Who was Ruth Ellis? Nightclub manageress, convicted murderer and last woman to hang in the UK

Ruth Ellis was a nightclub manageress who became the past pistillate to bent successful the UK, aft she murdered her husband.

Her unthinkable life volition beryllium dramatised successful the ITV play A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story, wherever she volition beryllium played by Lucy Boynton. 

Overcoming a horrific upbringing

Ruth was calved connected October 9, 1926, successful Denbighshire, Wales. 

She grew up successful Baskingstoke, Hampshire, and was raised by her parent Elisaberta, a Belgian warfare refugee, and her begetter Arthur, a cellist. 

When Arthur’s duplicate member died successful 1928, erstwhile Ruth was conscionable 2 years old, helium became physically and sexually abusive towards Ruth’s older sister Muriel. 

Despite knowing astir the abuse, Elisaberta (known arsenic Bertha) did thing to intervene. 

Arthur besides began to maltreatment Ruth. 

Ruth became an usherette astatine a cinema successful Reading, aft leaving schoolhouse astatine conscionable 14-years-old. 

She gave commencement to a lad connected September 15, 1944, aft having an matter with a joined Canadian worker named Clare Andrea McCallum. 

Life arsenic a nightclub hostess

By the extremity of the decade, Ruth had go a nightclub hostess successful Hampstead. 

She had landed the occupation aft a stint arsenic a nude exemplary and was making overmuch much money than she had arsenic an usherette oregon mill worker.

However, Ruth’s manager, Morris Conley, blackmailed his employees into sleeping with him.

At the commencement of 1950, Ruth decided to go a full-time escort.

On November 8 of that aforesaid year, she joined 41-year-old George Johnston Ellis, a divorced dentist with 2 sons. 

She had met him astatine her nightclub, the Court Club, wherever helium was said to beryllium a convulsive customer. 

Ellis was paranoid that Ruth was having an matter and erstwhile she gave commencement to a girl named Georgina,  successful 1951, helium refused to judge that she was his child.

Ruth picks up a gun

Ellis and Ruth divorced and, successful 1953, she began a narration with David Blakely.

David was a publicly-educated antheral whom she met astatine the Little Club. 

At the time, she had go the manager of the nightclub successful Knightsbridge and was regularly lavished with gifts by her personage friends. 

Her narration with Blakely was highly volatile, with the brace regularly breaking up and reuniting. 

Ruth near Blakely due to the fact that she felt that she could not reciprocate his aggravated feelings for her, but yet returned aft concisely dating a antheral named Desmond Cussen. 

In January 1955, she had a miscarriage aft Blakely deed her portion she was pregnant. 

Three months later, connected Easter Sunday, April 10, she took a taxi and went to find her ex-lover. 

At 9:30pm, she took a revolver from her handbag and fired 5 shots astatine Blakely. 

When the archetypal 1 missed, Blakely tried to tally astir the car but was caught by the 2nd bullet. 

After helium fell to the ground, Ruth fired again and killed him.

In shock, Ruth asked Blakely’s person Clive Gunnel to telephone the police. 

When a policeman arrived, she simply said: “I americium guilty, I’m a small confused.”

Shocking tribunal appearance

Ruth was taken to beryllium medically examined, but the physicians failed to find immoderate grounds of intelligence oregon carnal unwellness which whitethorn person caused her to transportation retired the attack.

On June 20, 1955, she appeared astatine the Number One Court astatine the Old Bailey successful London. 

Her defending counsel, Aubrey Melford Stevenson, felt that her quality mightiness harm her case. 

She was dressed successful a achromatic suit with bleached and coiffured blonde hair, creating a striking silohuette.

When asked if she meant to termination Blakely, Ruth was honest. 

She said: “It’s evident erstwhile I changeable him I intended to termination him”.

She was convicted of execution wrong 20 minutes by the Jury and sentenced to death.

Ruth’s execution

Ruth wrote to Blakely’s parents and said that she “always loved” their lad and said that she “shall dice inactive loving him”.

She was visited by the Bishop of Stepney, Joost de Blank, earlier her execution connected July 13, 1955.

Sadly, she was hanged and buried wrong the walls of Holloway prison. 

Years later, successful the 1970s, her sedate was exhumed and moved to a Churchyard successful Buckinghamshire, wherever Blakely was buried. 

The quality of Ruth’s decease sent waves done British nine and was adjacent discussed by cabinet. 

Ruth was the last pistillate to ever beryllium executed successful Britain, arsenic her lawsuit shocked lawmakers crossed the country. 

A Cruel Love

Ruth’s unthinkable communicative volition beryllium dramatised successful the upcoming ITV play A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story. 

She volition beryllium played by Lucy Boynton, an histrion known for her roles successful Bohemian Rhapsody, Miss Potter and Sing Street. 

The amusement is acceptable successful 1955, the twelvemonth Ruth was hanged, and is based connected Carol Ann Lee’s biography A Fine Day for Hanging: The Real Ruth Ellis Story.