Michael O'Brien: 'I killed him', Rebecca Sherdley - Nottinghamshire Live / the Nottingham Post
Whilst some of these shootings were isolated, others were intrinsically linked to the death of innocent shopfitter Marvyn Bradshaw in a pub car park in August 2003. Marvyn was driving his Renault when he was shot at close-range by local criminal Michael O'Brien, who was angry he had been turned away from a lock-in at the Sporting Chance bar. Marvyn's passenger was Jamie Gunn, the nephew of crime lord Colin Gunn. One year after Marvyn died, Jamie passed away from pneumonia. The notorious Gunn family blamed O'Brien for causing the demise of Jamie. And, whilst O'Brien was convicted of murdering Marvyn at Nottingham Crown Court, Colin Gunn and his cartel exacted their revenge, tracking down O'Brien's mum Joan and step-dad John to the Lincolnshire coast. Two hitmen shot the couple dead. Colin Gunn and two others were convicted of conspiracy to murder the Stirlands at Birmingham Crown Court. I covered each and every one of the trials; from O'Brien, a later trial of his co-accused Gary Salmon, and the conspiracy trial of Gunn, and Gunn's trial for his role in police corruption. In January 2023 I learned that O'Brien was due out on parole and saw a YouTube video of an interview between him from prison with reformed criminal Marvin Herbert. I asked Herbert if I could speak with O'Brien. The plan was to interview Herbert (who has been investigated for over 24 murders and eight shootings) about his work with ex-offenders. Out-of-the-blue Herbert called and after a couple of minutes asked me if I'd like to speak with Jay Jay (O'Brien's nickname). Of course I did, and I had to think on the spot, because I had so many questions on the history of the case. This was the man who started one of the most incredible, shocking chain of events in British criminal history. O'Brien spoke freely, although I was aware the conversation could end at any time. But, over 40 minutes, without any pressure, he confessed to killing Marvyn Bradshaw 19 years earlier. That phone call led to a series of features: Notorious murderer Michael O'Brien makes shocking confession over shooting of Marvyn Bradshaw, Murderer Michael O'Brien: His childhood, how he lost his eye and the death of his dad, Killer Michael O'Brien says Bestwood crime boss Colin Gunn 'got what he deserved'. Sometimes a reporter gets the scoop of a lifetime - this happened to me - so it's always worth taking that chance on an interview you think there's the least likelihood you will get. The impact of these stories was phenomenal in terms of responses from the wider public and it was a story which needed to be told to the Nottinghamshire public who followed this gripping and sorry tale from the start. The story of his confession generated more than 25,000 page views.