Infamous 'Black Widow' recalls slapping Myra Hindley in jail while doing laundry

28 January 2024 , 08:13

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Linda Calvey has recalled bumping into Myra Hindley in prison - and slapping her (Image: Roland Leon Sunday Mirror)

A notorious female armed robber has recalled the moment she reportedly slapped Myra Hindley in prison whilst doing the laundry.

Linda Calvey earned the moniker of the ‘Black Widow’ after a number of the men she was involved with died. One of London’s most known gangsters, after lengthy spells in prison, she later became a public face, taking advantage of her notoriety by speaking about her crimes.

But now a 72-year-old great grandmother, she lives a far more quiet life than the one that saw her lead armed robberies or slap murderer Myra Hindley. The criminal and convicted killer 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.

She said stepping up and taking his role in the gang was the “natural progression”. But, in 1985, Linda Calvey was found guilty of armed robbery and sentenced to seven years in prison - arrogantly assuming that she would get away with it. Five years later, 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. She was sentenced for 18 years in prison for this.

But 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.

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After being moved from HMP Holloway to HMP Cookham Wood, in 1987, Calvey was given a job in the library. It was described as a step up from her previous role behind bars as a cleaner and as a perk, it was close to the laundrette. When she went in to do her laundry for the first time, convicted killer Calvey came face-to-face with Hindley - and slapped her.

Writing in the Mail, she 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.

Myra Hindley, the Moors Murderer (Corbis via Getty Images)

Calvey followed her husband's footsteps into crime (Mirrorpix via Getty Images)

"‘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. Her voice is low, with a northern burr."

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, Hindley seemingly continued like nothing had taken place.

Calvey was married three times and ended up a widow each time (S Meddle/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)

Calvey now said she looks back on her life of armed robbery and convicted killings as “surreal”. According to the Daily Star she said: "I look back and think, ‘Was that really me?’ It’s surreal. It’s like looking back on the life of somebody else, because I can’t imagine how I did do the things I did. These days, I wouldn’t even walk into a shop and pinch a sweet, but I used to rob banks and security vans.”

Kieren Williams