A Very British Murder

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It sounds gruesome, but before we condemn our ancestors for their blood lust, we should look to our own pastimes. From public hangings, to wax museums, to Charles Dickens and Wilkie Collins, to Sherlock Holmes and forensic science, to sensation novels, to the first female detective fiction, to the Golden Age crime novelists and more, this work covers a lot of ground without ever getting bogged down. Similarly, when dealing with techonological progress in crime fighting, the development of telegraphy is not mentioned, even though it was responsible for the capture of the notorious Dr Crippen, who again is not mentioned. In A Very British Murder, Lucy Worsley explores this phenomenon in forensic detail, revisiting notorious crimes like the Ratcliff Highway Murders, which caused a nation-wide panic in the early nineteenth century, and the case of Frederick and Maria Manning, the suburban couple who were hanged after killing Maria’s lover and burying him under their kitchen floor.

Hi Lucy, loved all your TV series and looking forward to your Very British Murder series later this month. It starts with De Quincey’s essay on opium, shifts to his essay on murder and then we meet the first case that sparked intense interest: the 1811 Ratcliffe Highway Murders. From Jack the Ripper to the cosy crimes of the Golden Age, renowned historian Lucy Worsley explores the evolution of the typical British murder. First published in 1841, that story preceded the portrayals in Dickens' and Collins' works by over ten years, and is generally considered to be the first modern detective story.

This fascination helped create a whole new world of entertainment, inspiring novels, plays and films, puppet shows, paintings and true-crime journalism - as well as an army of fictional detectives who still enthrall us today.

Lucy Worsley has set out to trace the roots of the British obsession with murder – as consumers, rather than participants. Several high interest and notorious crimes are highlighted throughout and the murderers lives described. One interesting thing I took from this book is the way the Victorian era has been misunderstood as people imprisoned by etiquette and respectability. A Very British Murder investigates this phenomenon, revisiting notorious crimes like the Ratcliff Highway Murders, which caused a nation-wide panic in the early nineteenth century, and the case of Frederick and Maria Manning, the suburban couple who were hanged after killing Maria’s lover and burying him under their kitchen floor. Būtume kitokie – nebūtų tų penktojo „Lietryčio“ puslapio skaitytojų (tiesa sakant, nebežinau, ar kriminalinės naujienos vis dar bazuojasi penktam puslapy – bet esmės tai nekeičia).While the information presented wasn't new to me, I appreciated the excellent organization and thoroughness of Worsley's investigation.

However, I think that Worsley's documentary of the same name is a more enjoyable way of accessing the information and topics discussed. Gal netgi 2013 metų laidų ciklą „A Very British Murder“, kuris, kaip nesunku nuspėti iš pavadinimo, ir tapo pagrindu šiai knygai. Sherlock Holmes first appeared in 1887, just months before the series of brutal slayings in Whitechapel that are chalked up to the unknown serial killer nicknamed ‘Jack the Ripper’. renowned historian Lucy Worsley unpicks our fascination with murder in forensic detail in this gripping true crime documentary on BBC Select. For the safety of you and our staff, is recommended audience members wear a mask or face covering in the venue and for the duration of the performance, unless exempt.Of those, I have read only Agatha Christie, as the upper class sleuths in the works of Dorothy L Sayers, for instance, have never appealed. Worsley also presented a companion TV series (which I didn’t watch) and the book is written in an episodic format, presumably to tie in with that.

This book which starts by covering real murders which were written up into broadsheets to be sold by peddlers at fairs and executions, to covering those crimes used to inspire fiction and then, following the introduction of the first detectives, their fictional counterparts began to flourish. Murder as a tourist attraction, if that is the right term, was born, and it was to live on in a less ghoulish manner with Madame Tussaud’s ever-popular museum of waxworks and effigies of murderers and their prey.I also love my Brit-Box-(Worsely has a television version of this book currently airing on this service) and Acorn TV subscriptions too. I thought, when rereading the book last year, that it was a bit unfair to see Lady Audley as a complete villainess and I was happy to see that I’m not the only one that thinks that way. I’d love to have come to one of your September talks, but couldn’t get to any of the places you’re going to. An interesting and enjoyable read, which I would suggest would be an ideal entry-level book for anyone looking to find out more about the history of crime fiction and its links with society.