The new series of BBC Radio 5 Live’s Gangster podcast focuses on the 11-year pursuit and eventual capture of Brian Brendan Wright.
He’s a figure investigators say was central to Britain’s cocaine trade in the 1990s.
Listeners will hear, for the first time, from the officers who spent over a decade tracking Wright, as well as from smugglers who worked within his network.
Presented by investigative journalist Livvy Haydock, Gangster: The Story of the Milkman follows how Wright’s operation moved large quantities of cocaine from Colombia, through Venezuela, and into British coastal towns, all while he maintained a public profile as a racehorse owner.
The six-part series features interviews with former customs officers, cartel insiders and those who knew Wright personally, shedding light on the scale of his transatlantic network and the challenges faced by those trying to dismantle it.
Livvy said: “Brian Wright spent years being the man nobody could quite pin down. This series is about the people who spent over a decade trying, and what it took to finally catch him.”
The investigation began after the Sea Mist, a fishing boat, was found in Cork Harbour carrying 600 kilos of cocaine, one of the largest seizures in Irish history. Evidence from the boat led to a pursuit across three continents.
Barry Clarke, a former HM Customs and Excise officer involved in Operation Extend, described the complexity of the case, which involved tracing payphones and breaking codes to build intelligence on a network that rarely communicated directly.
Barry said: “He’s one of the smartest guys I’ve ever come across. He’s got that streetwise, street sense. He’s a very bright, sharp individual. He understands life. And it was clear that he had a very strong reputation as a high-class criminal, someone who was very careful in the way he operated. So, he had a strong reputation within UK criminality.”
The series also addresses the human cost of the cocaine trade. Clare Campbell discusses the death of her brother, journalist Bill Frost, whose life was affected by addiction, highlighting the broader impact of drugs entering Britain.
As the investigation progressed, Wright’s public life came under scrutiny, including allegations of race-fixing and doping.
Police raids uncovered millions of pounds worth of cocaine, and arrests extended from Colombian suppliers to Wright’s own family.
Eventually, Wright fled abroad, becoming one of Britain’s most wanted fugitives, before being traced to the Costa del Sol, arrested, and extradited to face trial.
Gangster: The Story of the Milkman is available as a boxset on BBC Sounds from Friday 7 August.
