News of the Times - Unlocking the vaults of historical crime

News of the Times Episode 133 | 1889 The Mysterious Death of James Maybrick: Murderous Mondays The Maybrick Murder, also known as the ""Liverpool Poisoning,"" refers to the sensational and controversial case involving the death of James Maybrick, a wealthy cotton merchant from Liverpool, England. The case garnered significant attention and debate in the late 19th century due to...

News of the Times Episode 132 | 1850-1910 The World of the Victorian Paranormal: Eccentric Sundays Welcome to the Enigmatic Victorian Paranormal World! Step into the shadowy realm of the Victorian era, where history and the supernatural intertwine in mysterious and captivating ways. Join us as we delve into the hidden corners of the Victorian Paranormal World, unearthing forgotten legends and enig...

News of the Times Episode 131 | 1865 The Twisted Tale of Dr. Edward Pritchard: Scotland's Poisoning Philanderer In 1865, Dr. Edward Pritchard was arrested in Scotland for murdering 2 women, although he was suspected of murdering 3. His story became infamous, and he was referred to by Arthur Conan Doyle in his Sherlock Holmes story, The Speckled Band. Serial adulterer, liar, and avid egotist,...

News of the Times Episode 129 | 1879-1881 Forgotten Fridays 1879-1881 In todays episode of Forgotten Fridays we look at some of the stories hitting the headlines in 1879 to 1881.  The execution of Charles Peace (the full story is currently in production) was splashed across all the papers everywhere.  The world of females striving to get the vote and being classed under the label as “lunatics” for...

News of the Times Episode 129 | 1870's - 1950's Notorious Gangs of Victorian England: Wicked Wednesdays Todays episode of Wicked Wednesdays looks at Notorious gangs in Victorian England specifically in Birmingham, London, and Manchester.   The Peaky Blinders were a real-life criminal gang that operated in Birmingham, England, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The name "...

News of the Times Episode 128 | 1690 - 1890 Tales of Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know In this chilling episode, we delve into the dark and disturbing stories of three notorious women from history. Catherine Hayes, a woman from 1690, takes us on a journey filled with lust, incest, and a horrifying murder that led to her own gruesome demise. Then, we uncover the twisted tale of Christina Edmunds, who...

News of the Times Episode 127 | 1840 The Mysterious Death of Charles Lafarge : Murderous Mondays In the year 1840, a captivating question gripped the minds of people far and wide: Did Marie Lafarge commit the crime? A young, alluring woman in possession of a modest inheritance, Marie found herself thrust into a marriage orchestrated by an uncle. The marriage led her to reside in the decaying confi...

News of the Times Episode 126 | 1870 The Mordaunt versus Mordaunt Scandal: Eccentric Sundays In 1870, a public scandal to beat almost all public scandals of the time developed to the point where the rise of Republicanism – the overthrow of the British Monarchy – was gaining real momentum. In high society, the case of the public divorce of a husband from his multiple cheating wife was started.  One...

News of the Times Episode 125 | 1869 The  Pantin Massacre: Serial Killer Saturdays In today’s episode we cross the English channel and visit France.  It is 1869 in a small village in North Paris.  The brutal massacre of a woman and her 5 children, horrifically slaughtered and buried in a shallow grave is discovered. The initial suspected culprits are the missing father and older brother – but was...

News of the Times Episode 124 | 1799-1801 Forgotten Fridays 1799 - 1801: News of the Times 1799 to 1801:  the over-riding sense of the articles is the extreme poverty hitting the UK with inflation at a record 36.5%.  With the record inflation and extreme poverty comes a corresponding rise in crime with the highest execution numbers since 1785.  The masses are encouraged to fall in love with barley...

News of the Times Episode 123 | 1700-1970 The Dark Side of London: Wicked Wednesdays From eerie tales of haunted places and the ghosts that wander its historic streets, to the sinister secrets lurking beneath the pristine streets, London holds a dark history that will send shivers down your spine. In the murky depths of London's shadowed streets, where gas lamps flicker and secrets are whispe...

News of the Times Episode 122 | 1700 - 1812 From Pulpit to Gallows – Rogue Reverends: Teisted Tuesdays In todays Twisted tales Tuesdays episode, we look at three rogue reverends who swung from the gallows: Reverend Thomas Hunter whose illicit affair with a young girl was discovered by children who paid the price Reverend Thomas Dodd who tried bribery and forgery to find a way to finance his highly...

News of the Times Episode 121 | 1889 The Pinchin Torso Mystery: Murderous Mondays In 1889, remembrances of the ripper horror still echoed in England and especially in Whitechapel.  A headless and legless torso is found around the corner from Berner Street, the death location of Elizabeth Stride.  The torso is found on the anniversary of the death of Annie Chapman. This episode explores the horrifi...

