What do you think?
Rate this book
The Peepshow
London, 1953. Police discover the bodies of three young women hidden in a wall at 10 Rillington Place, a dingy terrace house in Notting Hill. On searching the building, they find another body beneath the floorboards, then an array of human bones in the garden. But they have already investigated a double murder at 10 Rillington Place, three years ago, and the killer was hanged. Did they get the wrong man?
A nationwide manhunt is launched for the tenant of the ground-floor flat, a softly spoken former policeman named Reg Christie. Star reporter Harry Procter chases after the scoop. Celebrated crime writer Fryn Tennyson Jesse begs to be assigned to the case. The story becomes an instant sensation, and with the relentless rise of the tabloid press the public watches on like never before. Who is Christie? Why did he choose to kill women, and to keep their bodies near him? As Harry and Fryn start to learn the full horror of what went on at Rillington Place, they realise that Christie might also have engineered a terrible miscarriage of justice in plain sight.
In this riveting true story, Kate Summerscale mines the archives to uncover the lives of Christie's victims, the tabloid frenzy that their deaths inspired, and the truth about what happened inside the house.
A nationwide manhunt is launched for the tenant of the ground-floor flat, a softly spoken former policeman named Reg Christie. Star reporter Harry Procter chases after the scoop. Celebrated crime writer Fryn Tennyson Jesse begs to be assigned to the case. The story becomes an instant sensation, and with the relentless rise of the tabloid press the public watches on like never before. Who is Christie? Why did he choose to kill women, and to keep their bodies near him? As Harry and Fryn start to learn the full horror of what went on at Rillington Place, they realise that Christie might also have engineered a terrible miscarriage of justice in plain sight.
In this riveting true story, Kate Summerscale mines the archives to uncover the lives of Christie's victims, the tabloid frenzy that their deaths inspired, and the truth about what happened inside the house.
317 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 3, 2024
426 people are currently reading
3295 people want to read
About the author
Kate Summerscale
10 books604 followersKate Summerscale (born in 1965) is an English writer and journalist.
She won the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-fiction in 2008 with The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House and won a Somerset Maugham Award in 1998 (and was shortlisted for the 1997 Whitbread Awards for biography) for the bestselling The Queen of Whale Cay, about Joe Carstairs, "fastest woman on water."
As a journalist, she worked for The Independent and The Daily Telegraph and her articles have appeared in The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph. She stumbled on the story for The Suspicions of Mr Whicher in an 1890s anthology of unsolved crime stories and became so fascinated that she left her post as literary editor of The Daily Telegraph to pursue her investigations. She spent a year researching the book and another year writing it.
She has also judged various literary competitions including the Booker Prize in 2001.
She won the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-fiction in 2008 with The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House and won a Somerset Maugham Award in 1998 (and was shortlisted for the 1997 Whitbread Awards for biography) for the bestselling The Queen of Whale Cay, about Joe Carstairs, "fastest woman on water."
As a journalist, she worked for The Independent and The Daily Telegraph and her articles have appeared in The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph. She stumbled on the story for The Suspicions of Mr Whicher in an 1890s anthology of unsolved crime stories and became so fascinated that she left her post as literary editor of The Daily Telegraph to pursue her investigations. She spent a year researching the book and another year writing it.
She has also judged various literary competitions including the Booker Prize in 2001.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 282 reviews
February 5, 2025
"I suppose you have to have the faces of each of the murderees, but after all one murdered woman, especially if a prostitute, looks much like another!"
Rather unfortunately, this quotation comes from female author F. Tennyson Jesse (FTJ) who wrote up an account of the Christie case for the Notable Trials series. It's indicative of the way so much of the material and views we're given in this book comes from elitist perspectives that are fascinated by Christie and his case but don't show a huge amount of sympathy for his female victims. Summerscale does gesture towards redressing that balance with brief biographies of the murdered women but, overall, I found this a rather muddled narrative with lots of jumps into adjacent topics that disperse focus and intent.
Firstly, as someone who didn't know the horrific story of Reg Christie, it's worth saying upfront that the first section (of three) is tremendous: I was utterly gripped by the grim horror show of the creepy Christie couple and that claustrophobic house in 1950s Notting Hill where five households live with a single shared bathroom. When the bodies of murdered women are unearthed from within the walls, Fleet Street goes into overdrive and the battle of the tabloids adds a fascinating angle to the story. Harry Proctor, a journalist, and author F. Tennyson Jesse are both drawn to the case, and we're told that 'the forensic analysis in this case was to be more extensive than any in Scotland Yard's history'. That last claim doesn't really play out in the book.
There's the added interest of the fact that a previous upstairs resident, Tim Evans, had been hanged three years earlier for the murder of his wife and infant daughter (technically, for his daughter as British law at the time only allowed prosecution of one murder at a time) - so now questions are asked as to whether Christie was involved in that and was there a miscarriage of justice?
There's also some deft sketching in of the historical context, particularly around women's roles in the post-WW2 period, the extent of sex work, unwanted pregnancies leading to illicit abortions, and horrific racism.
Unfortunately, after the first section, the structure of this book seems to unravel. Jumping in and out of various topics, some noted above, others thrown in seemingly randomly like the coronation of Elizabeth, the hanging of Derek Bentley (another possible miscarriage of justice), the Great Smog of 1952, the possible violent undertones of men saying they want to 'kiss you to death' and the life stories of both Proctor and 'Fryn' (Tennyson Jesse), it's hard to keep a handle on the Christie case.
Lots of ideas are thrown out and questions asked: how was Christie affected from being gassed in WW1? Was he impotent and was that the basis for his murderous misogyny and, possibly, necrophiliac interests? Was he mad or sane - and what did those terms even mean in 1953? To what extent was his wife complicit and how much did she know? Was that the reason why she was killed? But the answers, such as they are, are trailed untidily through the book. Now, some, I accept, will not be answered simply because there aren't the sources - but that does leave this feeling like a frustratingly open story. The author, like F. Tennyson Jesse, 'proposes', 'thinks' and 'speculates' but even the documents available in the National Archives are themselves tainted with the biases and prejudices of the situatedness of their authors when they were written. It's jaw-dropping, for example, to find a pathologist noting quite gratuitously of a murder victim'she was rather a fat woman. She had large breasts'; or a defence lawyer at the Old Bailey trying to win empathy for his client by describing him as having to live with 'coloured creatures' (i.e. Black Afro-Caribbean men). It's also worth nothing, before someone argues that this was just 'normal' at the time, that one of the reasons why Black men were attacked was because they were going out with and marrying white women - so plenty of British people clearly didn't subscribe to this type of racism at the time.
I was especially disappointed to find F. Tennyson Jesse's unrepentant racism: she may well have been friends with Paul Robeson (famous, wealthy, artistic) but she 'recoiled from the black residents of Notting Hill', and sacked her cook for having an Indian boyfriend 'because Indians are men of violent passions' and she 'will come to a very sticky end'. How unbiased, objective and analytical is her account of Christie likely to be given the way FTJ dismisses both Black and brown men as well as anyone working class, including the desperate female victims of Christie? see my opening quotation.
By the time we get into the third section which is an over-extended tying up of loose ends including Harry Proctor's life on and off Fleet Street and all about FTJ, summaries of the illness of Winston Churchill and other Tory party luminaries, more competition on Fleet Street and the uptake of television, the Christie murders seemed a lot way away. We get some rather spurious claims that the case led to an interest in serial killers with Hitchcock's 'Pyscho' and Patricia Highsmith both getting a nod. (Incidentally, it's worth noting that Tom Ripley, name-checked, hardly ever kills women.) Ludovic Kennedy appears just ten pages from the end as the Labour Party bring in new laws ending capital punishment and making abortion legal.
But I was left not really much clearer about Christie: did he perform illegal abortions? Horrific, given that he had no medical training and, if not, why was Beryl bleeding? Violent rape or rape with an equally horrifying addition? There is finally closure of the Evans case by the end but I felt I'd taken a very circuitous route with some non-productive byways to finally get there. Where was the editor?
June 11, 2025
Well researched and organized, but no definitive answers are given about what happened at 10 Rillington Place.
👉 Check out my 2025 Women's Prize reads on BookTube. 📚🐛
“The slew of stories and counter-stories made it impossible to be sure of what had happened inside Rillington Place in November 1949.”
