Calling himself the 21st Century’s Ned Kelly, Chopper Read is a man hard to forget.
His life knew no bounds, from the story behind Chopper Read’s ripped ear, his infamous tattoos or the legend of his criminal transgressions.
Passing away nearly five years ago, the dust had settled on the tale of Mark Brandon “Chopper” Read.
But now one of Australia’s most notorious criminals has re-surged back into the spotlight thanks to Channel Nine’s Underbelly Files: Chopper.
We delve into the man behind the myth… And discover who is Mark “Chopper” Read?
Chopper Read certainly was a character. Relive his hilarious blind date with Fifi Box in the video below.
Chopper Read’s wife
Chopper Read has been married two times.
His first wife was Australian Taxation Office employee Mary-Ann Hodge.
Mark tied the knot to Mary-Anne in 1995 while he was in Tasmania’s Risdon Prison serving out his sentence for the shooting of Sidney Collins.
They had one son, Charlie, who is 19 years old.
Mary-Anne and Chopper parted ways and divorced in 2001.
In an interview from 2007, Mark admitted he only married her based on legal advice that believed it would help him get off jail.
Mark remarried for the second time on in January 2003, to his dear friend Margaret Cassar. They had one son, Roy Brandon, who is 15.
They remained together up until Chopper’s death in 2013.
Chopper with his second wife Margaret and their son Roy. (Pic credit: Penguin)
In the Underbelly series, Zoe Ventoura plays his first wife, Mary-Anne.
Chopper Read’s sons
Chopper Read is survived by his two sons, Charlie, who he shares with ex-wife Mary-Anne and Roy, who is from his second marriage and co-parented by his widow Margaret.
Both of Mark’s boys have remained relatively out of the limelight.
Charlie gave his first interview about his infamous dad one month after Chopper Read died.
Speaking to The Australian Women’s Weekly for their December 2013 edition, the then 14-year-old boy describes the difficulties of living in the shadow of the notorious criminal.
Chopper with his eldest Charlie. (Pic credit: Penguin)
“We walk the same, talk the same… but I’m not going to follow in his footsteps,” Charlie said at the time.
“I’m proud to be his son, but it’s a bit hard living with his reputation. I can’t go anywhere without people asking, ‘Are you Chopper’s son?'”
“He’s always been just ‘Dad’ to me. I don’t think of him as anything else, I don’t think of him as being the criminal. I’ve seen the other side of him and I’ve seen him do stuff that wasn’t great, but I want to remember the good times I had with him.”
You can read Charlie and his mum Mary-Anne’s full interview here.
Roy was very close to his father, appearing on a YouTube video uploaded by Mark Read Estate
The footage shows the pair playfully chatting to each other while Mark spoke about Ned Kelly.
You can watch the duo in the video player below!
How did Mark “Chopper” Read die?
While in prison, Chopper contracted Hepatitis C. As a result in 2008, the criminal was advised he had two-to-five years to live unless he got a liver transplant.
Chopper had said no to the option, remarking, “I’m not going to ask for a liver transplant, it’s not fair. I’m 55 years old; I’m not going to put my name down against some ten-year-old kid.”
Mark was diagnosed with liver cancer in April 2012.
A few months later in July, the dad-of-two attempted to remove the tumours from his liver through surgery.
A year later, things took a turn for the worse and in late September 2013 he was admitted to Melbourne Private Hospital.
Mark “Chopper” Read died of liver caner on the 9th of October 2013 in Parkville, Victoria. He was 58.
Chopper appeared on 60 Minutes weeks before his passing.
The criminal had a public funeral on the 17th of October 2013 where his 70 of his loved ones and fans gathered at Edinburgh Gardens Community Room in Victoria, to pay their respects.
His wife Margaret and his eldest son Charlie were among the gatherers.
Chopper left one final prank – a dirty laundry basket.
The 58-year-old had a basket of men’s boxer shorts, with a note, “Could someone please take care of this for me? Thanks very much. Chop,” presented at the service.
Chopper Read’s net worth
Chopper may have become a cult celebrity, but at the time of his death, the criminal died with no assets or fortune.
It was reported that his only material possessions with monetary value were artworks worth $15,000.
Mark Read left his entire estate to his youngest son, Roy, to be held in trust until he turns 21.
Chopper Read’s crimes and confessions
Chopper loved his criminal past!
Mark “Chopper” Read was a career criminal.
In his books, he claimed to have been involved in the killing of 19 people and the attempted murder of 11 others
Years later he changed his tune to “about four or seven”, remarking he’d “never let the truth get in the way of a good yarn.”
He spent 23 years in jail for violent crimes, though he was never convicted of murder.
Just weeks before his passing, he admitted to 60 Minutes that he had killed four people including fellow gangster, Siam Ozerkam, known as Sammy the Turk.
When he wasn’t committing crime, Chopper Read made a living as a children’s book author and artist.
Mark “Chopper” Read in pop culture
To say Chopper Read was a real character is an understatement.
Despite his chequered history, Chopper’s vibrant personality earned him a legion of fans.
In 2000, he was immortalised in the film Chopper with Eric Bana stepping into his shoes.
Eric Bana in the big man’s shoes for the 2000 film.
The likeness is uncanny.
He was then featured twice on Underbelly.
First in the fifth episode of the show’s second series, Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities, where was played by Renato Fabretti.
He was then the titular character the 2018 two-part mini series, Underbelly Files: Chopper.
The cast was lead by Aaron Jeffery, Vince Colosimo as Alphonse Gangitano, Michael Caton as Read’s father Keith, Todd Lasance as Syd Collins, Zoe Ventoura as Read’s first wife Mary-Ann Hodge, and Ella Scott Lynch as his second-wife Margaret Cassar.
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