A new documentary is promising to lift the lid on the untold story behind Glasgow's so-called ice cream wars that tore through some of the city's roughest housing schemes in the 1980s.
The two-part BBC Scotland series The Ice Cream Wars will feature archive footage and dramatic reconstructions to give us a fresh retelling of the vicious turf wars that resulted in the mass murder of six innocent family members, including an 18-month-old baby, and an infamous miscarriage of justice and a crime that remains unsolved to this day.
And while the primary focus will be the notorious gangland battles and subsequent judicial controversy, the show, which is set to air this autumn, will also discuss the crippling deprivation that affected much of Glasgow's post-war communities of the era and how this helped create the ideal conditions for serious crime to flourish in these areas.
READ MORE: When Glasgow tried to ban 'evil' Italian ice cream parlours from the city
BBC Scotland's Commissioning Editor, David Harron, said: "This is a powerful two-part series which, as well as telling the story of a brutal feud, also explores the nature of life in some of Scotland’s most deprived communities during that period.
"It also looks at how the construction of new estates on the edge of the city with no infrastructure created the conditions that made these routes so lucrative and the impact of the case on the justice system with the two men convicted of the murders eventually walking free after 20 years.”
Alan Clements of production company Two Rivers Media added: “As is evident in much of our work, these films won’t only tell this astonishing story of the crime itself, but will reflect back the social and political realities of the time through the lens of what was, at the time, one of the most dangerous cities in Britain."
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Background
The ice cream wars was the name given to a series of gangland turf wars that broke out in some of Glasgow's most deprived schemes in the 1980s. Ice cream van operators could make hundreds of pounds a week selling cones and other confectionery, and, in some cases, counterfeit goods and drugs.
These being lean times, and with such huge profits to be made, certain van operators resorted to intimidation tactics to put a stop to newcomers encroaching on what they saw as their patch. Violent incidents involving the use of baseball bats, knives and even firearms became alarmingly common as the situation heated up.
Then, in April 1984, teenage ice cream vendor Andrew 'Fat Boy' Doyle, who worked for the Marchetti family, became a target for rival factions after attempting to sell in the Garthamlock district, where he lived.
Doyle, who it is said had resisted attempts to sell drugs from his van, survived being shot at with a sawn-off shotgun through his windscreen, before gangland members doused the front door of the Doyle family home in petrol and set it alight. Six members of the Doyle family, James Doyle, 53, his daughter Christina Halleron, 25, her 18-month-old son Mark, three of James’ sons, James, 23, Andrew (the target of the attack) and 14-year-old Tony., perished as a result of the blaze.
Two innocent men were later tried and convicted for the killings and would spend two decades protesting their innocence.
Joe Steele and Thomas ‘TC’ Campbell were known for their violence and had been locked up for previous offences, however, both men would eventually have their convictions quashed in March 2004 at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh.
Full details on the release and airing dates of the Ice Cream Wars will be announced in coming weeks.
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