Here’s what you can expect from this meticulously researched, well-organized book that explores the series of murders that took place at a Victorian terrace house in London in the nineteen fifties:
- A thorough introduction to alleged murderers Reg Christie and his neighbor, Tim Evans, as well as crime reporter Harry Proctor (who took an interest in the case).
- Gruesome details of how multiple women (and a child) were killed and the horrible things that were done to their bodies as they lay dead or dying.
- A portrait of the multiple female victims—their lives, jobs, and families.
- A brief interrogation of how sex workers are among the more vulnerable members of our society.
- How the case against Reg Christie unfolded in court.
- And how journalist/author Fryn Tennyson Jesse studied the case against Christie so she could write about it for the Notable British Trials series.
- Some insights on how fighting in World War one and exposure to mustard gas might explain Christie’s inability to clearly recall his crimes.
Here’s what you can’t expect from The Peepshow:
- The truth about the 1950’s murders at 10 Rillington Place.
Okay, okay. I know I keep harping on this whole not-learning-the-truth business, but it’s because that’s largely the reason I picked up this book. Otherwise, why trudge through all these horrific details about women being slaughtered if I’m not going to get some clarity by the end?
Nonetheless, I greatly admire how Summerscale organized all of the information in this book, and I appreciate how she examined the alleged murders from multiple angles. She gives as unbiased an account of what happened as one could hope for, even showing the less savory aspects of Harry Proctor’s personality early in his reporting career.
This isn’t the kind of book I should have read before bed, but it’s certainly one I’d be thrilled to find in the library if I were researching the murders at 10 Rillington Place.
ORIGINAL POST 👇
This Women's Prize for Non-Fiction nominee sounds horrific and thrilling and fascinating.
I just ordered a copy from Blackwell's because it's not out in the US until May.
👉 Check out my 2025 Women's Prize reads on BookTube. 📚🐛
“The slew of stories and counter-stories made it impossible to be sure of what had happened inside Rillington Place in November 1949.”
Here’s what you can expect from this meticulously researched, well-organized book that explores the series of murders that took place at a Victorian terrace house in London in the nineteen fifties:
- A thorough introduction to alleged murderers Reg Christie and his neighbor, Tim Evans, as well as crime reporter Harry Proctor (who took an interest in the case).
- Gruesome details of how multiple women (and a child) were killed and the horrible things that were done to their bodies as they lay dead or dying.
- A portrait of the multiple female victims—their lives, jobs, and families.
- A brief interrogation of how sex workers are among the more vulnerable members of our society.
- How the case against Reg Christie unfolded in court.
- And how journalist/author Fryn Tennyson Jesse studied the case against Christie so she could write about it for the Notable British Trials series.
- Some insights on how fighting in World War one and exposure to mustard gas might explain Christie’s inability to clearly recall his crimes.
Here’s what you can’t expect from The Peepshow:
- The truth about the 1950’s murders at 10 Rillington Place.
Okay, okay. I know I keep harping on this whole not-learning-the-truth business, but it’s because that’s largely the reason I picked up this book. Otherwise, why trudge through all these horrific details about women being slaughtered if I’m not going to get some clarity by the end?
Nonetheless, I greatly admire how Summerscale organized all of the information in this book, and I appreciate how she examined the alleged murders from multiple angles. She gives as unbiased an account of what happened as one could hope for, even showing the less savory aspects of Harry Proctor’s personality early in his reporting career.
This isn’t the kind of book I should have read before bed, but it’s certainly one I’d be thrilled to find in the library if I were researching the murders at 10 Rillington Place.
ORIGINAL POST 👇
This Women's Prize for Non-Fiction nominee sounds horrific and thrilling and fascinating.
I just ordered a copy from Blackwell's because it's not out in the US until May.
August 1, 2024
A very clear and thoroughly researched book about the London serial killer from the 1950's, Reg Christie. It's set against the backdrop of the Queen's coronation, violent racism against Black people in the city, and the demonisation of sex workers, which I thought was an incredibly important aspect that people often don't consider. Christie was sexist, racist, and narcissistic, and all these facets of his personality helped him get away with murder for as long as he did. The politics of the time also played a massive part which Summerscale goes into great detail about. Too much evidence was ignored due to the law being that a person could only be convicted of one murder at a time, as well as the tory party not wanting to put the death penalty at risk by trying Christie for the murders of Beryl and Geraldine Evans because they'd hung Tim Evans for it years prior to Christie being caught.
If you're looking for a true crime book that has a tidy conclusion with all questions answered, this isn't for you. Otherwise, I highly recommend! I found it engaging, nuanced, and thought-provoking.
If you're looking for a true crime book that has a tidy conclusion with all questions answered, this isn't for you. Otherwise, I highly recommend! I found it engaging, nuanced, and thought-provoking.
March 8, 2025
In the words of Ariana Grande: “Yes, and?”
This book has absolutely no business being nominated for any kind of prize anywhere. It’s so bad on so many levels.
I *think* what this is meant to be critiquing is the medias treatment of crime. There’s no unifying theme, there’s no actual critique. Just a regurgitation of events and some oddly timed biographies of the reporters who covered it.
It oddly chooses to somewhat defend a wife beater who more or less did ask a man to get rid of his wife and is only really sorry because his daughter gets caught up in the crime. I don’t know about laws elsewhere, but in America this would be considered conspiracy to commit murder. Tim Evans was already a scum bag but calling him innocent is a joke.
It doesn’t do anything to treat the victims with any empathy, it doesn’t humanize them in any way. All the women felt interchangeable. Nameless and faceless. Loose women. Women who had affairs. Women who got pregnant over and over again even though they couldn’t care for the children. Was there nothing else the author could have said about them?
It feels a weird need to repeat every horrible fucking thing any of the involved parties has had to say about black people. Right up to the BLEEPs that came rumbling through my speakers for certain specific racial slurs. Why? This could be written without printing and repeating direct quotes ad nauseam.
Nevermind that the very act of writing this book sort of participates in the very thing I *think* she was trying to critique? The whole thing feels gross from beginning to end. It felt exploitative, I felt like a voyeur. I wish I’d had the sense to quit a quarter of the way in.
And if Reg Christie was really a man we felt a need to give any more attention to, I think there was a way to talk about all of it in considerably less icky a manner. Like.. I don’t know.. the lack of proper abortion care? Like how none of these women would have been dead in the first place if there had been options for them? I get that my perspective is maybe more pertinent to American than British politics right now but I’m also fairly certain it’s a theme that could still manage to be globally relevant.
It’s far too long. It’s more fucking chaotic than SpongeBob and Patrick after a couple of Goofy Goobers. Just bouncing around from topic to topic completely randomly at will. And most unforgiveably, it’s fucking boring (revert back to point whatever about how I wasn’t ever given a reason to care about the women.)
Maybe the point was to disgust me. In that I applaud the author. It worked.
The additional star is because at least I learned that I’m not a True Crime girly, thanks for saving me the trouble.
This book has absolutely no business being nominated for any kind of prize anywhere. It’s so bad on so many levels.
I *think* what this is meant to be critiquing is the medias treatment of crime. There’s no unifying theme, there’s no actual critique. Just a regurgitation of events and some oddly timed biographies of the reporters who covered it.
It oddly chooses to somewhat defend a wife beater who more or less did ask a man to get rid of his wife and is only really sorry because his daughter gets caught up in the crime. I don’t know about laws elsewhere, but in America this would be considered conspiracy to commit murder. Tim Evans was already a scum bag but calling him innocent is a joke.
It doesn’t do anything to treat the victims with any empathy, it doesn’t humanize them in any way. All the women felt interchangeable. Nameless and faceless. Loose women. Women who had affairs. Women who got pregnant over and over again even though they couldn’t care for the children. Was there nothing else the author could have said about them?
It feels a weird need to repeat every horrible fucking thing any of the involved parties has had to say about black people. Right up to the BLEEPs that came rumbling through my speakers for certain specific racial slurs. Why? This could be written without printing and repeating direct quotes ad nauseam.
Nevermind that the very act of writing this book sort of participates in the very thing I *think* she was trying to critique? The whole thing feels gross from beginning to end. It felt exploitative, I felt like a voyeur. I wish I’d had the sense to quit a quarter of the way in.
And if Reg Christie was really a man we felt a need to give any more attention to, I think there was a way to talk about all of it in considerably less icky a manner. Like.. I don’t know.. the lack of proper abortion care? Like how none of these women would have been dead in the first place if there had been options for them? I get that my perspective is maybe more pertinent to American than British politics right now but I’m also fairly certain it’s a theme that could still manage to be globally relevant.
