Viv Graham (1959-December 31, 1993) was a British mobster and former amateur heavyweight boxer who stopped boxing because of a frozen shoulder, operating a chain of Tyneside nightclubs and bars, was a reputed organized crime figure in the Geordie underworld involved in extortion and racketeering activities.
A well known bouncer and "hardman" in the Tyneside-area, Graham earned a reputation as a hardened and violent criminal, particularly after an incident in which rival doorman Stuart Watson was severely beaten by Graham following an altercation at Hobo's nightclub in Newcastle's Bath Lane in 1990. The fight was later revealed to have been recorded on video resulting in Graham's conviction for assault and served a three year prison sentence [1].
Shortly after his release, he was given a suspended sentence for an assault charge and survived several attempts on his life during the next several months. However, he was ambushed while leaving the Anchor pub on Wallsend High Street (although a separate account claims the Queen's Head pub in Wallsend, North Tyneside [2]) and shot three times by an unidentified gunman, dying four hours later in North Tyneside Hospital.
In 1998, police arrested five men in connection to Graham's murder and questioned regarding an alleged conspiracy to murder the bouncer.