The most famous telegram of all time was sent today, by Captain Kendall, in connection with an infamous murder - 'Have strong suspicions that Crippen, London cellar murderer and accomplice are amongst saloon passengers ... travelling as Mr and Master Robinson'.
And indeed they were. 'Master Robinson' was Ethel le Neve, H H Crippen's secretary and lover. The telegram was forwarded to Scotland Yard and Chief Inspector Walter Dew duly arrested them both. Crippen was hanged. All this took place in 1910 but now we know that the supposed body of Mrs Crippen found in the cellar of the Crippen home in London's Hilldrop Crescent, was actually a man. So the damning evidence against Crippen was false and the actions of Dew in arresting him and Kendall of reporting his whereabouts are culpable. And don't get me started on Bernard Spilsbury!
In other news ...
Sir Mortimer Wheeler died today in 1976. If you don't know who he was, you are under fifty or should be ashamed of yourself. He was the first television archaeologist and always carried out his digs in a three-piece suit and bow tie. He did not have wild flowing hair, a silly hat or a patronizing tone and never had only three days to complete an assignment.
