The Blue Angels Motorcycle Club (BAMC) is an international outlaw motorcycle club formed in Glasgow, Scotland in 1963. The Blue Angels MC is the oldest outlaw biker club in Europe, and one of the largest and most powerful clubs in the United Kingdom.Hundreds of bikers descend on Glasgow to escort motorcycle club boss to funeral in a sidecar Cheryl McEvoy, Glasgowlive.co.uk (15 February 2020) The club has chapters in Scotland, England, Belgium, Spain and Germany.
The Blue Angels have been linked with organised crime, and have been designated a criminal motorcycle gang by the Federal Police of Belgium.Vier criminele motorbendes in België Het Laatste Nieuws (14 May 2009) Bloodbath fears as violent Scots biker gangs go to war after hammer attack Derek Alexander, Daily Record (19 April 2020)
History Founded in the Maryhill area of Glasgow by Allan Morrison and Billy "Stone" Gordon in 1963, the Blue Angels Motorcycle Club is the oldest outlaw biker club in Europe. There are claims that "Blue" stands for "bastards, lunatics, undesirables and eccentrics", although this is almost certainly a backronym and the name more simply originates from the colour of the saltire. The Blue Angels emerged from Glasgow's gang culture of the era, which saw various groups fighting over control of the city's rackets.Club History From the club's inception in the 1960s, the Blue Angels were involved in clashes with mods and Glasgow street gangs.No Angels Gavin Madely, The Scotsman (28 August 2007)
The Blue Angels began associating with motorcycle clubs in England during the 1970s, forming an alliance with the Road Rats of London, and rivalling the English Hells Angels; Scotland remains one of the few countries in Europe without a Hells Angels chapter. In a 2007 interview with The Scotsman, BAMC president Lenny "the Lion" Reynolds stated: "We're proud of the fact that there isn't an American influence in Scotland. We fought the Hells Angels in the 1970s which is why they don't have a chapter here." The club established chapters in the Yorkshire cities of Leeds and Sheffield in 1970.Inside the biker gangs: the truth about guns, drugs and organised crime Belfast Telegraph (3 July 208) An additional chapter in London disbanded shortly after its inception. The Blue Angels expanded into Belgium in 1992 after "patching over", or amalgamating, a previously independent Belgian club of the same name which had been founded in Herzele in 1978.
In June 1987 following the death of Blue Angels Leader "Shannie" who died in a crash, bikers from all over Britain travelled to Leeds to attend the funeral.
The riders took off their helmets as a mark of respect filed behind the hearse on its journey to Cottingeley crematoriam flanked by polies outriders.
In November 2016, Kris "Bokky" De Saedeleer, who had served as the president of the Blue Angels' Belgian chapters for 22 years, was expelled for allegedly embezzling funds from the club as well as founding an unsanctioned Nomads chapter.Blue Angels zetten president op straat Het Laatste Nieuws (12 November 2016)
The club's co-founder and former president Allan Morrison died from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease on 29 January 2020, aged 77.Bikers from around the world to attend funeral of Blue Angels Motorcycle Club founder Rosalind Erskine, The Scotsman (3 February 2020) His funeral in Glasgow on 15 February 2020 was attended by around 400 bikers from across Europe. The last of the club's original members, Lenny Reynolds, died on 21 December 2025, at the age of 80.Tributes paid after death of Lenny Reynolds of Blue Angels Caroline Wilson, The Herald (6 January 2026)
Insignia
The Blue Angels' "colours" originally consisted of the clubs' insignia — a winged skull wearing a Stahlhelm — and the words "Blue Angels" in Gothic script, along with "1%" patches, embroidered onto blue denim jackets. The term "one-percenter" is a reference to an alleged comment by the American Motorcycle Association that 99 per cent of motorcyclists are decent and law-abiding, while one per cent are not. The Blue Angels' insignia was legally protected in 1997. To celebrate the club's 50th anniversary in 2013, Blue Angels members began wearing a more traditional top "rocker", bearing the club's name, and bottom "rocker", denoting the country the member is from.History of the Blue Angels M.C. Belgium blueangelsmc.be The club is also known as the "Blue Gang", and uses the abbreviation "21" (the numbers stand for the respective positions in the alphabet of B and A). Blue Angels mottos include "Blue Angels forever, forever Blue Angels ("BAFFBA"); "Blue Angels OK"; "Blue Gang forever" ("BGF"); and "Blue Angels, best in the west".
Membership and organisation Prospective Blue Angels members must be voted in by members of the club and can be voted into the club as a full patch by other members after serving a period of time as a "prospect". The Blue Angels do not permit drug addicts as members. The club has ten chapters in Scotland, four in northern England, seven in Belgium and two in Spain and one in Germany. The Blue Angels have more than 200 members in Scotland alone. The Tribe, the BAMC's support club, was formed in Edinburgh in November 2011, and has 25 chapters, twelve of which are located in Scotland.Badly behaved biker apologises to Edinburgh sheriff as he is banned from the road Alexander Lawrie, Edinburgh Evening News (18 January 2021) Satans Slaves member from Fife faces jail for trying to murder rival biker during mass brawl James Mulholland, The Courier (11 July 2023)
Criminal allegations and incidents Belgium
The Gendarmerie carried out numerous operations against the Blue Angels in 1996. In March 1999, thirty-three members were sentenced to prison, received suspended sentences or were fined for possession of weapons or narcotics, assault and battery, theft, fraud, hostage-taking and criminal conspiracy, while two were acquitted.Les Gangs de Motards Criminalisés: Une expansion internationale Xavier Raufer, Institut de Criminologie de Paris
In 2003, it is claimed by the club that 19 members of a rival gang were hospitalised in a retaliation attack after two Blue Angels bikers were shot.
