‘Murders of London‘ is the new book from serial author of London oddities, David Long.
David takes a unique geographical approach to London’s macabre past, dividing these gruesome tales into 10 sections – its 255 pages cover ‘East of the City’, ‘West End’, ‘On The River’ and so on. While major figures such as Crippin, the Krays, Nielsen and Ruth Ellis get their respective mentions, its the previously unknown murders (at least to me) that are the most fascinating and chilling.
For example, set amongst blood-spattered pages and polaroids of innocent-looking streets, the story of ‘Peter the Painter’ is uncovered – the nickname of the only man to escape a Mile End siege in the 1920s which saw three policeman murdered by a notorious Latvian criminal gang. I can guarantee you that residents of the recently constructed Painter House near the site of the siege don’t know why it is so named – perhaps they’d be less keen to live there if they knew! Elsewhere in ‘Murders of London’ another unsolved mystery is set out – the lurid case of ‘Jack The Stripper’ who was responsible for the ‘nude murders’ of the 1960s – over a period of just over a year the bodies of six naked prostitutes were left on the banks of the Thames in central London for passers-by to discover…
‘Murders of London’ also includes what could be considered historically important murders. The first killer to be nabbed through the use of the ‘identikit’ gets a mention – Edwin Bush, who killed Elsie May Batten in her antiques shop during a botched robbery attempt. Many people know the name of the last woman to be hanged in the UK, but do you know who the last man was? Hendrick Neimasz was hanged at Wandsworth Prison on 8 September 1961 after the brutal murder of a Mr and Mrs Buxton in Brixton. This section of the book also reveals another macabre fact – the equipment at HMP Wandsworth was maintained in working condition until as late as 1994 (perhaps they were expecting some treasonous activity? The death penalty was mandatory for ‘high treason’ until 1998 in the UK). I wonder if prison officers using the TV lounge at the prison know what transpired in the room in years past…
‘Murders of London’ would make an interesting addition to any decent collection of books about London – it can be found in all the usual places, priced at £12.99 or less. If you simply can’t get enough of all these shocking tales, you’ll soon be able to visit the ‘Murders of London‘ website for more…