About this item
From Jack the Ripper and Sherlock Holmes to the cosy crimes of the Golden Age, renowned historian Lucy Worsley explores the evolution of the traditional English murderand reveals why we are so fascinated by this sinister subject. Murdera dark, shameful deed, the last resort of the desperate or a vile tool of the greedy. And a very strange, very English obsession. But where did this fixation develop? And what does it tell us about ourselves?In The Art of the English Murder, Lucy Worsley explores this phenomenon in forensic detail, revisiting notorious crimes like the Ratcliff Highway Murders, which caused a nationwide panic in the early nineteenth century, and the case of Frederick and Maria Manning, the suburban couple who were hanged after killing Marias lover and burying him under their kitchen floor.
About the Author
I was born in Reading (not great, but it could have been Slough) , studied Ancient and Modern History at New College, Oxford, and I've got a PhD in art history from the University of Sussex. My first job after leaving college was at a crazy but wonderful historic house called Milton Manor in Oxfordshire. Here I would give guided tours, occasionally feed the llamas, and look for important pieces of paper that my boss Anthony had lost. Soon after that I moved to the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, in the lovely job for administrator of the Wind and Watermills Section. Here I helped to organise that celebrated media extravaganza, National Mills Day. I departed for English Heritage in 1997, first as an Assistant Inspector and then as an Inspector of Ancient Monuments and Historic Buildings; Bolsover Castle, Hardwick Old Hall, and Kirby Hall were my favourite properties there. In 2002 I made a brief excursion to Glasgow Museums before coming down to London as Chief Curator of Historic Royal Palaces in 2003. Yes, this is a brilliant job, but no, you can't have it. (Bribes have been offered, and refused. ) You might also catch me presenting history films on the old goggle box, giving the talks on the cruise ship Queen Mary 2, or slurping cocktails. Lucy Worsley, OBE (born 18 December 1973) is an English historian, author, curator, and television presenter. Worsley is Joint Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces but is best known as a presenter of BBC Television series on historical topics, including Elegance and Decadence: The Age of the Regency (2011) , Harlots, Housewives and Heroines: A 17th Century History for Girls (2012) , The First Georgians: The German Kings Who Made Britain (2014) , A Very British Romance (2015) , Lucy Worsley: Mozart's London Odyssey (2016) , and Six Wives with Lucy Worsley (2016) . -From Wikipedia
