The Scissors Murder Mystery: Unsolved Brixton Crime Shocks Edwardian London

The Scissors Murder Mystery: Unsolved Brixton Crime Shocks Edwardian London
News of the Times | Episode 555| 1900
In May 1900, the body of Mary Waknell was discovered in a quiet Brixton basement — savagely stabbed nearly forty times, many wounds inflicted with her own sewing scissors. No forced entry. No signs of struggle. And no one was ever convicted.

Was her killer a jealous husband? A man known only as “Jack”? Or one of many nighttime visitors society refused to acknowledge?

In this episode of News of the Times, we follow the cold, bloodstained trail of one of Edwardian London’s most brutal unsolved crimes. Using original newspaper reports and forensic details long buried in the archives, we uncover a tale of judgment, hypocrisy, and the quiet brutality faced by women who lived outside the lines of respectability.

If you're drawn to forgotten murders, historical injustice, and the atmospheric fog of Edwardian London — this case is not to be missed.

🔎 Featuring:
• A killer who vanished without a trace
• Clues hidden in postcards and pawn slips
• A society that blamed the victim
• And a room that tells a hauntingly silent story

☕ Pour a strong cup of tea and settle in — tonight’s tale is one for the darker corners of the parlour.

🥊 Further Particulars
Three hooligans. One well-dressed man with fast hands.
Let’s just say their Fleet Street mugging didn’t go to plan — especially when the would-be victim turned out to be a champion boxer with no patience for nonsense.
Teeth were lost.
Dignity was not recovered.

👤 Narrated by Robin Coles

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🕯 About the Channel
We’re an independent team of historical researchers and narrators specialising in 18th to early 20th century British true crime. Each episode is based entirely on archival material — from coroners’ inquests to forgotten newspaper columns.

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