Fighting under the pseudonym “Ching Hook” or “Ching Ghook,” his alternate name suggests mixed heritage – something reflected in A Thousand Blows, where Moscow speaks Mandarin thanks to his Chinese grandmother.
As historian Brian McDonald detailed in his books Gangs of London and Alice Diamond and the 40 Elephants, they were experts in deception and shoplifting, swindling high-end West End stores such as Harrods with tactics ranging from wearing fake arms to impersonating housemaids in wealthy households.
While much of the drama is fictionalised, both the gang and the enigmatic boxer at its heart, Hezekiah Moscow, are rooted in real history.
He was accompanied in London by his friend Alec Munroe, played in A Thousand Blows by Francis Lovehall (Small Axe).
This is the world of A Thousand Blows, the latest historical drama from Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight, which lands on Disney+ this week.
