Trailer
Gangster
BBC
4.7 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 4 March 2026
⏱️ 3 minutes
🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
From the back alleys of Hong Kong to the neon-lit Chinatowns of Britain, Georgie Pai built a nationwide criminal empire through his Triad gang Wo Shing Wo. With a network of protection rackets, gambling dens and an army of loyal followers, he controlled his turf with threats, violence and machetes. Gangster steps inside the world of the Triads. A brotherhood bound by secret handshakes and elaborate rituals, where loyalty is sworn in blood. For decades, Georgie Pai’s name alone caused absolute terror amongst Britain’s Chinese community. He was deported back to Hong Kong several times, but with police unable to pin him to a single crime, it was left to a team of journalists to bring him down.
Presenter: Livvy Haydock Series Producer: Hayley Mortimer Technical Producer: Richard Hannaford Producers: Patrick Kiteley & Matt Toulson Fixer in Hong Kong: Michelle Chan Music: Andy Simms and Reliable Source Music Journalism Assistants: Hattie Valentine & Ellie Dover Commissioning Producer: Sam Proffitt  Commissioning Executive: Lorraine Okuefuna and Louise Kattenhorn Commissioning Editor: Richard Maddock Editor and Executive Producer: Clare Fordham
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:05.5 | A quick warning. |
| 0:07.5 | What you're about to hear contains some descriptions of violence. |
| 0:12.9 | I'm Livy Haydock, and from BBC Sounds and BBC Radio 5 live, this is Gangster, the story of Georgie Pye. |
| 0:24.3 | Once they follow this live and they have an order, it's like being in the army. |
| 0:30.1 | If they try to come out for you, you're done. |
| 0:33.0 | If they say you're going to get stabbed, you're going to get stabbed. |
| 0:37.0 | If they say they're going to cut your head off, they're going to cut your head off. They're going to get stabbed, you're going to get stabbed. If they say they're going to cut your |
| 0:38.4 | head off, they're going to cut your head off. You've seen the triads in Hong Kong action movies, |
| 0:46.9 | but what if I told you the gangs once operated in cities across Britain? |
| 0:54.0 | Scotland Yard says it's concerned about the growing influence of Chinese gangs known as Triads. |
| 0:59.2 | The police have identified four triad societies with corporate structures involving hundreds of gang members throughout the country. |
| 1:06.8 | Welcome to the world of the triads. |
| 1:10.3 | It's a kind of organisation that they want their life easy, they want money easy. |
| 1:16.0 | We already pay tax and everything, so we don't want to pay more again. |
| 1:21.3 | And if someone didn't pay it? |
| 1:23.0 | They might be in trouble. |
| 1:25.0 | A network of protection rackets, gambling dens and extreme violence. |
| 1:30.3 | Found a couple of severed fingers in the gutter. |
| 1:34.5 | All of a sudden, a group of men all dressed the same with face coverings, ran in with machetes. |
| 1:43.6 | There are seven head wounds, fractured skull, |
| 1:46.5 | pleading ones to his back. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.