"Stop the Ride": Ex-London gangster Dave Courtney 'killed himself' after long cancer battle

Dave Courtney, a reformed gangster known for his associations with London hardmen like the Kray brothers, Roy Shaw, and Lenny McLean, tragically took his own life at the age of 64.

He was found dead at his Camelot Castle home in Plumstead, southeast London. In an emotional statement released by his family, they shared that Dave's decision to end his life was a way to "stop the ride," a reference to the title of his autobiography, "Stop The Ride, I Want To Get Off."

The family disclosed that Dave had been battling both cancer and arthritis, and the pain had become too much for him, leading him to choose to end his own suffering. They emphasized that he made this choice to avoid being a "burden" to his loved ones.


The Metropolitan Police called to an address on Chestnut Rise in Plumstead at around 11:25am on Sunday after reports of a man found dead. Police pronounced Dave dead at the scene, with the death being treated as "unexpected and under investigation".

The Bermondsey-born Plumstead resident was seen supporting his favourite football club, the day before his death. He was pictured watching Charlton Athletic FC on Saturday in what he described as a "cool, cool day". The pictures show a grinning Courtney enjoying hospitality treatment in The Valley stadium.

He wrote on Facebook alongside the pictures at 3.52pm on Saturday: "At Charlton today. Full works today three course meal and our man James company is Sponser for the game. Billingham communications .... an wat a cool cool day it's all turning out to be."

Despite his infamous past as a debt collector, known for wearing a brutal knuckle-duster, he claimed to have been found not guilty in 19 different trials. However, he faced a conviction in January 2009 for possessing live ammunition.

Later in his life, he transitioned to acting and appeared in various low-budget London gangster films, including "Hell To Pay," which he produced, directed, and starred in. His roles in films like "Six Bend Trapp," "Clubbing to Death," and "The Dead Sleep Easy" marked his journey into a different realm.