Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley – Details, episodes & analysis

Lucy Worsley and Rosalind Crone are joined by Helen Lewis, author of ‘Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights.’ They discuss what it means to be a difficult woman and why the airbrushing of feminist history can be problematic.

Together they discuss four of the most difficult women across the Lady Killers series; Mary Surratt, Alice Mitchell, Mary Ann Brough and Maria Manning. Each one commits wild and unspeakable crimes. They are anti-heroines; breaking taboos around sexuality, motherhood and sexual relationships. Lucy, Ros and Helen explore the value of understanding the diversity of women's lives in the past, and how this enables us to get a little bit closer to understanding ourselves.

Produced in partnership with the Open University.

Producer: Emily Hughes. Sound design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball.

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

New episodes will be released on Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts. But if you’re in the UK, listen to the latest full series of Lady Killers first on BBC Sounds. BBC Sounds - Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley - Available Episodes: http://bbc.in/3M2pT0K

Lucy Worsley travels back in time to revisit the unthinkable crimes of 19th century murderesses from the UK, Australia and North America.

In this episode, Lucy is joined by Alexandra Wilson, a barrister specialising in criminal and family law and author of ‘In Black and White’, to explore the case of Mary Ann Brough in 1854.

Mary Ann lives in the picturesque county of Surrey, close to London. She’s married to George, who lives and works at the stately home nearby, while Mary Ann stays at home looking after six of their children. It sounds like an idyllic family life. But there are cracks beneath the surface. George suspects Mary Ann of having an affair and even hires a private detective to follow her to see if his suspicions are correct.

After the detective reports back, George confronts Mary Ann and declares he will be starting legal proceedings to take full custody of their children. After he leaves, Mary Ann puts the children to bed, but later that evening she commits a drastic act. She slits the throats of each of her children before trying to kill herself.

She is discovered the next day still alive, fully admitting to what she did. But why did she do it? Was it a cloud of insanity that took over her in a flash? Or was it to stop her husband gaining custody of the children and taking them away?

Lucy Worsley is also joined by Professor Rosalind Crone from the Open University. Together, they visit the village Mary Ann lived in and the stately estate nearby. In the studio with Alexandra Wilson they discuss the circumstances surrounding Mary Ann’s crime and how the custody laws at the time may have impacted her actions. Lucy asks, has the way society treats custody disputes changed since Mary Ann’s time and does it view each parent equally? Produced in partnership with the Open University.

Producer: Hannah Fisher Readers: Clare Corbett, Jonathan Keeble Singer: Olivia Bloore Sound design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

New episodes will be released on Wednesday wherever you get your podcasts. But if you’re in the UK, listen to the latest full series of Lady Killers first on BBC Sounds. BBC Sounds - Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley - Available Episodes: http://bbc.in/3M2pT0K

Lady Killers With Lucy Worsley is a smash hit historical true-crime podcast.

Join Lucy and a team of female detectives as they investigate the ordinary lives - and extraordinary crimes - of women in the past from a contemporary feminist perspective.

In this series, Lucy revisits the unthinkable crimes of murderesses including Mary Surratt, accused of conspiring to assassinate a U.S. President and Maria Manning the so-called ‘Lady Macbeth of Bermondsey’.

Each episode focuses on a true story and sees Lucy take an in-depth look at the crime, how it was received at the time, and how it compares with what happens today.

Throughout the series, she is joined by an all-female detective team to dig deeper into the social issues and circumstances that helped to create these murderesses. This series our guest detectives include: barristers, a psychiatrist, an indigenous rights advocate, a former U. S. Secret Service agent, and a best selling Gothic novelist.

Along with our in house historian, Rosalind Crone, Lucy retraces the steps of women who kill from more than 100 years ago travelling across England and to Northern Ireland to take a peek at the lives of our Lady Killers. We also visit the U.S. and Australia.

A whole new series of Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley is coming soon.

Produced in partnership with the Open University.

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4.

If you're in the UK, listen to the newest episodes of Lady Killers first on BBC Sounds: https://bbc.in/3M2pT0K

Lucy Worsley, Professor Rosalind Crone and lawyer and comedian Sikisa Bostwick-Barnes discuss the wicked crimes of the last four Lady Killers in this series. They examine their treatment by the criminal justice system and ask whether there are parallels with women’s experiences today. Together they examine gender, prejudice and racial bias.

