In researching the Bella in the Wych Elm case, I’ve noticed that several commentators make much of the fact that the tags had been removed from her clothing. Some have suggested that her clothing may have been “seconds” from a market, while others have gone so far as to say that the absence of tags […]
Not so Incognito – German Spies and their Clothing Read More »
A few years ago, I wrote a blog about the farewell letters of the executed spies in England. Those letters, written by condemned men on the day/night preceding their execution, were to have been delivered to their families after the Second World War. They never were. The letters sat in the files of MI5 and,
Enemy Property Act 1953 Read More »
The Book Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany. Norman Ohler. Penguin Books. 2016. Summary This book was originally published in German in 2015, translated into English for 2016, and I got my hands on a copy a few weeks ago. It’s been translated into 25 languages and received rave reviews by numerous journalists. On the other
Book Review – Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany – Norman Ohler (2016) Read More »
Goodness… I had a sense that publishing a book was an endeavour but… to be frank, it does seem a bit overwhelming! So, I am getting organized. Here’s the plan of attack and some aspects of the book publishing obstacle course. Preliminaries Sign Publishing Contract This feels a bit like I’m signing away my first
Adventures in Publishing – Rapid Expansion of the To-Do List Read More »
A year ago, I reviewed an article by Traugott Vitz posted on Kriminalia Magazine online. The article, The Executioner at War: Soldiers, Spies, and Traitors, was an English translation of a chapter from Vitz’s book Langes Seil Schneller Tod: Wie Grossbritannien seine Moerder haengte (Long Rope Quick Death: How Great Britain hanged its Murders). It
Hangmen at War – new book published online Read More »
Great news! The History Press has agreed to publish my manuscript on Josef Jakobs! It’s been a very long journey to reach this point, and it’s not over yet. The manuscript is a bit of a ragtag thing at the moment with dangling footnotes, unincorporated notes and formatting issues. It needs an index, a table
An intriguing production of the Bella in the Wych Elm story was performed on stage at The Space in London, March 13-13, 2018. The production didn’t have a traditional script based on dialogue, but rather was narrated by the cast using original archival and published sources. It sounds like a really intriguing way of doing
Reviews of Pregnant Fish Theatre – Who put Bella in the Wych Elm? Read More »
The Article Fortean Times – Bella in the Wych Elm – 2018 03 01 An article on Bella in the Wych Elm was published a few weeks ago by the Fortean Times. Written by Cathi Unsworth, the article seems to be primarily based on interviews with HD Paranormal’s Jayne Harris. The author does manage to
Article Review – Fortean Times – Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm – 2018 Read More »
Who was Jack Mossop? Did he and an accomplice murder a woman after a night of drinking at the Lyttleton Arms near Hagley? Did they stuff her still warm body into a wych elm in Hagley Wood? Did the memory of this traumatic event drive Jack mad? Did he die of an overdose in a
Bella in the Wych Elm – The Story of Jack Mossop Read More »
The Book Double Agent Celery: MI5’s Crooked Hero. Carolinda Witt. Pen & Sword, 2018. Summary First off, I have to say that getting a copy of this book took both perseverance and patience. I had ordered a copy in late December and it finally arrived in late February. It was slated for release in Canada
Book Review – Double Agent Celery: MI5’s Crooked Hero – Carolinda Witt (2017) Read More »