, no, he nailed it. So that was it was feature at Cannes Film Festival. So yeah, we're talking that was It was a big deal. It wasn't the local TV station making the movie.
I was a center. They put on the biggest Gentlemans in Europe. There was a cars film Festival of the thing was that sticks to your anual events. Filch each wudd and was filing first of all the time and there was just incredible red carpet. I will say some of the actors from the movie with the ho call me shelf the director and it was just powerful, you know, like at the end I was watching it and I'll be there, and I was like changing watching it and on people are going to judge station.
Was like.
Like, this is what I told him. You know it's gonna like you. And that was there was own waste CITs. But at the end of the movie there was a rapture of applause that just went over for eight minutes. It was a fan of ovation and cheese. And I was like, what's going on here? And I was both at the the American Financid who was standing next with James Seamish, and I said that sepping here, I said, you know, and he liked it anyway. He said, hey, Billy,
he said, we said we're in France. He's dead. And now I'll tell you this, he said, the wrench of the ways and examiners. Even if you hear they love this movie, he said, you know, if they were if you did LA, they didn't still care whether you do or not. He said that you know you've done really well. And you know the next day in the reports and then in all the moviesine articles online, it was LA shame. It was a great suck death. It was yesicized, as was having siticized as a as a good cult movie.
So I was I would glad that. I was grateful that it was quite hockey.
Look, and so much was happening in your life after that, like what you had had been through to get to that point, and yeah, the nature of your story, people would have been wanting to meet you. You would have been the man in the moment in that environment, and that can be daunting and overwhelming. And I'm sure with all the all the stuff that you carry carry from your past, it must have been confronting for you in a way as well.
It was because I would carrying out impostership. I didn't believe it belongs in the kind of environments, you know. I was thinking, Look, I'm just a basy, mixed up kid, I'm a few bits. I've just had the sex variance, and you know, they've written a bad around all these big issers. They're all struck cheeseos. I don't really, you know, feel like I fit in with these type of people, you know. And I just rolled with it. And then it was just very difficult to chet late all the affirmation.
At the time, no one as well that like, look was this day's over, It'll be another day for someone else. I knew that's just kind of just rolled with it, and it was, Yeah, it was. It was very an exciting moment. I was proud of the achievements, you know, and I didn't want to live in all that shame of me past.
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Crime x plus on Apple Podcast Today. I think when you tell the story and you're honest, that yeah, if you hold shame, but if you're saying, well, this is who I am. You've put it in a book, it's played out in the film. You've got nothing to hide there, this is who I am. Take So I think there must have been that sort of thought going through your mind.
Yeah, it was like he Honestly, the your honesty is more sack than saying that. They pretend that you've got a big ego and you're not dead, and you know, you know usually usually look, you know, I was a diagonal sold them.
I was.
I was a proper mesh. I had an EmPATH on everyone's life. Negatively, you know, I wasn't really a valuable member of the community. You know, I'm sure what was your face everywhere mentioned all the beautiful last if you know what I mean. But now come like full share, you know, I like you shad at the beginning and this is what's imposed. And I spoke about this today,
which is quite states. You know what Becausin who said, he said to me, he said, you know what, Bill, He's just you know, why did you think you're Yeah, I said, really Knowsted, you've been through that many nature for staining, So so she's ya, you know, collisions, your stabbings, you've been stabbed, you're being shot at. You know, you've had you you know, you've been molds, You've been through
a lot. Right, So why said someone's got to be looking after someone's got to be watching over you, because I'm kind of like get about all that stuff. But I believe there's some kind of incidental I believe in me for a reason. I don't know whether what that is this, but now you know, I know what to do today is Yeah, it's be that role model for people.
Be that Paton who can nature others, you know people, be that patient you going off for guidance and say look there's a way out there, you know, being in for almost seven years. No, I maintain accidents that don't drink it'll slogan ull usual booze there, no me late. Today is a far acay from what it was. I'm sold if I never have kids who got cheap, bunching, little baby blous. Now you've got a lovely family. This is you know, I've never believed in a million years
above you know. So it's just it's just just it's like it's like play yet it thinks someone else's live. I'd never believe that was my life. That kid in that film kept making show any mistakes, so he had that many chances of were thinking I was looking for Michelle.
It's funny you should say that like your story. Yeah, you've had your setbacks. You step forward, you look like you've made it, you fall back down. I sit there and watch it. When I was reading your books or watching the movie, I'm thinking, no, don't get in in this path, don't do that, like and you're it's funny you're sitting there thinking the same thing. Come on, Billy, you can do this.
But Billy, whenever it's I was thinking, what's going on? You've got that Maody's chances. Yeah, it was like I was left the spoons and all of them shelves and look at all loves Bobby. But it was yeah, you know, you'd have to fall a few times before your stones.
Up on most definitely, and you've got to. But you know, we talk redemption, and I really like pushing that in on this this show redemption because you get people. I've seen people, we've all been there. You're at this low point, you think I'm never going to turn this around, and then we see a story like like yours, and you know, look, you got you've got two kids, you're enjoying life. You've
lived a life, but you're still here. So I think there's some motivation and inspiration for people here in your story. And I think that's why it certainly resonated with me. I'm thinking, ship, who is this blake? How how has he survived?