They explore the major changes for women over 100 years from 1823 to 1923. From raising hemlines to the campaign for women’s suffrage and opportunities in the world of work. They examine how changes in society filter through to the justice system, and reflect on the changing nature of how we consume information and the cult of celebrity - from early newspapers, pamphlets and cheap sheets to social media today.

Producer: Emily Hughes Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball.

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

Lucy Worsley investigates the historical crimes of women from a contemporary, feminist perspective.

In this episode, Lucy is joined by Dr Katherine Ramsland, a professor of forensic psychology at DeSales University, to visit Massachusetts in New England, USA and discover how one nurse became a notorious serial killer. Jane Toppan is a well-respected and successful private nurse in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She spends her time moving from one family to another, caring for them until they either recover, or pass away. In June 1901, Jane gets a visit from her friend, Mattie Davis. But upon her arrival, Mattie falls ill. Jane takes care of her until she dies a week later. After this, Jane moves into the Davis family’s house to help them cope with the loss of their mother. But soon, one by one, the other members of the family die in quick succession. Jane is onto her next job, but suspicions are soon raised about the care she’s providing. She is followed secretly by a policeman as the bodies of the Davis family are exhumed and tested for poison. Traces of morphine and atropine – substances that Jane Toppan would have had access to in her role as a private nurse – are discovered and Jane is arrested. To help Lucy explore this case, historian Dr Elizabeth DeWolfe visits Massachusetts General Hospital Archives to discover what it was like to be a nurse at the turn of the 20th century. She also visits the Boston Public Library to see how the press reacted to the murderous nurse.

Lucy and Katherine discuss Jane’s case and the impact it had on the relatively new profession of nursing. Lucy also wants to know how Jane Toppan compares to serial killers today.

We think of nurses as caring, virtuous and we trust them with our life. Jane Toppan will make you think twice.

Producer: Hannah Fisher Readers: Laurel Lefkow and Jonathan Keeble Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

Lucy Worsley investigates the historical crimes of women from a contemporary, feminist perspective. In this episode, Lucy is joined by award-winning crime writer Lynda La Plante CBE to investigate the case of two sisters, Catherine Flanagan and Margaret Higgins. They’re part of the Irish immigrant community in Liverpool, living near the docks in a crowded, working class area, doing many different jobs to make ends meet. Professor Rosalind Crone from the Open University visits the Museum of Liverpool to find out what life would have been like for the sisters, tracing their steps as they moved around different houses in the area.

By 1881, Catherine is a life insurance broker and also a widow. Margaret is married, but her husband, Thomas Higgins, falls ill and dies. Thomas has life insurance policies so, after his death, Margaret and Catherine receive a generous payment. But Thomas’ death doesn’t make sense to his brother Patrick, who calls for a post mortem. Traces of arsenic are detected in the body and Margaret is arrested. But as the police arrive, Catherine escapes. She disappears into the warren of Liverpool’s streets and ends up in the east of the city.

After ten days on the run, Catherine is found and brought to trial with her sister. Did the sisters work together, or was one of them pressuring the other? Were the sisters actually part of a female syndicate, murdering people for monetary gain?

Lucy asks how similar this is to investigations today. Do close knit communities in cities still help each other evade the police? Producer: Hannah Fisher Readers: Clare Corbett and Jonathan Keeble Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

Lucy Worsley takes a fresh look at an infamous shooting that took place at London’s Savoy Hotel, amid all the wealth and glamour of the Roaring ‘20s.

On 10th July 1923, at the height of a violent thunderstorm, Marguerite Fahmy shoots her new husband at close range with a pistol – in the corridor, outside their opulent suite. It’s clear she’s killed him, but why?

Lucy is joined by Nneka Akudolu KC, a barrister with 20 years’ experience of exactly this kind of complex case, and Lady Killers’ in-house historian Professor Rosalind Crone from the Open University, to get to the bottom of this 100 year old mystery.

Together, they untangle the complexities of Marguerite’s relationship with Ali Kamel Fahmy Bey, a super-rich Egyptian ‘playboy prince’. Ros goes to the scene of the crime to meet Savoy archivist Susan Scott and find out more about this notorious incident in the hotel’s history.

The team discover that, while the coroner’s court returns a straightforward verdict of ‘wilful murder’, when Marguerite’s case comes to trial at the Old Bailey, the story gets a whole lot murkier. She is defended by legal legend Sir Edward Marshall Hall KC and cuts a tragic figure in the dock, glamorous and apparently bereft. She alleges that Ali was violently abusive and there is huge public sympathy for her plight, with her husband cast as a 'bestial' monster.