It’s far too long. It’s more fucking chaotic than SpongeBob and Patrick after a couple of Goofy Goobers. Just bouncing around from topic to topic completely randomly at will. And most unforgiveably, it’s fucking boring (revert back to point whatever about how I wasn’t ever given a reason to care about the women.)
Maybe the point was to disgust me. In that I applaud the author. It worked.
The additional star is because at least I learned that I’m not a True Crime girly, thanks for saving me the trouble.
February 13, 2025
The issues surrounding public fascination with murder, psychopaths and serial killers were interesting. I also found the discussion about how this plays into the psychology of murderers and their desire for fame was good and challenged our modern fascination with true crime. I also liked the exploration of dirty tricks of the press and their disregard for victims. I also appreciated the social history described of the 1950s.
However, I think Summerscale needed to make her aims more explicit. Unlike Rubenhold's The Five where the author's intentions are more obvious I found I was confused about what angle she wanted to take. In the end this was just another book about Christie with some interesting side issues which ironically still seems to fall into the true crime fascination and industry and did not do enough to stand aside from its desire to become fixated on the murderer and his motives.
However, I think Summerscale needed to make her aims more explicit. Unlike Rubenhold's The Five where the author's intentions are more obvious I found I was confused about what angle she wanted to take. In the end this was just another book about Christie with some interesting side issues which ironically still seems to fall into the true crime fascination and industry and did not do enough to stand aside from its desire to become fixated on the murderer and his motives.
February 5, 2025
The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place (2024) by Kate Summerscale is a very readable and compelling account of the infamous murders at 10 Rillington Place by the serial killer John Reginald Christie during the 1940s and 1950s. What emerges is a very unflattering portrait of post-war London.
Superficially Christie is an upright member of society. In reality he was virulently racist and misogynist, and a serial rapist and murderer who committed his crimes with a cool nonchalance which belied their horrorific nature.
As so often happens with true crime writing, the author goes on all kinds of digressions but, on the whole, this is useful context for understanding the era and is all related to the case however tangentially.
4/5
More about The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place (2024)....
'Once more, Kate Summerscale shatters our preconceptions of a classic crime' Val McDermid
From Britain's top-selling true crime writer and author of Sunday Times #1 bestseller THE SUSPICIONS OF MR WHICHER...
London, 1953. Police discover the bodies of three young women hidden in a wall at 10 Rillington Place, a dingy terrace house in Notting Hill. On searching the building, they find another body beneath the floorboards, then an array of human bones in the garden. But they have already investigated a double murder at 10 Rillington Place, three years ago, and the killer was hanged. Did they get the wrong man?
A nationwide manhunt is launched for the tenant of the ground-floor flat, a softly spoken former policeman named Reg Christie. Star reporter Harry Procter chases after the scoop. Celebrated crime writer Fryn Tennyson Jesse begs to be assigned to the case. The story becomes an instant sensation, and with the relentless rise of the tabloid press the public watches on like never before. Who is Christie? Why did he choose to kill women, and to keep their bodies near him? As Harry and Fryn start to learn the full horror of what went on at Rillington Place, they realise that Christie might also have engineered a terrible miscarriage of justice in plain sight.
In this riveting true story, Kate Summerscale mines the archives to uncover the lives of Christie's victims, the tabloid frenzy that their deaths inspired, and the truth about what happened inside the house.
'A forensic reappraisal of a grimy episode in postwar British history ... Shocking, impeccably researched, lucidly written and always utterly compelling' Graeme Macrae Burnet
Superficially Christie is an upright member of society. In reality he was virulently racist and misogynist, and a serial rapist and murderer who committed his crimes with a cool nonchalance which belied their horrorific nature.
As so often happens with true crime writing, the author goes on all kinds of digressions but, on the whole, this is useful context for understanding the era and is all related to the case however tangentially.
4/5
More about The Peepshow: The Murders at 10 Rillington Place (2024)....
'Once more, Kate Summerscale shatters our preconceptions of a classic crime' Val McDermid
From Britain's top-selling true crime writer and author of Sunday Times #1 bestseller THE SUSPICIONS OF MR WHICHER...
London, 1953. Police discover the bodies of three young women hidden in a wall at 10 Rillington Place, a dingy terrace house in Notting Hill. On searching the building, they find another body beneath the floorboards, then an array of human bones in the garden. But they have already investigated a double murder at 10 Rillington Place, three years ago, and the killer was hanged. Did they get the wrong man?
A nationwide manhunt is launched for the tenant of the ground-floor flat, a softly spoken former policeman named Reg Christie. Star reporter Harry Procter chases after the scoop. Celebrated crime writer Fryn Tennyson Jesse begs to be assigned to the case. The story becomes an instant sensation, and with the relentless rise of the tabloid press the public watches on like never before. Who is Christie? Why did he choose to kill women, and to keep their bodies near him? As Harry and Fryn start to learn the full horror of what went on at Rillington Place, they realise that Christie might also have engineered a terrible miscarriage of justice in plain sight.
In this riveting true story, Kate Summerscale mines the archives to uncover the lives of Christie's victims, the tabloid frenzy that their deaths inspired, and the truth about what happened inside the house.
'A forensic reappraisal of a grimy episode in postwar British history ... Shocking, impeccably researched, lucidly written and always utterly compelling' Graeme Macrae Burnet
March 22, 2025
Reg Christie was a very bad man. That he was a murderer and terrible human being is beyond dispute. The question is do we know the extent of how truly awful he was? This becomes the main focus of Kate Summerscale's The Peepshow. However, I would be remiss if I didn't also mention that Summerscale has quite a few sideshows in store for the reader. Often, they become the most interesting part of the story.
For the uninitiated (lucky you), Reg Christie was a serial killer in post-World War II London who killed multiple women, including his wife, and placed them throughout his home and backyard. He was a murderer, virulent racist, and sociopath. He also becomes implicated in a crime he was considered a witness for previously. The major problem with the previous crime is that someone has already been executed for it.
The other thematic threads are centered around the public's obsession with true crime, its treatment of victims, and the media's voracious obsession with more sex and blood. I need to point out that many other reviewers of this book criticized it for either too many diversions or for not tackling these subjects with more direct condemnation. Personally, I felt Summerscale was effective in making her points because she led the reader to these ideas without beating them over the head. It's a question of how you like your reader to deliver big ideas while telling a larger story. I loved her approach and the book overall.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by the publisher.)
For the uninitiated (lucky you), Reg Christie was a serial killer in post-World War II London who killed multiple women, including his wife, and placed them throughout his home and backyard. He was a murderer, virulent racist, and sociopath. He also becomes implicated in a crime he was considered a witness for previously. The major problem with the previous crime is that someone has already been executed for it.
The other thematic threads are centered around the public's obsession with true crime, its treatment of victims, and the media's voracious obsession with more sex and blood. I need to point out that many other reviewers of this book criticized it for either too many diversions or for not tackling these subjects with more direct condemnation. Personally, I felt Summerscale was effective in making her points because she led the reader to these ideas without beating them over the head. It's a question of how you like your reader to deliver big ideas while telling a larger story. I loved her approach and the book overall.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by the publisher.)
March 23, 2025
Kate Summerscale does it again! Another meticulously researched subject, this time Reginald Christie, a serial murderer from 1950's England.
Even though I read a book about Christie as a teenager, this is a truly comprehensive account which includes many of the people on the periphery, with particular attention given to the crime reporter who had exclusive access to Christie throughout (which becomes another sad tale in itself).
The ripple effects of these events spread far and wide, and continue even to this day.
Even though I read a book about Christie as a teenager, this is a truly comprehensive account which includes many of the people on the periphery, with particular attention given to the crime reporter who had exclusive access to Christie throughout (which becomes another sad tale in itself).
The ripple effects of these events spread far and wide, and continue even to this day.
November 18, 2024
Really dissapointing read. I felt that Summerscale focused on all the wrong details and delivered something muddled. Too wide in scale and lacking new insight as far as I was concerned.
I also assumed this book would make efforts to humanise the victims but I felt the way they were discussed was careless and lacking in sympathy.
For me this is a rare instance where I found the Wikipedia page a more useful source than an entire book on the subject.
I also assumed this book would make efforts to humanise the victims but I felt the way they were discussed was careless and lacking in sympathy.
