The black widow : the life and crimes of Linda Calvey

Known as "The Black Widow" because every man she has ever been involved with is either dead or in prison, Linda Calvey is the stuff of East End legend.

Her life of crime began when her first husband was shot dead by police when an armed robbery went badly wrong.

Left alone with two young children, she began to take part in robberies - first as a lookout, then as a getaway driver and finally donning a balaclava and wielding a shotgun herself. She then met Ronnie Cook, a tough, violent gangster who was eventually jailed for his part in the Brinks Mat bullion robbery.

On his release, Calvey hired hitman Danny Reece to dispose of her husband and in 1991 they were both jailed for life for his brutal murder.

They later married in prison. Calvey tells her story from behind bars to her friend and confidante Kate Kray, widow of gangland legend Ronnie Kray.

Calvey is reputed to be the inspiration behind the TV series, "Widows", written by Lynda La Plante.