Lucy, Nneka and Ros examine these claims and counterclaims to unpick the prejudice at work in the courtroom and ask if justice was served in this case.

Would Marguerite’s story play out any differently today?

Producer: Sarah Goodman Readers: Meena Rayann and Jonathan Keeble Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

In this episode of Lady Killers, we travel back to the Roaring 20s as Lucy Worsley and guest detective Sasha Wass KC investigate how Edith Thompson, a woman who merely witnessed the violent killing of her husband, found herself on trial for his murder.

Sasha Wass KC has taken on some of the legal system's most notable cases - involving Rosemary West, Rolf Harris and Johnny Depp. As a judge, prosecutor and defender, she has the benefit of understanding all dimensions of the criminal process, which is crucial when examining one of the most controversial cases of all time. It’s a trial that shook the nation.

Edith Thompson, with her choppy bobbed hair and jaunty dresses is the quintessential ‘Flapper’. A working woman living in the rapidly expanding London suburb of Ilford, she’s one of the new commuters, traveling to her job at Carlton and Pryor (a wholesale milliners in the City of London), producers of some very fashionable hats. She teaches herself French and goes on buying trips to Paris. She spends her own money, frequenting theatres and dancing the nights away.

But back in the suburbs, Lucy and Sasha discover how Edith Thompson lives another, less glamorous life with husband Percy. While Edith is embracing some of the new found freedoms of a 1920’s woman, Percy wants a more ‘traditional’ wife.

Then, on the night of 3rd October 1922, their life together takes a very dramatic turn when Percy is fatally stabbed by a mysterious stranger.

As Lucy and Sasha discuss the now infamous court hearing, historian Professor Rosalind Crone visits the Ilford streets where Edith lived and where our bloody murder took place, to discover what life was really like for our 1920’s ‘murderess’.

Producer: Nicola Humphries Readers: Clare Corbett and Jonathan Keeble Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

In this episode of Lady Killers, Lucy Worsley, Professor Rosalind Crone and broadcaster Ayesha Hazarika discuss the first four cases - brothel-keeper Mary McKinnon, chocolate-cream killer Christiana Edmonds, enslaved woman Margaret Garner and abortionist Elizabeth Taylor. They examine legal prejudice, frustrated sexual desire, illegal abortion, and slavery.

They explore women’s rights over their own bodies, and dig a little deeper into the parallels between women in the 19th century and women in contemporary society. Together they consider the extent to which progress can be taken for granted, and ask whether anything might have been better for women in the past than today.

Producer: Emily Hughes Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4

In Lady Killers, Lucy Worsley investigates the crimes of 19th and early 20th century women from a contemporary, feminist perspective. In this episode, Lucy is joined by Dr Anastacia Ryan, Founder of SISU, a Glasgow-based charity for women at risk and Lecturer in Social Policy at the University of Glasgow, to explore the case of Mary McKinnon.

Mary lives in Edinburgh, Scotland in the 1820s, and runs a tavern on South Bridge. Except her tavern, like many at the time, has another side to it – it’s also a brothel. On 8th February 1823, Mary McKinnon is out having a drink with her friend, when she is called back to the inn as a group of men are causing trouble. She arrives to find a chaotic scene, and in the midst of the frenzy, one of the men is stabbed. He accuses Mary of stabbing him, yet she protests her innocence. Despite this, she’s arrested and put on trial. She faces animosity and judgment every step of the way. The judge even directs the jury to pay more heed to the evidence of the men who visited her tavern that night, than to the evidence of her fellow workers and other women.

But did she do it? And did she face increased prejudice not only because she was a woman, but because she looked after sex workers?

Lucy Worsley is also joined by Professor Rosalind Crone from the Open University. Together, Anastacia and Rosalind visit the vaults under Edinburgh’s Old Town to see what Mary’s tavern would have been like in the 1820s. Lucy asks if the way society treats sex workers has changed since Mary’s time. Producer: Hannah Fisher Readers: Clare Corbett, Jonathan Keeble, Hannah Fisher, Katy Duff, Jacob Smyth and Fraser Coutts Sound Design: Chris Maclean Series Producer: Julia Hayball

A StoryHunter production for BBC Radio 4