News of the Times Episode 120 | 1778 - 1840 The World of Beau Brummell:  Eccentric Sundays Beau Brummel, who single handedly transformed men’s fashion away from the powdered wigs, silks and makeup of the French Court to the urbane, tailored style that we still have today and which dominates the Regency and Bridgerton world.  Beau was so much more than a style icon and incredible wit.  In this epis...

News of the Times Episode 119 | 1903 The Leyton Horror: Serial Killer Saturdays 1903 and all eyes in England are on the George Chapman investigation – was he the ripper?  The Chapman story overpowered this gruesome horrific crime of a family brutally murdered, dismembered, with their body parts buried in a back garden.  The motive? Financial gain.  What is even more horrific is that this was to be...

News of the Times Episode 118 | 1849 - 1851 Forgotten Fridays 1849 – 1851: News of the Times In today’s episode we review some of the stories making the news in 1849-1851. The new young Queen Victoria is attacked! The shocking case of Rebecca Smith who murdered her 8 children. And a wonderful story of a warring couple and the pranks they pull on one another. With a few other stories and some of th...

News of the Times Episode 117 | 1150 - 2023 Famous Family Curses in Britian: Wicken Wednesdays Great Britain abounds in family curses, usually involving wiping out a complete bloodline. In today’s episode we look at 4 such famous tales: The Tichborne curse The Chained Oak Tree The Earls of Stair curse (if you have not heard of them it is because the curse worked) The Lambton Worm (which sounds sus...

News of the Times Episode 116 | 1724-1915 Daring Escapes from England's Prisons: Twisted Tuesdays The quest for freedom beats heavily in all people. In this episode we look at 4 daring prison escapes from England’s notoriously dreadful prisons. Jack Sheppard, so famous that Daniel Defoe of Robinson Crusoe fame ghost wrote his autobiography.  He escaped Newgate Prison twice! William Bisgrove –...

News of the Times Episode 115 | 1886 The Mysterious Case of the Pimlico Poisoning: Murderous Mondays This story is a favourite of ours for the enduring mystery of it as well as the high weird factor.  A mysterious death, the threesome relationship where the wife is somewhat handed over to other men at the insistence of her husband.  And then, the husband’s strange , unexpected and unexplained deat...

News of the Times Episode 114 | 1677 The Legend of Mother Damnable –The Camden Town Witch Mother Damnable, Mother Redcap, Mother Shipton.  Who are they and what is their connection? In this episode we explore the legends – did she really cook husband number 3 in her oven? – and piece together the ties between the folklore and legends of all 3 personages in England’s History. Hosted by Robin Coles....

News of the Times Episode 113 | 1942 The Disturbing Saga of the Blackout Ripper: Serial Killer Saturdays Have you heard of the Blackout Ripper? The chilling legend that terrorized a city. In the early 1940s, during the height of World War II, a shadowy figure stalked the streets of London. Known as the Blackout Ripper, this mysterious individual struck fear into the hearts of the citizens. The bla...

News of the Times Episode 112 | 1896-1956 The Victorian Sex Cult of The Agapemonites - Conclusion: Eccentric Sundays The Victorian Sex Cult of The Agapemonites started as a free love movement, then evolved into claims of the new messiah to save the world, then moved into paranormal and spiritualism and finally ended being overseen by a discarded wife.  This episode explores the dramatic leadership...

News of the Times Episode 111| 1899-1903 Lethal Ladies of the StatesL Twisted Tales Tuesdays In celebration of the Independence Day of our American cousins, today’s episode looks at two lethal ladies around the turn of the century. Our first one, Mary McKnight looks set to have beaten our worst female serial killer, Mary Ann Cotton, with a suspected 18 kills under her belt.  Like our Mary Ann, you...

News of the Times Episode 110 | 1836 The Murder of Hannah Brown: Murderous Mondays In 1836 the famous Murder of Hannah Brown case surpassed ordinary crimes with its level of brutality.  This case was so famous that it was still being referred to decades later as someone doing a “Greenacre” in the event of body parts being found around London.  Today’s episode looks at this horrific crime. Hosted b...

News of the Times Episode 109 | 1926 The Disappearance of Agatha Christie: Eccentric Sundays In 1926 the unheard of happened:  an internationally renowned crime authoress vanished. Rumours had circulated for some time about the philandering of her dashing husband who had requested a divorce – all was not well within the Christie household. On the evening when he went away, ostensibly to stay with...