Reggie Kray prison letters fail to sell at auction

The 215 letters written by Kray between 1988 and 1993 in Maidstone Prison went under the hammer at McTear's auction house in Glasgow on Tuesday (June 2).

They were sent to Carol Clerk, who ghost-wrote his autobiography, 'Born Fighter', with each letter signed off with 'Love Reg xxx'.  

With a guide price of between £10,000 and £15,000, McTear's managing director, Brian Clements, described the collection as "unique" and said they were of "particular interest to collectors". 

But the letters failed to reach the undisclosed reserve price, Mr Clements said. 

"Overall it has been an extremely successful sale with many items fetching prices well above their estimates," he said. 

"Although there was interest in the Reggie Kray letters, the lot did not reach its reserve price and therefore did not sell on the night."

Reggie and his twin bother Ronnie, are both buried alongside their mother Violet Kray at Chingford Mount Cemetery in Old Church Road, Chingford.

The Hoxton-born gangsters were were both sentenced to life imprisonment in 1969 for armed robberies, assault, racketeering and the murders of Jack "The Hat" McVitie and George Cornell.  

Ronnie died in Broadmoor Hospital in 1995 while Reggie died from cancer in October 2000, eight weeks after he was released from his term on compassionate grounds.