For me this is a rare instance where I found the Wikipedia page a more useful source than an entire book on the subject.
October 11, 2024
The Peepshow is the latest book from Kate Summerscale who always writes fantastic books about historical crimes. This time we're in the pea-soup fog of 1950's London as John Reginald Halliday Christie carries out his sinister murders of women at 10 Rillington Place.
A well written account which is sensitive to the victims and their stories. A recommended read.
A well written account which is sensitive to the victims and their stories. A recommended read.
December 14, 2024
This was a really interesting look at John Reginald Halliday Christie and the murders he committed in 10 Rillington Place, but it wasn't perfect. I wish the book had been a more in-depth look at Christie as a person, as well as the murders of Beryl and Geraldine Evans.
There's still some controversy over the murders of Beryl and Geraldine as Timothy Evans was hanged for the crime; some still believe he was guilty while others believe it was a miscarriage of justice and Timothy was hanged for Christie's crimes. In this book, the author puts forth new evidence that it may have been a joint effort between the two men.
I was interested in the trial which was very well documented, but I had no interest in the weird tangents the author veered onto about the personal lives of journalists and crime writers writing about the case, and more boring still, the Queen's coronation. It had little to no bearing on the facts of the case and felt like so much filler.
Unfortunately the book becomes very tedious after the trial is covered as the author then goes on a long explanation of what happened to people who had little to do with the case.
The stuff about Christie is very interesting and well-researched; most of it was stuff I didn't know before. I do wish photos had been included, but the plans of the house and maps of the area were useful.
While I did enjoy this book, I felt like skipping ahead when the author veered too far off-track. Overall though, it's an interesting book and does shed some light on the Evans murders.
There's still some controversy over the murders of Beryl and Geraldine as Timothy Evans was hanged for the crime; some still believe he was guilty while others believe it was a miscarriage of justice and Timothy was hanged for Christie's crimes. In this book, the author puts forth new evidence that it may have been a joint effort between the two men.
I was interested in the trial which was very well documented, but I had no interest in the weird tangents the author veered onto about the personal lives of journalists and crime writers writing about the case, and more boring still, the Queen's coronation. It had little to no bearing on the facts of the case and felt like so much filler.
Unfortunately the book becomes very tedious after the trial is covered as the author then goes on a long explanation of what happened to people who had little to do with the case.
The stuff about Christie is very interesting and well-researched; most of it was stuff I didn't know before. I do wish photos had been included, but the plans of the house and maps of the area were useful.
While I did enjoy this book, I felt like skipping ahead when the author veered too far off-track. Overall though, it's an interesting book and does shed some light on the Evans murders.
October 28, 2024
My Top crime book of 2024
Everything you need to know about Reg Christine and Tim Evens
Everything you need to know about Reg Christine and Tim Evens
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2025
10, Rillington Place, again…
When Reg Christie vacated his flat in 10, Rillington Place, the landlord asked one of the tenants to clear out the rooms. The tenant decided to put up a shelf and made a hole in the wall. That’s when he saw the first of the bodies…
The Christie case must be one of the most covered true crime stories in British history, with mass news coverage at the time, umpteen books on the subject since, a film starring Richard Attenborough and at least one fairly recent TV dramatisation, to my memory. So anyone who wants to add to the literature has to come up with a new angle. Unfortunately I found that Summerscale took a scattergun approach to it, raising lots of different questions but mostly failing to convince me with her attempts to draw conclusions. The book is unfocused, jumping from one point to another and then back again, and including a lot of detail that is entirely irrelevant to the case.
In short, Christie was a serial killer, killing his wife and at least three other women. What makes his case stand out as unique is that three years earlier, another man, Tim Evans, who also lived in 10, Rillington Place, had been convicted of the murder of his wife and child. He both confessed and denied it, changing his story again and again, and attempted to implicate Christie, but no one believed him. Evans was hanged. Once the bodies of Christie’s victims were discovered, it obviously led people to wonder if Evans had been telling the truth when he blamed Christie – how much of a coincidence would it have been, people asked, for there to be two murderers living in the same house? Christie’s lawyers persuaded him to plead insanity, so his own statements were vague, misleading and contradictory – he too both confessed and denied killing Geraldine Evans and the baby. It is a fascinating case and had a profound impact on the justice system – the unsafeness of the Evans conviction was a turning point in the debate on capital punishment, used successfully by campaigners to show that an innocent man could be wrongly convicted.
Summerscale goes into the Evans connection, of course, making good use of newspaper coverage at the time of both trials. She concentrates on one journalist in particular – Harry Procter, working at the time for the tabloid Sunday Pictorial. Procter had a reputation for sensational scoops, and he had covered the Evans case, never doubting his guilt. But now he thinks he must have been wrong, and sets out to prove that Christie committed the Evans’ murders too. To do this, he persuades his paper to pay for the legal defence of Christie in return for Christie giving him his exclusive story. Procter’s coverage of the case provides much of the source information Summerscale has used.
But she also uses other contemporaneous accounts of the trial, by some surprising names. F Tennyson Jesse, who had previously fictionalised the Edith Thompson case in A Pin to See the Peepshow, (hence Summerscale’s title), got access to the Christie trial so that she could write a short book on it. Anthony Berkeley Cox, a popular crime writer of the day, also watched and wrote about the trial, as did, oddly, Cecil Beaton, probably the top celebrity photographer of the time. While their accounts all add interest, Summerscale goes beyond that to give a lot of biographical detail about them, none of which is relevant and most of which is dull. Frankly I felt I learned as much about F Tennyson Jesse as I did about Reg Christie, and her life was considerably less interesting than his.
For someone who doesn’t know about the Christie/Evans cases, I think there’s plenty in here to make it interesting. However, I’ve read and watched several accounts, and the only thing I felt this added was a lot of rather unevidenced speculation. At the time, much was made of the fact that 10, Rillington Place had become entirely populated by black people except for the Christies, this being the time of the post-WW2 influx of West Indians (African Caribbean people) to London at the invitation of the government. Using very racist terminology, the defence lawyers implied that Christie’s insanity was caused by being forced to live with ‘coloured creatures’. Summerscale seems to run with this, although reversing the point so that in her version it was Christie’s racism and hatred of black people that… well, to be honest, her point was so confused I was left unsure. It almost seemed as if she was implying – ‘white man hates black men so murders lots of white women’. Hmm. Or, she speculates, was it do with the fact that Christie was gassed during WW1? Did the London fog bring back the trauma of the gassing? Is that why he apparently gassed the women before strangling them? Well, it’s an interesting thought, but if there’s any evidence to support it it would have been better if Summerscale had put it in!
Overall I found this disappointingly unfocused and stretching too far in a bid to bring something new to a crowded table. Perhaps there’s not much new to be said about this case. On my last page of contemporaneous notes on the book, I said: I’m still at this late stage confused about the main focus. Is it about the media coverage? Is it about Evans’ guilt or innocence? Is it about racism? Is it about war trauma? Is it about sexual impotence? I feel that by the end of the book I should have known. 2½ stars for me, so rounded up.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
When Reg Christie vacated his flat in 10, Rillington Place, the landlord asked one of the tenants to clear out the rooms. The tenant decided to put up a shelf and made a hole in the wall. That’s when he saw the first of the bodies…
The Christie case must be one of the most covered true crime stories in British history, with mass news coverage at the time, umpteen books on the subject since, a film starring Richard Attenborough and at least one fairly recent TV dramatisation, to my memory. So anyone who wants to add to the literature has to come up with a new angle. Unfortunately I found that Summerscale took a scattergun approach to it, raising lots of different questions but mostly failing to convince me with her attempts to draw conclusions. The book is unfocused, jumping from one point to another and then back again, and including a lot of detail that is entirely irrelevant to the case.
In short, Christie was a serial killer, killing his wife and at least three other women. What makes his case stand out as unique is that three years earlier, another man, Tim Evans, who also lived in 10, Rillington Place, had been convicted of the murder of his wife and child. He both confessed and denied it, changing his story again and again, and attempted to implicate Christie, but no one believed him. Evans was hanged. Once the bodies of Christie’s victims were discovered, it obviously led people to wonder if Evans had been telling the truth when he blamed Christie – how much of a coincidence would it have been, people asked, for there to be two murderers living in the same house? Christie’s lawyers persuaded him to plead insanity, so his own statements were vague, misleading and contradictory – he too both confessed and denied killing Geraldine Evans and the baby. It is a fascinating case and had a profound impact on the justice system – the unsafeness of the Evans conviction was a turning point in the debate on capital punishment, used successfully by campaigners to show that an innocent man could be wrongly convicted.