In May 2009, Belgium's Federal Police named the Blue Angels as one of four criminal motorcycle gangs operating in the country, along with the Bandidos, Hells Angels and Outlaws.
Two club members were arrested for stealing insulation material from a building site in Erpe-Mere in July 2010. The men allegedly intended to use the stolen material to insulate their clubhouse.Blue Angels stelen materiaal op bouwwerf om lokaal te isoleren Het Laatste Nieuws (8 July 2010)
Blue Angels members were questioned by police after a man who was ejected from the Blue Angels clubhouse in Roeselare and later returned armed with an iron bar was hospitalized with a head injury on 7 June 2014.Man voor rechter na mislukte wraakactie bij Blue Angels Het Laatste Nieuws (31 January 2015) The man was convicted of possessing an illegal weapon600 euro boete voor verboden wapenbezit Het Laatste Nieuws (13 February 2015) and was also the victim of an arson attack at his home on 30 January 2015.Brand in brievenbus roept vragen op bij bewoners Beversesteenweg Het Laatste Nieuws (2 February 2015)
A Blue Angels member was sentenced to four months in prison in November 2015 after being convicted of assaulting his son's teacher during a parents' evening at a school in Aalst. The biker claimed the teacher was bullying his son.Vader krijgt vier maanden cel voor slaan leerkracht op oudercontact Het Laatste Nieuws (3 November 2015)
In July 2017, a Blue Angels member from Zonnebeke was sentenced to three years in prison for car theft, drugs and weapons possession, and forgery of a license plate and driving license.Drie jaar effectief voor lid van motorbende Blue Angels Het Laatste Nieuws (20 July 2017)
A former Blue Angels member who refused to return his "colours" to the club after he was expelled was left in intensive care after being stabbed in Sint-Katherina-Lombeek on 8 September 2018. Six club members were arrested afterwards, and police found firearms, explosives and narcotics in the subsequent search of the men's homes.Explosieven, wapens en drugs gevonden bij huiszoekingen bij Blue Angels MC Het Laatste Nieuws (30 November 2018) A prospective member who was allegedly involved in the stabbing committed suicide at the Blue Angels clubhouse in Sint-Amandsberg a few days later.Zes leden motorclub Blue Angels opgepakt voor steekpartij op ex-lid, vuurwapens en explosieven gevonden bij huiszoekingen Het Laatste Nieuws (30 November 2018) The remaining five suspects were charged with violent theft, attempted racketeering, gang building, and possession of prohibited weapons.Blue Angels in herfst voor rechter voor raid op voormalig bendelid Wouter Hertogs, Het Laatste Nieuws (23 March 2020)
United Kingdom England A number of Blue Angels members were prosecuted following an arson attack on the home of Leeds motorcycle garage owner Andrew Malham which took place on 30 April 2006.Bike shop owner shot with crossbow Visordown.com (16 January 2008) In July 2007, Malham was shot and wounded with a crossbow at his home in Boston Spa by Paul Miller, who was allegedly contracted by the Blue Angels to kill Malham.Man admits crossbow shooting Visordown.com (17 January 2008) Miller was sentenced to sixteen months in prison in March 2008. Paul Moody, the co-owner of the motorcycle shop with Malham, was knocked unconscious in a hammer attack carried out by a group of unidentified men at a bikers' gathering near Scarborough in September 2010.Leeds boss suffers hammer attack at biker rally Yorkshire Evening Post (16 September 2010)
Four Blue Angels members – David Hansbury, David Torr, Steven Clayton and Martin Booth – pleaded guilty to threatening behaviour relating to an incident on 27 July 2018 in which they forced a member of the Mongrel Mob to hand over his "colours" at his home in the Beeston area of Leeds. The victim had previously been a member of the Blue Angels and served as the club's European secretary before being expelled in 2015 and warned against associating with any other motorcycle club in future. In January 2019, Torr, Clayton and Booth were sentenced to community service while Hansbury was made the subject of a two-month electronically tagged curfew order.Blue Angels threatened Mongrel Mob member in Leeds biker club feud Tony Gardner, Yorkshire Evening Post (30 January 2019)
Scotland
In the 1960s, the most senior of Glasgow's gangs began organising protection rackets, shebeens and prostitution rings, and battled for control over such operations. The Blue Angels garnered a "notoriously violent" reputation when the club was involved in fights with mod gangs and various street gangs including the Maryhill Fleet. These conflicts typically involved bar brawls "of John Wayne proportions" which were followed by a series of revenge attacks, including petrol bombings on bars and cafes. In September 1964, a mass brawl involving hundreds of gang members in Glasgow city centre resulted in a Blue Angel being sentenced to life in prison. The gang wars ultimately ended when respective leaders met to organise a truce. Members of the Roadburners and Garthamlock Blackhawks gangs subsequently joined the Blue Angels.