Ruth Ellis: The Last Woman Executed in Britain for Murder

A little over 60 years ago, Ruth Ellis became the last woman hanged for murder in the UK. Since then, she’s become the subject of television and radio dramas, movies, plays, and books. Why should we bother telling the story of a woman executed over six decades ago?

When Ruth murdered her rich, race car driving boyfriend, David Blakely, the Daily Mail reported: “Six revolver shots shattered the Easter Sunday calm of Hampstead, and a beautiful platinum blonde stood with her back to the wall. In her hand was a revolver.” To reporters, Ruth’s case was the equivalent of Hanukkah, Christmas, and their collective birthdays all rolled into one giant, tragic blood-letting. They couldn’t get enough, and the story of Ruth Ellis eclipsed all other news.

No one disputed that Ruth shot Blakely outside the Magdala pub in Hamstead on April 10, 1955. The real question was, why? Was Ruth, a former model and night club manager, a crazy, low-class femme fatale who led a man of privilege astray, or was there something more profound at play?

Ruth’s Early Life

Ruth Hornby was born in the seaside town of Rhyl, Wales, on October 9, 1926. It was a working-class town. Elisaberta (Bertha) Cothals, Ruth’s mother, was a Belgian refugee who had fled from her home country during the German…