Summerscale goes into the Evans connection, of course, making good use of newspaper coverage at the time of both trials. She concentrates on one journalist in particular – Harry Procter, working at the time for the tabloid Sunday Pictorial. Procter had a reputation for sensational scoops, and he had covered the Evans case, never doubting his guilt. But now he thinks he must have been wrong, and sets out to prove that Christie committed the Evans’ murders too. To do this, he persuades his paper to pay for the legal defence of Christie in return for Christie giving him his exclusive story. Procter’s coverage of the case provides much of the source information Summerscale has used.
But she also uses other contemporaneous accounts of the trial, by some surprising names. F Tennyson Jesse, who had previously fictionalised the Edith Thompson case in A Pin to See the Peepshow, (hence Summerscale’s title), got access to the Christie trial so that she could write a short book on it. Anthony Berkeley Cox, a popular crime writer of the day, also watched and wrote about the trial, as did, oddly, Cecil Beaton, probably the top celebrity photographer of the time. While their accounts all add interest, Summerscale goes beyond that to give a lot of biographical detail about them, none of which is relevant and most of which is dull. Frankly I felt I learned as much about F Tennyson Jesse as I did about Reg Christie, and her life was considerably less interesting than his.
For someone who doesn’t know about the Christie/Evans cases, I think there’s plenty in here to make it interesting. However, I’ve read and watched several accounts, and the only thing I felt this added was a lot of rather unevidenced speculation. At the time, much was made of the fact that 10, Rillington Place had become entirely populated by black people except for the Christies, this being the time of the post-WW2 influx of West Indians (African Caribbean people) to London at the invitation of the government. Using very racist terminology, the defence lawyers implied that Christie’s insanity was caused by being forced to live with ‘coloured creatures’. Summerscale seems to run with this, although reversing the point so that in her version it was Christie’s racism and hatred of black people that… well, to be honest, her point was so confused I was left unsure. It almost seemed as if she was implying – ‘white man hates black men so murders lots of white women’. Hmm. Or, she speculates, was it do with the fact that Christie was gassed during WW1? Did the London fog bring back the trauma of the gassing? Is that why he apparently gassed the women before strangling them? Well, it’s an interesting thought, but if there’s any evidence to support it it would have been better if Summerscale had put it in!
Overall I found this disappointingly unfocused and stretching too far in a bid to bring something new to a crowded table. Perhaps there’s not much new to be said about this case. On my last page of contemporaneous notes on the book, I said: I’m still at this late stage confused about the main focus. Is it about the media coverage? Is it about Evans’ guilt or innocence? Is it about racism? Is it about war trauma? Is it about sexual impotence? I feel that by the end of the book I should have known. 2½ stars for me, so rounded up.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
March 6, 2025
full post here:
http://www.crimesegments.com/2025/03/...
I bought my copy of this book at Blackwell's (postage to US included in price!) because the US release isn't until May 6th and I didn't want to wait. I've read several of this author's books, including The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher (which I loved), The Wicked Boy (which I didn't love) and The Haunting of Alma Fielding, and I think that with The Peepshow she brings much less of the extraneous detail she usually brings to her books for the reader to wade through, and more of an opportunity to draw connections between that time and our own. It is both a true crime sort of read but much more a social history, and in my very humble opinion, one of her best yet.
In putting her book together, Summerscale tells of events through the eyes of two contemporary reporters: Harry Procter, a successful and highly-driven tabloid journalist, and author Fryn Tennyson Jesse, who approached events from a much different perspective, and whose analysis of the case would eventually appear in the volume of the Notable British Trials series featuring the trials of both Timothy Evans and John Christie in 1957. If this book were only about John Christie and his crimes it would still be quite good, but the author goes deeper into the lives of the many victims (doing so with the great care that these women truly deserve) as well as the social, political and economic landscapes of the time, while also diving into the power/machinations of the press and the readers who lapped up every word. And, as the dustjacket blurb says, her mining of the archives "sheds fascinating light on the origins our fixation with true crime."
I can only begin to imagine how much research went into writing this book and it shows. I absolutely did not want to put this book down while reading and when I had to do so, I couldn't get back to it fast enough. I found it to be an enlightening piece of social history, one that I can highly recommend.
Although there is no definitive answer behind the biggest question of them all (i.e. who really killed Beryl and Geraldine Evans), but the dustjacket blurb does note that Summerscale does "suggest" a possibility. For now, that may just have to be enough.
http://www.crimesegments.com/2025/03/...
I bought my copy of this book at Blackwell's (postage to US included in price!) because the US release isn't until May 6th and I didn't want to wait. I've read several of this author's books, including The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher (which I loved), The Wicked Boy (which I didn't love) and The Haunting of Alma Fielding, and I think that with The Peepshow she brings much less of the extraneous detail she usually brings to her books for the reader to wade through, and more of an opportunity to draw connections between that time and our own. It is both a true crime sort of read but much more a social history, and in my very humble opinion, one of her best yet.
In putting her book together, Summerscale tells of events through the eyes of two contemporary reporters: Harry Procter, a successful and highly-driven tabloid journalist, and author Fryn Tennyson Jesse, who approached events from a much different perspective, and whose analysis of the case would eventually appear in the volume of the Notable British Trials series featuring the trials of both Timothy Evans and John Christie in 1957. If this book were only about John Christie and his crimes it would still be quite good, but the author goes deeper into the lives of the many victims (doing so with the great care that these women truly deserve) as well as the social, political and economic landscapes of the time, while also diving into the power/machinations of the press and the readers who lapped up every word. And, as the dustjacket blurb says, her mining of the archives "sheds fascinating light on the origins our fixation with true crime."
I can only begin to imagine how much research went into writing this book and it shows. I absolutely did not want to put this book down while reading and when I had to do so, I couldn't get back to it fast enough. I found it to be an enlightening piece of social history, one that I can highly recommend.
Although there is no definitive answer behind the biggest question of them all (i.e. who really killed Beryl and Geraldine Evans), but the dustjacket blurb does note that Summerscale does "suggest" a possibility. For now, that may just have to be enough.
August 18, 2025
3.75 stars.
I was always fascinated by the Reg Christie murders. I first came across him when I read the Murder Casebook magazine (a monthly publication devoted to murderers, I loved them) about him. It’s been a long while since I thought about him but I was eager to revisit 10 Rillington Place by way of The Peepshow.
It’s a very well well researched read. With lots and lots of facts. Which I confess did start to make my eyes glaze a little at times. But I did enjoy the way the author introduces one of the reporters of the day, Harry Proctor, who was involved in the case and reveals his contributions throughout the period. I also enjoyed the descriptions of a 1950s London, where women were very much second class citizens, regularly beaten by their men and forced to undertake back street abortions.
It’s a complicated case and I’m still not sure the story of what really happened to Geraldine and Beryl Evans will ever be known. So I’ve finished the book but am still probably none the wiser.
I was always fascinated by the Reg Christie murders. I first came across him when I read the Murder Casebook magazine (a monthly publication devoted to murderers, I loved them) about him. It’s been a long while since I thought about him but I was eager to revisit 10 Rillington Place by way of The Peepshow.
It’s a very well well researched read. With lots and lots of facts. Which I confess did start to make my eyes glaze a little at times. But I did enjoy the way the author introduces one of the reporters of the day, Harry Proctor, who was involved in the case and reveals his contributions throughout the period. I also enjoyed the descriptions of a 1950s London, where women were very much second class citizens, regularly beaten by their men and forced to undertake back street abortions.
It’s a complicated case and I’m still not sure the story of what really happened to Geraldine and Beryl Evans will ever be known. So I’ve finished the book but am still probably none the wiser.
September 5, 2025
I borrowed this from the library not really knowing what it was about, but trusting Kate Summerscale as I’ve enjoyed all her books I’ve read (I think I have two left!). It didn’t disappoint. I knew nothing of this case and it was just horrible and fascinating. Having F. Tennyson Jesse be a major focus in the story due to her coverage of the case was just icing on the cake. This was really good and I continue to be amazed at Summerscale’s work.
March 4, 2025
Pausing but more likely DNF'ing at 50%. I liked the picture of the 1950's London Precariat, but it seemed more journalistic reporting than anything else. Perhaps I'll go back to it, at least to skim the rest for more information about the trial and the aftermath, but at the moment I have better things to read.
