Introduction

The upmarket areas of Kensington and Chelsea have seen some fascinating stories, from the darker side of life.

Amongst the most famous cases of all are those of John George Haigh, who claimed his first victims in the area, and Ronald True, the upper-class killer who managed to escape the noose, to a massive public outcry. There are, however, lesser known, but equally fascinating cases.

There is, for example, the murder of Catherine Elmes, a crime for which John Sharpe confessed, later withdrawing his statement, leaving the case unsolved; or the story of Joseph O’Sullivan and Reginald Dunne, who committed a political assassination; or Dennis Muldowney, a man who took the life of a war heroine.

The area set some unique records in the field of true crime. Kenneth Gilbert and Ian Grant, for example, killed in the area and were the last men ever hanged at the same establishment, at the same time, for the same crime. Then there is Guenther Podola, the last man ever hanged for the murder of a policeman.

These areas of London are, perhaps, amongst the most luxurious areas of the modern city, but those well-kept streets have much more sinister tales to tell.

I would like to offer my thanks to Yvonne, my wife, who assisted with the research for this volume, proof read every single chapter and supported me throughout. I would also like to thank the staff of The National Archives at Kew. It is always a pleasure to work there and without their assistance, the research for books such as this would be much more difficult.