First Look at Simon Rumley’s Once Upon a Time in London

British director’s ultra-violent gangster saga Once Upon a Time in London is currently in production

We recently talked with maverick genre director Simon Rumley (The Living and the Dead) about one of several films he has in current release (read that interview about Johnny Frank Garrett’s Last Word here) and massaged into that chat was mention of a new movie he was mounting, a bloody crime opera/period piece about the malevolent criminals who paved the way for the notorious Kray brothers, themselves subject of films like Peter (The Changeling) Medak’s The Krays and the Tom Hardy showcase Legend.

Currently shooting on locations around London, Once Upon a Time in London dramatizes the violent reign of Billy Hill (Leo Gregory) and Jack ‘Spot’ Comer (Terry Stone) and charts the legendary rise and fall of a nationwide criminal empire that lasted until the mid-fifties and which paved the way for those vile Kray Twins and The Richardsons.

Described as “Peaky Blinders meets Legend”, the film also stars Holly Earl, Dominic Keating, Geoff Bell, Jamie Foreman, Doug Allen, Andy Beckwith, Roland Manookian, Justin Salinger, Kate Braithwaite and Laura Carter. Joining the eclectic ensemble are comedian Simon Munnery, boxers Frank Buglioni, Steve Collins and Joe Egan, footballer Jamie O’Hara, singer / TV star Nadia Forde, Union J’s JJ Hamblett and magician Ali Cook.

Once Upon a Time in London is a Gateway Films & Ratio Film Presentation, directed by Simon Rumley, written by Will Gilbey, Simon Rumley & Terry Stone, and produced by Terry Stone & Richard Turner.

We have some new photos straight from the set to share. Have a look below and stay tuned for more on the film as we get it.