August 3, 2025
I am not an avid reader of crime, but this book had more than enough social history to keep me interested. As well as retelling the story of the gruesome murders which took place at 10 Rillington Place, Summerscale offers plenty of thought-provoking observations regarding the role of the media in terms of reporting and arguably influencing crimes and how women are treated by society. These themes are still highly relevant today, and combined with the deep research and accessible writing style render this book a perfect introduction to the genre. Whether you're a seasoned crime buff or a neophyte such as myself, The Peepshow offers an intriguing overview of a horrific crime as well as the fascinating life stories of those who reported on it.
Read
August 4, 2025Longlisted for the 2025 Women’s Prize, Nonfiction
have never heard of this serial killer, & did bring up (but didn’t really flush out much, which was disappointing) interesting ideas about the press, innocent people killed, crimes against women, & more…
rankings (shortlisted books numbered)
2025 Women’s Prize—Nonfiction
* Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller
* By the Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice by Rebecca Nagle
1. Story of a Heart: Two Families, One Heart, and a Medical Miracle by Rachel Clarke
2. What the Wild Sea Can Be: The Future of the World's Ocean by Helen Scales
3. A Thousand Threads: A Memoir by Neneh Cherry
4. Agent Zo: The Untold Story of a Fearless World War II Resistance Fighter by Clare Mulley
5. Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton
* Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum
* Sister in Law: Fighting for Justice in a System Designed by Men by Harriet Wistrich
* Wild Thing: A Life of Paul Gauguin by Sue Prideaux
* Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age by Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough
* The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV by Helen Castor
6. Private Revolutions: Four Women Face China's New Social Order by Yuan Yang
[14/16 read, & calling it; saving two in our library for later: Tracker by Alexis Wright & Ootlin by Jenni Fagan]
have never heard of this serial killer, & did bring up (but didn’t really flush out much, which was disappointing) interesting ideas about the press, innocent people killed, crimes against women, & more…
rankings (shortlisted books numbered)
2025 Women’s Prize—Nonfiction
* Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller
* By the Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice by Rebecca Nagle
1. Story of a Heart: Two Families, One Heart, and a Medical Miracle by Rachel Clarke
2. What the Wild Sea Can Be: The Future of the World's Ocean by Helen Scales
3. A Thousand Threads: A Memoir by Neneh Cherry
4. Agent Zo: The Untold Story of a Fearless World War II Resistance Fighter by Clare Mulley
5. Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton
* Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum
* Sister in Law: Fighting for Justice in a System Designed by Men by Harriet Wistrich
* Wild Thing: A Life of Paul Gauguin by Sue Prideaux
* Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age by Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough
* The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV by Helen Castor
6. Private Revolutions: Four Women Face China's New Social Order by Yuan Yang
[14/16 read, & calling it; saving two in our library for later: Tracker by Alexis Wright & Ootlin by Jenni Fagan]
October 1, 2024
I've always had a morbid fascination with the Rillington Place murders even since I watched the film 10 Rillington Place many years ago. This was a completely different view of these murders though, told from the perspective of a journalist, Harry Proctor who reported on and looked into the Timothy Evans and John Christie trials. I thought I knew a lot about these murders, but this book added so much more information which I haven't heard of before. It's obvious that the author has done a huge amount of research into this and we don't only get to hear about the murders but the wrongful execution of Timothy Evans and the miscarriage of justice that this was. I also really liked how we got to hear about the other women murdered, the other occupants of Rillington Place and the neighbourhood in general, both during and after Christie's arrest.
A fascinating read and definitely one for the true crime fans!
A fascinating read and definitely one for the true crime fans!
January 5, 2025
A really interesting exploration of the terrible murders perpetrated by Christie in the 1940s and 1950s. Summerscale looks at the media coverage from the tabloids to the literati of the day. Against a backdrop of the coronation and a conservative government in crisis, the establishment and the judiciary try to defend themselves against charges of having executed the wrong man.
While Timothy Evans feeds into the popular theory of young thugs, Christie is a respectable ex soldier and police officer, quiet and well mannered. He also happens to be one of the main prosecution witnesses at Evans' trial.
As the country as a whole begins to question the rights and wrongs of a death penalty, the murders at 10 Rillington Place threaten the whole edifice.
While Timothy Evans feeds into the popular theory of young thugs, Christie is a respectable ex soldier and police officer, quiet and well mannered. He also happens to be one of the main prosecution witnesses at Evans' trial.
As the country as a whole begins to question the rights and wrongs of a death penalty, the murders at 10 Rillington Place threaten the whole edifice.
June 14, 2025
The most sinister address in the annals of British crime is likely 10 Rillington Place, so reeking of murder that the very place has been erased from the geography of London. The bodies of the wife and daughter of Tim Evans were discovered at that site, and in 1950 Evans was convicted by a British jury and the sentence of death by hanging was carried out, with Evans proclaiming his innocence to the end. It seemed just another squalid murder by an unintelligent and brutish man till three years later a new tenant of another flat in the building made a hole in the kitchen wall and uncovered a three dead bodies in a hidden cupboard and one more beneath the floorboards, including that of the wife of the previous tenant, John Christie. Later the police found more bodies of women buried in the garden. A week later Christie was apprehended. He would be tried, convicted of murder, and executed at Pentonville prison, by the famous hangman Albert Pierrepont, who had performed the same service for Evans.
The coincidence of two convicted and executed murderers inhabiting the same premises was treated with remarkable aplomb by the political and legal establishment, though it did not fail to achieve notice by either the public or politicians of the Opposition Labour party. It always surprises laymen (who have not been imbued with the principles of ‘legal reasoning’) that in our Anglo-Saxon legal system the question of whether the convicted felon actually did the crime is immaterial, it was obvious that whilst Evans had received a fair trial (indeed, he had confessed to police though he later repudiated it), no jury would ever have convicted him had they known that 10 Rillington Place also housed a serial killer and the remains of his victims. The Evans case became the prime example for the movement to abolish hanging. Which is how as a youth I first became aware of the story, from Ewan MacColl’s rendition of the crime ballad ‘Go Down, You Murderer’. The address 10 Rillington Place became the title of a book by Ludovic Kennedy and a film as well, and years later Evans received a posthumous pardon from the Queen.
What has Kate Summerscale added, some 67 years later? Most strikingly, a fascinating picture of British popular culture and life in the immediate post-war period. The discovery of the bodies and the arrest and trial of Christie caused a frenzy in the popular press. Summerscale focuses on one newspaper reporter, Harry Proctor, who had a special access to Christie because his newspaper was bankrolling his defence. (Americans are sometimes shocked by the antics of the British popular press, which uses ‘cheque-book journalism’ to manufacture the stories that shift their papers in the on-going battle for circulation. Personally I’m amused by the old-fashioned notion that reporters are basically a bunch of drunks hired to libel whomever their employers the Press Lords don’t like, rather than sanctimonious ‘journalists’ defending ‘our democracy’.) Christie’s murders dated from wartime or before. Prostitutes were amongst his victims. Despite a criminal record for minor offences, he received an appointment as a reserve policeman, and the blackout provided serial killers with the chance to go about unobserved. A good proportion of the population had been trained to kill with their bare hands. Abortions then were illegal and Christie also professed to perform them. In wartime with lots of married women’s husbands away in the forces, there was a lot of demand for such services. With the prospect of sudden death from the skies every night, one was likely to be careless about with whom one went home. And prostitution could easily pay more than many legitimate jobs then available to women.
I think Kate Summerscale is the best author of historical true-crime books today. Sometimes, as in her book on poltergeists, you find out more than you ever wanted to know. With a protagonist as squalid as Christie, that’s easy. But mostly I was utterly fascinated by her depiction of a by-gone world barely in living memory. Does she offer any new insight on whether Evans was innocent? Yes, she does, but you’ll have to read the book. No spoilers. But I’ll reveal that if she is right, it explains why Evans might have turned himself in to the police and confessed, and yet later claimed innocence.
There is something highly appropriate in a strangler like Christie finishing at the end of a rope. Still, I’m glad hanging has been abolished. Lately I’ve been concerned with the case of nurse Lucy Letby, the convicted neonatal serial killer serving a full-life sentence. In the old days she would now be buried in quicklime in a prison yard. But many now find the evidence against her—entirely circumstantial and based on statistics—unconvincing. At least there’s still hope for her.