Like?
How did where's that human spirit come from?
And because I was what My thing was I was daying all.
I forgot your cancer story. Yeah, that's another number one. When did you get diagnosed with cancer?
Two times of the ship?
Right? Okay, so you're going through the whole prison experience and then you got hit with that. Yeah.
So that being through that experience and come out at this glorious book that addressed that became a movie that I'm on the shed and I guess I gets it with cancer and filling to that was that was like and Rod the handling me life me. I was diavolged with cancer after passed away from cancer, and I had to you know, he made amends met the last seven years of his life.
You know that's good.
He never really shed much. But you know, at the end of his life, you know, he said he loved me, and that was I believe. And then I had this out of the chept and surround you know, maybe you know he had his whole little battles with his life, and you know, we never really shared much of bout it, so I can't I add that to giveness, which you can't of give me a better piece. But then I got diagnosed with it, and you know, I ended up with Stacey. Cancer brought me ways, you know, lot hay.
Everything a photag is the end and you know kind of manage to get through it, you know. So that was a load of handling, you know what. And then they share the good back kids and then that's w share them with these tree little boys now and they be careful what you wish for greatly.
How how old about it?
Well one was for ones alet.
Oh jeez, Billy, and here I am keeping you up to no wonder you're worried, keeping you up to midnight to do the podcast. I'm sorry. I apologize.
I've got a couple of step kids as well. They were quite a bit old. You know, things things are okay, and you know, away along Tiddy. You know, an organization was just called Weapons Down, which we deal with interventions with young kids, and you know, you know gang culture, man county lines, you know, vision and consequences, mental health, addiction. I kind of covered all aspects of I've got the experience.
Well you got the life experience, and and people like you, people that kids if they're heating in the wrong direction, listen to But what was the name of the organization? Weapons Day and fists Up?
Weapons down.
I like it.
I like it.
That's because yeah, we've got a bit of a problem over here in Australia. And I know it's you've probably got the same thing in the UK, but with weapons and knives and and and all that that it's something that really try to see people away.
And I'm under no illusion that we're not going to reach everyone, it's all. And I mean we can only I mean if he reach a few people, then that's there's a ribble of effect. And I know the ribble effect because of my ripple effect. I had the shape of people around me, don't really struggling and shuffled them.
You know.
Now they're phoning me up and asking me for help me mum, you know, she she she brings me up for guidance to report. And you know that was never on the cards. It was always just all getting shotting with feet, keep aways. You know, you're the shoulders and the banish. And now it's it's not like that. What sholl ever, you know, it's quite different difference. Have got a blood to do these as show that was a bit of a struggle growing roughly looking after him as well,
that he's missed him. But now he's like my little rock. And you know, I've spent a lot of time with him because he had a lot of guilt over It's like dismissing him as a young kid. Yeah, you know, he wasn't physically and he can't. He was medley, but he couldn't really rebilage or understand or he wasn't aware.
And he's forty five now and he you know, he's got you know, he's got his he's got his accomplishes, but he's just a lovable guy that you know, was very popular now in Liverpool because I put him on the platform. I don't shy away from the autism side of things, and I didn't realize how his spying it was for others to go, Okay, I've got a family member. You know. I was always worrying that, you know, that he wouldn't be able to trow and he wouldn't be
able to be a productive member of society. Now by the way, you know in these you know he waited testing. That's so it shouldn't embarrass.
Stuff like that. And you can make a difference and I know, yeah, you talked about the posta syndrome and you know, hanging on to the guilt that you weren't good for society. But mate, I got to say, sitting here and listening to your story and just getting a sense of who you are, you're putting you're putting more good than the bad that you you created. So you balance the ledger I reckon you can, Yeah, give yourself a bit of leeway. We all make mistakes, That's how we come from.
Yeah, And I speaks to Michel Coss. You know what you acknowledge that the fact that you're not outdare committing crime. Still you're not out there, you're not telling your story, but they living a living a bad life, you know what I mean. But I'm sure that people on these platforms that would show the belt made would still out David in Segacy. You know, I don't done that, and I know for the fact that there's people like that, and I don't want to be one of those those
people who you haven't got the insangy. You know, I won't be inside the out size But she is what I do because I'm in a public you know, arena, and I don't want to be sheen.
To be doing no and with that comes the responsibility. But it looks like you're reading to it.
Ye, it gives you the responsibility of the comfortability.
All right, well, look, I think we might wrap it up here. Billy, I really really enjoyed, enjoyed the chat, and it's something I say to you. I've burnt a fan of you because of your story from the moment I saw the movie, and I'm really excited I've got the opportunity to sit down and have it have a chat with you. So all the best for you for the future. And yeah, thanks for coming on I Catch Killers.
Thank you.
Well. I got to say I love my job hosting I Catch Killers podcast because I've been fascinated with Billy's story ever since I watched his movie. The fact that what he survived and how he turned his life around is just amazing, and I think it's a real privilege for me to be able to sit down and have a chat with him. And I gotta say I like the bloke. He's very impressive and testament to the human spirit that he came through what he came through, and I just think he's a good Felow