26 Facts About Tilly Devine

Matilda Mary Devine, known as Tilly Devine, was an English Australian organised crime boss.

Tilly Devine was involved in a wide range of activities, including sly-grog, razor gangs, and prostitution, and became a famous folk figure in Sydney during the interwar years.

Tilly Devine's career in prostitution began when she was a teenager and continued after she was married.

Tilly Devine's son stayed in London and was brought up by her parents.

Tilly Devine, known as the 'Queen of Woolloomooloo' ran a string of brothels centred around Darlinghurst and the Cross, and in particular, Palmer Street.

The police report is a snapshot of the life that Tilly Devine was leading up to 1925, a life that involved working the streets at night, clashes with Police and lots of parties and heavy drinking.

Tilly Devine became infamous in Sydney, initially as a prostitute, then later as a brothel madam and organised crime entrepreneur.

Tilly Devine's wealth was legendary, although it was all earned from crime.

Tilly Devine owned much real estate in Sydney, many luxury cars, looted gold and diamond jewellery and travelled by ship in first class staterooms.

Tilly Devine faced numerous court summons and was convicted on 204 occasions during her long criminal career, and served many gaol sentences in New South Wales gaols, mainly for prostitution, violent assault, affray and attempted murder.

Tilly Devine was known to the police to be of a violent nature and was known to use firearms.

James Edward Joseph Tilly Devine was an WWI ex-serviceman and shearer, who was a violent 'stand-over' man, a convicted thief, a pimp, drug dealer, vicious thug and gunman.

Tilly Devine committed a number of high-profile murders in Sydney between 1929 and 1931: notably, the murder of criminal George Leonard "Gregory" Gaffney on 17 July 1929, secondly, as an accessory to the murder of Barney Dalton on 9 November 1929 and, thirdly, the accidental shooting of taxi driver, Frederick Herbert Moffitt on 16 June 1931.

Tilly Devine shot and killed Gaffney and Moffitt outside his and Tilly's Maroubra residence.

Tilly Devine was later acquitted, on 16 January 1931, because Tilly refused to testify.

Tilly Devine famously shot Parsons in the leg after an argument only months before they were married.

Tilly Devine was arrested by police and charged with the shooting, but was acquitted at trial on 31 March 1945.

For over 30 years, Tilly Devine lived at 335 Malabar Road, Maroubra in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs.

Tilly Devine was famous for flamboyant acts of generosity, and for her violent feud with criminal vice rival Kate Leigh.

Tilly Devine was charged by the famous Sydney Detective Frank Farrell on many occasions, and their feud lasted for 30 years.

Tilly Devine had suffered from chronic bronchitis for 20 years, and died of cancer, aged 70 at the Concord Repatriation Hospital in Sydney on 24 November 1970.

Tilly Devine was cremated at Botany Crematorium, now known as Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park, on 26 November 1970 with Catholic rites by her married name, Matilda Mary Parsons.

Tilly Devine was survived by her son Frederick Ralph Twiss and 2 grandchildren.

Tilly Devine was portrayed by Chelsie Preston Crayford, who was nominated for a Logie Award for Most Popular New Female Talent.

Tilly Devine is a background character in Kerry Greenwood's Death Before Wicket, the tenth Phryne Fisher novel, which is set in Sydney in 1928.

Tilley Tilly Devine is referenced in Ronni Salt's 2024 debut novel Gunnawah - a fictional Murray river town and the setting for a 1974 crime story.