The coincidence of two convicted and executed murderers inhabiting the same premises was treated with remarkable aplomb by the political and legal establishment, though it did not fail to achieve notice by either the public or politicians of the Opposition Labour party. It always surprises laymen (who have not been imbued with the principles of ‘legal reasoning’) that in our Anglo-Saxon legal system the question of whether the convicted felon actually did the crime is immaterial, it was obvious that whilst Evans had received a fair trial (indeed, he had confessed to police though he later repudiated it), no jury would ever have convicted him had they known that 10 Rillington Place also housed a serial killer and the remains of his victims. The Evans case became the prime example for the movement to abolish hanging. Which is how as a youth I first became aware of the story, from Ewan MacColl’s rendition of the crime ballad ‘Go Down, You Murderer’. The address 10 Rillington Place became the title of a book by Ludovic Kennedy and a film as well, and years later Evans received a posthumous pardon from the Queen.
What has Kate Summerscale added, some 67 years later? Most strikingly, a fascinating picture of British popular culture and life in the immediate post-war period. The discovery of the bodies and the arrest and trial of Christie caused a frenzy in the popular press. Summerscale focuses on one newspaper reporter, Harry Proctor, who had a special access to Christie because his newspaper was bankrolling his defence. (Americans are sometimes shocked by the antics of the British popular press, which uses ‘cheque-book journalism’ to manufacture the stories that shift their papers in the on-going battle for circulation. Personally I’m amused by the old-fashioned notion that reporters are basically a bunch of drunks hired to libel whomever their employers the Press Lords don’t like, rather than sanctimonious ‘journalists’ defending ‘our democracy’.) Christie’s murders dated from wartime or before. Prostitutes were amongst his victims. Despite a criminal record for minor offences, he received an appointment as a reserve policeman, and the blackout provided serial killers with the chance to go about unobserved. A good proportion of the population had been trained to kill with their bare hands. Abortions then were illegal and Christie also professed to perform them. In wartime with lots of married women’s husbands away in the forces, there was a lot of demand for such services. With the prospect of sudden death from the skies every night, one was likely to be careless about with whom one went home. And prostitution could easily pay more than many legitimate jobs then available to women.
I think Kate Summerscale is the best author of historical true-crime books today. Sometimes, as in her book on poltergeists, you find out more than you ever wanted to know. With a protagonist as squalid as Christie, that’s easy. But mostly I was utterly fascinated by her depiction of a by-gone world barely in living memory. Does she offer any new insight on whether Evans was innocent? Yes, she does, but you’ll have to read the book. No spoilers. But I’ll reveal that if she is right, it explains why Evans might have turned himself in to the police and confessed, and yet later claimed innocence.
There is something highly appropriate in a strangler like Christie finishing at the end of a rope. Still, I’m glad hanging has been abolished. Lately I’ve been concerned with the case of nurse Lucy Letby, the convicted neonatal serial killer serving a full-life sentence. In the old days she would now be buried in quicklime in a prison yard. But many now find the evidence against her—entirely circumstantial and based on statistics—unconvincing. At least there’s still hope for her.
August 2, 2025
Kate Summerscale has excelled herself in retelling the minutiae of Christie’s shocking murders and the lives of those who wrote about it at the time. It is a compelling but utterly sad and terrible story.
As a child in the 60s I was taken to Madame Tussaud’s where it seemed inevitable that a walk through the chamber of horrors, where Chrisiie was famously displayed decorating a wall, was de rigour. This along with the accompanying displays was enough to instil in me a lifelong dislike of waxworks and I certainly had no desire at all to know anymore about the sordid business. I was probably 8 years old. I had no curiosity about any of the “horrors” displayed and did my best to blot them out of my mind.
Whatever my youthful sensibilities were my teenage and adult mind however was soon seduced by crime fiction beginning with discovering Sherlock Holmes and going on from there, which after all is generally an entertaining and safe route for the average amateur crime reader to take.
As an adult though the sad catalogue of girls and women abused and or murdered by men has shown no let up over the decades of my life. Though such monsters may be relatively few and far between the impact of their actions far outweighs the act or acts itself. Every woman or girl’s death at the hands of a murderer or abuser is a source of deep grief and many women, like me, who have no connection at all to these victims experience considerable anger and sadness over such deaths. Above all we want to try and understand: why? As if understanding could somehow stop or prevent it happening again.
Summerscale certainly hints at some possible explanation for Christie’s repeated attacks on women, not all of which ended in murder, but while it may be interesting to speculate on this she also references the film “Peeping Tom” a film which asks whether by our very interest in horror and death we are not somehow complicit in such acts of violence. She stops short however of drawing the logical conclusions from this… that both the reader of true crime and the writer in some way encourage future violence… I expect several tomes and dissertations have been written on that notion.
But I digress.
The most important take away from the book, to my mind, lies in the fact that the aftermath of Christie’s trial and execution and of information that came out later was the successful act of parliament to abolish the death sentence in the UK. Not indeed because Christie ‘s execution was unsound , far from it… but because it became apparent that in all likelihood another man had earlier been condemned for a murder almost certainly carried out by Christie. It seems to
me that this information is really important to know especially as voices continue to surface demanding a return of the death sentence.
Whether Christie himself should really have been declared insane and committed to Broadmoor is no doubt the subject of many undergraduate essays. Execution could not bring his victims back to life but there is, I suppose, a chance that years of treatment might have identified something that might have helped prevent another such monster from emerging. We will never know.
As a child in the 60s I was taken to Madame Tussaud’s where it seemed inevitable that a walk through the chamber of horrors, where Chrisiie was famously displayed decorating a wall, was de rigour. This along with the accompanying displays was enough to instil in me a lifelong dislike of waxworks and I certainly had no desire at all to know anymore about the sordid business. I was probably 8 years old. I had no curiosity about any of the “horrors” displayed and did my best to blot them out of my mind.
Whatever my youthful sensibilities were my teenage and adult mind however was soon seduced by crime fiction beginning with discovering Sherlock Holmes and going on from there, which after all is generally an entertaining and safe route for the average amateur crime reader to take.
As an adult though the sad catalogue of girls and women abused and or murdered by men has shown no let up over the decades of my life. Though such monsters may be relatively few and far between the impact of their actions far outweighs the act or acts itself. Every woman or girl’s death at the hands of a murderer or abuser is a source of deep grief and many women, like me, who have no connection at all to these victims experience considerable anger and sadness over such deaths. Above all we want to try and understand: why? As if understanding could somehow stop or prevent it happening again.
Summerscale certainly hints at some possible explanation for Christie’s repeated attacks on women, not all of which ended in murder, but while it may be interesting to speculate on this she also references the film “Peeping Tom” a film which asks whether by our very interest in horror and death we are not somehow complicit in such acts of violence. She stops short however of drawing the logical conclusions from this… that both the reader of true crime and the writer in some way encourage future violence… I expect several tomes and dissertations have been written on that notion.
But I digress.
The most important take away from the book, to my mind, lies in the fact that the aftermath of Christie’s trial and execution and of information that came out later was the successful act of parliament to abolish the death sentence in the UK. Not indeed because Christie ‘s execution was unsound , far from it… but because it became apparent that in all likelihood another man had earlier been condemned for a murder almost certainly carried out by Christie. It seems to
me that this information is really important to know especially as voices continue to surface demanding a return of the death sentence.
Whether Christie himself should really have been declared insane and committed to Broadmoor is no doubt the subject of many undergraduate essays. Execution could not bring his victims back to life but there is, I suppose, a chance that years of treatment might have identified something that might have helped prevent another such monster from emerging. We will never know.
May 1, 2025
Kate Summercale masterfully brings new details to light and, crucially, gives a sensitive voice back to the victims. It's a gripping read that also expertly situates the tragedy within the context of post-war London.
If you're into true crime and appreciate meticulous research and powerful storytelling, this is a must-read. Summerscale once again proves why she's a leading voice in the genre.
If you're into true crime and appreciate meticulous research and powerful storytelling, this is a must-read. Summerscale once again proves why she's a leading voice in the genre.
July 22, 2025
I felt physically sick reading the first part of this book. I felt like there was an evil presence attached to it.
March 5, 2025
Seedy, sordid, upsetting and compelling.
