The Jimmy Wilde "Mugging" (1965)

[Caractacus]

The Great British Fighter.
Does anyone here have any in-depth info concerning that ?
such as what day and time it happened.
I had heard that it happened at a Train Station platform n Cardiff Wales
and that he was about 73 years old..
was the Train platform deserted and there were
No witnesses around to report what had occurred ?
what did the local or National newspapers have to say about it all ?
Did they send down a Private Detective from London to find out ?
what were his injuries and to what extent ?
did they use any weapons ?

[Stevieaber]

Strangely there isn’t much on the net about this, but what I remember being
reported is that he was beaten so badly that he lost his memory and died 4 years later in Whitchurch hospital, unaware that his wife had already passed away. Whitchurch was a mental hospital at this time (not sure if it is now)so that would tie up with an elderly patient with memory loss.

[Caractacus]

Cardiff is the largest city in Wales.
Difficult to believe that no one was around to see what had happened.

[Caractacus]

[Caractacus]

was just thinking IF those hoodlums who done it are still alive
they would probably all be in their early 70's, the same age of Jimmy Wilde when he was severely beatin and it's never too late for for them to go to the "Slammer" for it.

[Steveh583]

it was 3 scottish teens wasn't it? A real tragedy.

[gp.]

Cardiff is the largest city in Wales.
Difficult to believe that no one was around to see what had happened.

It's not remotely difficult. Cardiff's not Manhattan. Station platforms out of rush hours are often going to be pretty empty, and muggers are not going to be mugging anyone if there's a crowd watching.

I live in Cardiff and if I walk home at night there's going to be a lot more of that journey where there isn't anyone with eyes on me than when there is.

[watsupdoc87]

was just thinking IF those hoodlums who done it are still alive
they would probably all be in their early 70's, the same age of Jimmy Wilde when he was severely beatin and it's never too late for for them to go to the "Slammer" for it.

It would be too late for them too go to the "slammer" for as the statute of limitations would have ran it's course by now

[John]

It would be too late for them too go to the "slammer" for as the statute of limitations would have ran it's course by now

[Stevieaber]

No statute of limitations for robbery or GBH

[Caractacus]

Jimmy Wilde did die as a result of the injuries from the beating even if it had taken 4 years to die from them ?
It still would be murder I think.?
(The Frankie DePaula case comes to mind)

[Caractacus]

was Jimmy Wilde coming back from somewhere or had just arrived at the train platform ?
what was he believed to have been mugged of ?
rings a watch ?

[John]

Jimmy Wilde did die as a result of the injuries from the beating even if it had taken 4 years to die from them ?
It still would be murder I think.?
(The Frankie DePaula case comes to mind)

That was in a foreign country.

[Caractacus]

yeah, but basically you would think that the laws in the UK are the same as in the USA ?

[John]

Yes, you would think that would be the sensible thing but unfortunately the Americans have simply made up a lot of laws without asking first.

[Stevieaber]

Nowadays it could be classed as a murder / manslaughter if the death was linked to the assault, but until recently the death had to be within a year and a day from the assault

[Caractacus]

[gp.]

Jimmy Wilde did die as a result of the injuries from the beating even if it had taken 4 years to die from them ?
It still would be murder I think.?
(The Frankie DePaula case comes to mind)

There's a difference between "he never recovered from the injuries and died 4 years later at the age of 77" and "he died as a result of the injuries."

Also, I am not convinced that the attack was at Central Station. There are a number of railway stations in Cardiff, many of them small local ones. Many sources talk about "Cardiff station" but many also simply say "a railway station in Cardiff". I have always believed it was Whitchurch, but I am not sure now why I ever thought that.

[Caractacus]

What did the local newspapers of 1965 have to say about it ?
Surely some national newspaper must have sent down a reporter to Cardiff to get the details.
Jimmy Wilde was a National Hero wasn't he ?
It would be interesting to see crime statistics of the area
and how many people had been robbed
there a few years before and afterwards.
Crime in large cities went up in the USA just after WW II.
I know that's when Times Square in NYC really started to turn to sh*t.

[chrisjs1985]

He was living in Barry I believe. Had been in Cardiff and at the station was jumped. He said one of them headbutted him and he didn't remember much else but was in a bad state after it. He admitted in his book "Fighting was my business" that his memory was having some issues in the 1930's as a result of the fights with Pete Herman were his head smashed on the floor outside the ring and then when he was KO'd after the bell when not looking vs. Villa, but still fought on after they revived him and took a frightful beating. I am going to guess he was a fairly frail old man when those cowards (who probably didn't know who he was) got to him.

[Caractacus]

someone earlier in the thread mentioned "two Scottish lads"
Did the authorities have suspects ?
but they did not release their names for whatever reason ?

[Caractacus]

didn't even know that Jimmy Wilde book.
( it was originally published in 1938)
I wonder what ring tactics Jimmy Wilde may have known to protect himself from cheap shot head butts
here are some recent ones (although most likely they were known tactics back then too)

[Stevieaber]

Since this initially was posted it has really been bugging me that I couldn’t find more about this incident.

As such, I’ve been looking for Gareth Harris’s 2006 book on Wilde, having read his biographies of Jim Driscoll and Freddie Welsh, both of which were very detailed. The book arrived today and contains the following:-

“On March 10th 1960 Jimmy was waiting on the Cardiff Queen Street railway station when he was attacked by a thug 30 years younger than himself. “I was waiting on the platform” he said “to take a train to (my home) in Barry, when a young fellow came up. Next thing….. he gave me a terrific blow on the nose”.

It goes on to say that a bystander called John Ivor Thomas saw a man butt Wilde in the face for no reason, knocking him back onto a trolley. Two stitches were put in his nose at the Cardiff Royal Infirmary but he couldn’t identify the assailant.

The witness however could, and confronted the assailant, who said he had seen someone else carry out the assault, but denied doing it himself.

“On August 8th a 40 year old Trethomas man was found guilty of assault and given 3 years probation. It was stated that he had a number of previous convictions and that he had been to prison and in Borstal (youth custody)”

In 1965 Jimmy was admitted to Whitchurch Psychiatric hospital after his condition worsened. He died there in 1969.

I’ll try and look up the court page of the local paper on line to see if I can find the name of the arsehole responsible. If I get any more info I’ll post it on here.

[Stevieaber]

Jimmy Wilde butted in the face, court told "I was knocked out. That's what they call it in my game," Welsh boxing idol and former world champion Jimmy Wilde told Cardiff Stipendiary Magistrate.

Before the court was Trevor Dow, aged 40, of Trethomas, alleged to have assaulted Mr Wilde at Queen Street railway station, Cardiff, occasioning him actual bodily harm.

Dow, who pleaded not guilty and elected to be tried by jury, was committed to Cardiff Quarter Sessions.

Mr C J Geldard, prosecuting, said Mr Wilde, aged 68, of Victoria Park, Barry, was standing on the platform when a man came up to him and hit him on the nose.

Mr Wilde fell to the ground and "never shifted from there till I went to the infirmary."

At Cardiff Royal Infirmary he had to have stitches in his nose.

[Caractacus]

sheeyat, 40 years old ?,
that's seems to be a bit old for someone to be a "hoodlum"
( especially back in 1965, no doubt they were a career criminal)
stitches in his nose and the shock of the head butt must have caused
some type of brain injury (although im not a doctor)