Episode 51

Soho Bites 51: King of the Underworld (1952)

Published on: 14th April, 2026

Not a Humphry Bogart film.

King of the Underworld (1952) stars Tod Slaughter as Terence Reilly - a master criminal who is always one step ahead of his arch nemesis, Inspector Morley, played by Patrick Barr. The film should not be confused with King of the Underworld (1939) which stars Humphry Bogart and is a very different film all together.

It was not originally made as a film and is actually three episodes of a low budget TV show called Inspector Morley, Late of Scotland Yard, Investigates, clumsily stitched together.

To talk about King of the Underworld, we’re joined by Vic Pratt from the BFI, a man who loves a bit of Slaughter and has a tenuous family connection to him.

Aidan McManus joins us in the first half of the show to talk about a different, real life king of the underworld, Bernie Silver.

Follow Vic on Blue Sky and read some of his work at the BFI website.

Next time you're in Foyles, pick up his book (available at other places too, obvs)

Listen to Aidan on Portobello Radio and book for one of his walking tours of Soho HERE. He also does a tour about David Bowie and he came on episode 29 to talk about him.

Watch King of the Underworld at TPTV Encore and if that's simply not enough Tod, pick up this box set from Indicator films.

Thank you for listening.

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Check out our spin-off series Mural Morsels

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About the Podcast

Soho Bites Podcast
A show about Soho and the films set there
A surpisingly large number of films have been set in Soho - that one square mile which has, for decades, been the beating heart of bohemian, cosmopolitan London. In each episode of Soho Bites, we talk to a special guest about a different Soho film and accompany it with a shorter, thematically linked item which may or may not be film related.
Written, produced & presented by Dominic Delargy
Based on an original idea by Dr Jingan Young
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