Murder Victim. Beryl Susanna Evans (nee Thorley) of 10 Rillington Place, Ladbroke Grove, West London, was the victim of perhaps the most notorious murder of the Twentieth Century. She was married to Timothy Evans, a truck driver who could not read or write. They had one daughter, Geraldine (born October 1948) and another child on the way. As they could not afford another baby, and as this was before the passing of the Abortion Act of 1967, they asked a friend, John Reginald Halliday Christie, who lived in the same house and who claimed to have had some medical training, if he could help them dispose of the fetus. Under the guise of giving Beryl some anesthetic, Christie then gassed, strangled, and raped her, then hid her body in an outside lavatory. When Evans came back from work, Christie suggested that it might be better if, as an accessory before the fact, he (Evans) ought to go and stay with his family in South Wales until the heat had died down. Christie promised to find another family who would look after Geraldine, but instead, strangled her, as well two days later. Evans, who knew about none of this, felt guilty that he had asked his friend to perform an illegal abortion, and told the police that he himself had murdered his wife and had hidden her corpse in the drains, which was where Christie said he would dispose of her. Of course, the police found nothing there, and it took three policemen to remove the manhole cover, so Evans could not possibly have done it himself. When Evans learned of this, he at first retracted his story, then allegedly made a further confession, although, given his illiteracy, there are reasons to disbelieve this. Timothy Evans was tried for the murder of his daughter Geraldine, found guilty and hanged on the March 9, 1950 at Pentonville Prison. What was not then known was that, during the war, Christie had murdered and raped (in that order) two other women and buried their bodies in the garden of his home. In 1953, Christie murdered his own wife, placed her body beneath the floorboards, and invited three prostitutes back to the house, all of whom met the same fate as Beryl Evans. He then left the house, and the new tenant found the three corpses in an alcove. Christie was arrested, confessed to the murder of Beryl Evans (but not that of Geraldine) and was hanged on the July 15, 1953 for the murder of his wife. An inquiry, held just before Christie's execution, maintained that, although he had strangled six women and had confessed to the murder of another, Evans was guilty, which required one to believe that there must have been two murderers, with exactly the same modus operandi, in the same small house. However, another inquiry was held in 1966 and found that Evans had not murdered the baby, although, amazingly, and in the face of all the evidence, it was contended that he had, probably, murdered his wife. As it was for the murder of Geraldine, not Beryl, that Evans had been hanged, he was granted a full and free pardon. After Christie's conviction, the name of Rillington Place was changed to Ruston Mews and in 1971, Christie's home, No. 10 was demolished.

Murder Victim. Beryl Susanna Evans (nee Thorley) of 10 Rillington Place, Ladbroke Grove, West London, was the victim of perhaps the most notorious murder of the Twentieth Century. She was married to Timothy Evans, a truck driver who could not read or write. They had one daughter, Geraldine (born October 1948) and another child on the way. As they could not afford another baby, and as this was before the passing of the Abortion Act of 1967, they asked a friend, John Reginald Halliday Christie, who lived in the same house and who claimed to have had some medical training, if he could help them dispose of the fetus. Under the guise of giving Beryl some anesthetic, Christie then gassed, strangled, and raped her, then hid her body in an outside lavatory. When Evans came back from work, Christie suggested that it might be better if, as an accessory before the fact, he (Evans) ought to go and stay with his family in South Wales until the heat had died down. Christie promised to find another family who would look after Geraldine, but instead, strangled her, as well two days later. Evans, who knew about none of this, felt guilty that he had asked his friend to perform an illegal abortion, and told the police that he himself had murdered his wife and had hidden her corpse in the drains, which was where Christie said he would dispose of her. Of course, the police found nothing there, and it took three policemen to remove the manhole cover, so Evans could not possibly have done it himself. When Evans learned of this, he at first retracted his story, then allegedly made a further confession, although, given his illiteracy, there are reasons to disbelieve this. Timothy Evans was tried for the murder of his daughter Geraldine, found guilty and hanged on the March 9, 1950 at Pentonville Prison. What was not then known was that, during the war, Christie had murdered and raped (in that order) two other women and buried their bodies in the garden of his home. In 1953, Christie murdered his own wife, placed her body beneath the floorboards, and invited three prostitutes back to the house, all of whom met the same fate as Beryl Evans. He then left the house, and the new tenant found the three corpses in an alcove. Christie was arrested, confessed to the murder of Beryl Evans (but not that of Geraldine) and was hanged on the July 15, 1953 for the murder of his wife. An inquiry, held just before Christie's execution, maintained that, although he had strangled six women and had confessed to the murder of another, Evans was guilty, which required one to believe that there must have been two murderers, with exactly the same modus operandi, in the same small house. However, another inquiry was held in 1966 and found that Evans had not murdered the baby, although, amazingly, and in the face of all the evidence, it was contended that he had, probably, murdered his wife. As it was for the murder of Geraldine, not Beryl, that Evans had been hanged, he was granted a full and free pardon. After Christie's conviction, the name of Rillington Place was changed to Ruston Mews and in 1971, Christie's home, No. 10 was demolished.

Bio by: Iain MacFarlaine