How a violent Australian criminal transformed himself into a celebrated pop culture icon

History · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Mark Brandon Read, known as Chopper, spent most of his adult life behind bars for kidnapping and armed robbery. Yet, he reinvented himself as a best-selling author and media personality, blurring the lines between his brutal criminal reality and the heavily fictionalized persona that captivated the Australian public.

Born in 1954, Mark Brandon Read grew up in Melbourne, enduring a childhood marked by bullying, abuse, and state institutionalization. By his youth, he had established himself as a formidable street fighter and gang leader. His criminal career was defined by extreme violence, including kidnapping and torturing underworld figures to extract money, often using tools like blowtorches or bolt cutters to remove victims' toes.

Read’s notoriety peaked during his time in Pentridge Prison. In the late 1970s, he engaged in a violent prison war, famously having his own ears cut off by an inmate to secure a transfer to a mental health wing, though he later claimed the act was to win a bet. His nickname, Chopper, originated from a childhood cartoon dog. Between the ages of 20 and 38, he spent all but 13 months incarcerated for various offenses, including arson and armed robbery.

Following his release, Read transitioned into a bizarre second act as a celebrity. He authored over 500,000 copies of crime novels and children's books, appeared in commercials, and even released a rap album. His life inspired the 2000 film Chopper, starring Eric Bana, which relied on Read's own often-contradictory accounts. Despite his fame, he faced bankruptcy in 2007 and struggled with hepatitis C and liver cancer, eventually dying in 2013 at age 58.

Read’s legacy remains a complex mix of myth and reality. While he claimed to have killed up to 19 people, his later interviews suggested the number was significantly lower, between four and seven. His ability to commodify his own violent history—through books, stage shows, and even branded beer—demonstrates a unique, if unsettling, mastery of public perception that turned a career criminal into a household name.

General information, not professional advice. Spotted an error? Flag the card or see corrections and complaints.

Intellect Plus is a visual educational discovery platform for exploring fascinating facts and ideas. Brain Food, Not Brain Rot. What is Intellect Plus?

Related

• How a sketch comedian transformed into Australia's most notorious criminal for the screen
• How a Melbourne milk bar owner became Australia’s most notorious drug syndicate mastermind
• How an Oxford physics graduate became the world's most notorious international cannabis smuggler
• The final silence of Australia's most notorious outlaw
• How a Bohemian failure became the definitive voice of Australia's convict past
• The Last Godfather: How Matteo Messina Denaro Evaded Capture for Three Decades
• LulzSec: The short-lived hacking collective that turned digital mayhem into a global spectacle
• How the tragic 1998 murder of a Wyoming student reshaped American federal hate crime law.
• How a penniless farm boy became the most untouchable boss of the Sicilian Mafia
• The Mob accountant who built a global empire and disrupted Nazi rallies in America
• Lizzie Borden was acquitted of murder, but the famous nursery rhyme tells a lie.
• How a single drug lord’s arrest triggered the modern era of Mexican cartel violence.

More in Crime · More in History · Latest · A–Z · All topics