THE BOWERS
I’m waiting for the Bower brothers in the lounge of the Peacock Gym, east London, when it suddenly occurs to me that I might not recognise them – which would be really embarrassing. All I know is that they’re three very good-looking brothers.
I’d heard about the Bowers many times, but I’d never actually met them. I’d heard that they were this and I’d heard that they were that, but mainly I’d heard that they were a family not to mess with; if you fuck with one then you take them all on! They don’t flaunt themselves in public and they don’t do the hard sell on the social scene – in fact, they are very private men.
As I waited for them to arrive, I looked around the gym and in particular at the many photos of young boxers hanging on the wall. There were photographs of youngsters and tearaways from the local neighbourhood whom they have encouraged and helped. There wasn’t just one photograph, there were literally hundreds. The Peacock Gym is the most famous gym in London because it has the best facilities for the young and old.
A receptionist asked if she could be of any assistance; I said I was waiting for the Bower brothers. Then they appeared through a doorway, and I immediately experienced those penetrating, ridiculously brown, brown eyes probing the room. All three of them look like Hollywood film stars from a gangster movie.
Basically, it was male testosterone at its height – untamed charisma. Their shirts matched – silk and velvet – to complement their eyes and I wonder if it’s a coincidence.
We moved to the patio for coffee or, in their case, weak tea. Every pair of female eyes in the room was glued to us. To put it into context, of all the people I’ve ever interviewed – murderers, gangsters and the hugely famous – I’ve never encountered such an outbreak of raw, female, slack-jaw lust.
The brothers took me to a palatial office on the top floor of the gym where we could talk in private. I switched on my tape recorder and placed it in between two posh desks. Tony Bowers sat behind one desk and Martin and Paul sat behind the other. They were polite and courteous throughout the interview, to me and to each other.
‘Sorry, Tony, can I butt in there?’ or ‘If I can just interrupt you for a moment…’
They were young men with old-fashioned values who rose to the occasion in their fine suits and silk ties embroidered with a certain dignity. They were rough diamonds. Then, with a tap on the door and a muffled ‘Excuse me,’ in walked their father, Wally. He is the figurehead of the family and probably the only man in the world who can control the three brothers. It was at that moment I realised where the brothers had inherited their manners and dignity from.
At first, the boys were eager to tell me about the things they do for the community and were as proud as peacocks that they were a registered charity.
That wasn’t what I’d come to hear. I wanted blood and guts. I wanted to know if the fearsome reputation I’d heard about them was true. But with a wave of the hand and a flash of a pearly smile, my questions were dismissed.
They didn’t need to say anything; the atmosphere, the mood and the feeling that they generated between themselves was enough to send a shiver down your spine.
Reluctantly, the boys agreed to be photographed for the book and I think the image speaks for itself.
BACKGROUND
We were brought up in Canning Town, east London. We had a sister, Jayne Louise, but unfortunately she was killed.
I suppose you could say our dad Wally used to be a rascal. He’s been inside a couple of times. When he was first put in prison our mum was very ill and she was always in and out of hospital so our dad’s sister came to live with us. Tragically, our mum passed away. However, we still had lots of love, even though our dad was inside and Mum was no longer with us.
Us boys used to do the weekly shopping; we only had a couple of quid to do it each week but we never went short of anything. We’d put a big bag underneath the trolley and make our way round the supermarket. More things went in the bag than the trolley! We had to live by our wits which made us strong, helped us, drove us on if you like.
As kids we didn’t do much schooling, we’d rather make camps and ours was always the best around. Whenever we built our camps we’d put everything in it. Every kid in the neighbourhood wanted to come to our camp and we carried that theory on in our businesses. If you put everything into it then people will want to join you. This lesson we have taken with us through our life. But we will never forget our background; we are street urchins and always will be.
LIFE OF CRIME
Who said we had a life of crime?
WEAPONRY
Not known to use anything.
TOUGHEST MOMENT
Losing our mother and sister.
IS THERE ANYONE YOU ADMIRE?
Our father Wally. He brought us up alone and that must have been a hard thing for a man to do in the Sixties.
DO YOU BELIEVE IN HANGING?
No. I think that all nonces should be kept in a building. When a sick or dying patient needs a new kidney or heart, then the organs should be removed from the pervs. Don’t just hang them – make use of them.
IS PRISON A DETERRENT?
No. Prison is a university and not a deterrent.
WHAT WOULD HAVE DETERRED YOU FROM A LIFE OF CRIME?
Money.
WHAT MAKES A TOUGH GUY?
A man who sticks by his family. Living by the rules. A man of his word. That’s how you get respect: living by the rules.
THE BOWERS’ FINAL THOUGHT
We’ve worked and worked for years. We’ve got lots of businesses – pubs, restaurants and cab firms. We’ve always worked. We’ve ducked and dived and done what we had to do to get to where we are today.
Nowadays, we try to put something back into the community instead of taking it out. We’ve got the biggest gym in London, The Peacock. We’ve got 12 football teams for children, we organise endless summer camps, amateur boxing competitions, UK Strongman, karate events, wrestling and marathons, to name but a few. It takes a lot of dedication and hard graft to keep our businesses afloat and we’re lucky enough to have a good team of workers and helpers, both paid and voluntary.
Our greatest achievement is being a registered charity for the last six years. We can say hand on heart that there really is nothing like a ‘straight pound note’.
To the great surprise of all who knew them, the Bower brothers were recently given long term prison sentences for robbery.