November 26, 2024
When I first saw the title of Kate Summerscale’s new true crime book, I wondered if it dealt with the Thompson/Bywaters murder case, the subject of A Pin to See the Peepshow by F. Tennyson Jesse. Then I saw the subtitle and knew this was a book about a different crime – the John Reginald Christie murders at 10 Rillington Place in London. However, I was partly right, because Tennyson Jesse herself was actually involved in this case as well and appears in this book in her role as author and journalist.
In March 1953, John Reginald Christie was arrested following a seven-day manhunt after the bodies of three women were found in his kitchen alcove. The body of his wife, Ethel, was then discovered under the floorboards, as well as the remains of two more women in the garden. Christie admitted to being responsible for all of these deaths and was hanged in July 1953. However, just three years earlier, Timothy Evans, another tenant at the same address, was believed to have killed his wife and baby daughter and was also hanged. Evans had changed his story several times and after withdrawing a confession he had made to the police, he accused Christie of committing both murders. Did the jury get it wrong and hang an innocent man, allowing Christie to go on killing more people?
The Peepshow is a detailed and thorough account of the Rillington Place murders – sometimes a bit too detailed, for example where we are given the personal histories of the most minor of characters or a list of every single reported sighting of Christie in a seven day period. In general, though, it’s all interesting information that adds up to a full picture of not just the crime itself but also the state of British society in the early 1950s. Some of Christie’s victims were prostitutes or from deprived backgrounds and Summerscale spends a lot of time discussing their stories and the sequence of events that brought them into contact with their killer. She also explores the racist attitudes of the period – it seemed that many of the white residents of Rillington Place were so busy complaining about living amongst black people, they failed to notice that they were also sharing the building with at least one murderer. Other topics Summerscale touches upon include illegal abortions (Christie carried these out in his rooms at Rillington Place) and the poor living conditions in multiple-occupancy housing.
To give the book a more personal touch, Summerscale focuses on two people who were investigating the murders from different perspectives. One was Harry Procter, star reporter with the Sunday Pictorial, who arrived at Rillington Place to report on the discovery of the bodies in the kitchen – and remembered that three years earlier he had visited the same house to interview Christie about the Timothy Evans case. Now, with more information available, Procter became convinced that he – and the police – made a terrible mistake and that it was in fact Christie who was responsible for the murders of Beryl and baby Geraldine.
Procter’s theory was shared by the author Fryn Tennyson Jesse, who was researching the case for a new book in the Notable British Trials series. Fryn was dealing with morphine addiction and poor eyesight, but was determined to attend Christie’s trial, where she came to the same conclusion as Procter. However, there was very little appetite from the authorities to look again at the Evans case – the police didn’t want to admit that they failed to identify the correct culprit and it's believed that the Tory government of the time didn’t want to cast doubt on the justice system as it would strengthen opposition to the death penalty. Although Timothy Evans has now been posthumously pardoned, it seems that we still don’t know for certain what happened to Beryl and Geraldine Evans and if you’re hoping for answers or lots of new evidence, you’re not going to find anything conclusive in The Peepshow. I was left feeling confused about the whole thing, which isn’t really Summerscale’s fault – the confusion was caused by both Evans and Christie confessing to various murders, then changing their stories – but it’s not very satisfying if you prefer everything to be neatly wrapped up at the end of a book.
I did find this an interesting read, although I think it needed more structure; it seemed to jump around a lot, from one topic to another and backwards and forwards in time, which stopped it from flowing as well as it could have done. Still, it was good to learn more about this complex true crime and the social conditions that may have contributed to it.
In March 1953, John Reginald Christie was arrested following a seven-day manhunt after the bodies of three women were found in his kitchen alcove. The body of his wife, Ethel, was then discovered under the floorboards, as well as the remains of two more women in the garden. Christie admitted to being responsible for all of these deaths and was hanged in July 1953. However, just three years earlier, Timothy Evans, another tenant at the same address, was believed to have killed his wife and baby daughter and was also hanged. Evans had changed his story several times and after withdrawing a confession he had made to the police, he accused Christie of committing both murders. Did the jury get it wrong and hang an innocent man, allowing Christie to go on killing more people?
The Peepshow is a detailed and thorough account of the Rillington Place murders – sometimes a bit too detailed, for example where we are given the personal histories of the most minor of characters or a list of every single reported sighting of Christie in a seven day period. In general, though, it’s all interesting information that adds up to a full picture of not just the crime itself but also the state of British society in the early 1950s. Some of Christie’s victims were prostitutes or from deprived backgrounds and Summerscale spends a lot of time discussing their stories and the sequence of events that brought them into contact with their killer. She also explores the racist attitudes of the period – it seemed that many of the white residents of Rillington Place were so busy complaining about living amongst black people, they failed to notice that they were also sharing the building with at least one murderer. Other topics Summerscale touches upon include illegal abortions (Christie carried these out in his rooms at Rillington Place) and the poor living conditions in multiple-occupancy housing.
To give the book a more personal touch, Summerscale focuses on two people who were investigating the murders from different perspectives. One was Harry Procter, star reporter with the Sunday Pictorial, who arrived at Rillington Place to report on the discovery of the bodies in the kitchen – and remembered that three years earlier he had visited the same house to interview Christie about the Timothy Evans case. Now, with more information available, Procter became convinced that he – and the police – made a terrible mistake and that it was in fact Christie who was responsible for the murders of Beryl and baby Geraldine.
Procter’s theory was shared by the author Fryn Tennyson Jesse, who was researching the case for a new book in the Notable British Trials series. Fryn was dealing with morphine addiction and poor eyesight, but was determined to attend Christie’s trial, where she came to the same conclusion as Procter. However, there was very little appetite from the authorities to look again at the Evans case – the police didn’t want to admit that they failed to identify the correct culprit and it's believed that the Tory government of the time didn’t want to cast doubt on the justice system as it would strengthen opposition to the death penalty. Although Timothy Evans has now been posthumously pardoned, it seems that we still don’t know for certain what happened to Beryl and Geraldine Evans and if you’re hoping for answers or lots of new evidence, you’re not going to find anything conclusive in The Peepshow. I was left feeling confused about the whole thing, which isn’t really Summerscale’s fault – the confusion was caused by both Evans and Christie confessing to various murders, then changing their stories – but it’s not very satisfying if you prefer everything to be neatly wrapped up at the end of a book.
I did find this an interesting read, although I think it needed more structure; it seemed to jump around a lot, from one topic to another and backwards and forwards in time, which stopped it from flowing as well as it could have done. Still, it was good to learn more about this complex true crime and the social conditions that may have contributed to it.
November 30, 2024
I'm not big on true crime books, documentaries— yes, but not so much with the books. This is well researched and well written, and not a story that is often brought up, but something that did, in fact, impact the judicial system in the UK based on capital punishment. The case of Tim Evans, alongside others at the time, such as Derek Bentley, are one of the main factors why discussions were raised against capital punishment due to public doubts leading to the eventual dissolution of it.
The chapters that focussed on prostitution were very interesting and informative. But the book started to become a bit repetitive towards the end, however I do feel Summerscale did a fantastic job at keeping the stories of the victims alive, instead of just focusing on Christie and contributing to sensationalism around him. She also made a point not to glamorise his infamous crimes and image by eliminating pictures of him as a reference in the whole book. Something so subtle but powerful and denies him anymore infamy.
Paired with her sensitivity towards the victims and this, it felt reminiscent to the book 'The Five' by Hallie Rubenhold, another true crime book that gives the victims a voice. If a true crime book is about amplifying the victims voices I'm always on board, if it is purely just a book on the killer then I'm not too interested because as kate Summerscale notes in her final words in this book, the victims families still suffer silently from the crimes these people committed and stories about them only remind them of their loss.
The chapters that focussed on prostitution were very interesting and informative. But the book started to become a bit repetitive towards the end, however I do feel Summerscale did a fantastic job at keeping the stories of the victims alive, instead of just focusing on Christie and contributing to sensationalism around him. She also made a point not to glamorise his infamous crimes and image by eliminating pictures of him as a reference in the whole book. Something so subtle but powerful and denies him anymore infamy.
Paired with her sensitivity towards the victims and this, it felt reminiscent to the book 'The Five' by Hallie Rubenhold, another true crime book that gives the victims a voice. If a true crime book is about amplifying the victims voices I'm always on board, if it is purely just a book on the killer then I'm not too interested because as kate Summerscale notes in her final words in this book, the victims families still suffer silently from the crimes these people committed and stories about them only remind them of their loss.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 282 reviews