of a woman. The legs and arms were cut from the body and separately wrapped in brown paper. These limbs were placed on top of the female torso in the trunk.
Seven years later, in 1934, the remains of a woman were found in a trunk at Brighton Station. The next day a case containingher legs was found at Kingâs Cross Station. The police called in a man that I had mentioned earlier, the eminent police pathologist Sir Bernard Spillsbury, who had worked on the Dr Crippen case in 1910.
Eventually, the authorities traced the trunk to Brighton. When the police kicked down the door of 52 Kemp Street they found another trunk, which revealed another limbless female torso with all the outer extremities removed. The killer was one Tony Mancini, a heavy drinker, who was found not guilty of murder in 1934. In 1976, aged 68, he confessed to the News of the World but could not be tried again and so got away with his crime.
Chapter 28
There was a time when I was on a rank at the Conrad Hotel, near Chelsea Wharf. I was next in line when out came this guy of about twenty-five. A crowd of people ran towards him. He was quite good with these people and took the time to satisfy the fans with his autograph. He then came over to my cab and told me where he wanted to go. I said that I knew his face, but I could not put a name to it. He said, âI am Nigel Mansellâ. I apologised to him and said that I did not follow motor racing. I asked him if he would like to drive my cab but he declined my offer. Anyway it would have been illegal for him to drive a London cab, so it was an empty gesture.
Speaking of racing drivers, I used to see Stirling Moss quite regularly on a moped, riding up and down Park Lane. Every time I saw him he had a smile on his face. If he was in his racing car he would not have been moving very fast because of the traffic. What a difference between a speedy, souped-up car and a moped, but a moped is the best way to get around London, especially if you are in a hurry.
Chapter 29
As a television engineer in the seventies, I once went to Max Bygravesâs flat in Victoria. He had had a very long run at the Victoria Palace Theatre and he strolled into our shop one morning and rented a very large colour television. I had to visit his flat quite few times, as these early sets were fairly unreliable. He would regularly ask his wife, Blossom, to make me a cup of tea while we were having a little chat. I would have preferred a couple of free tickets to his show, which was just around the corner, but the tickets never materialised. I thought that with a name like Bygraves he would have done well running a funeral parlour. (Just a joke.) Max was a very successful entertainer at that time and quite a jovial customer. I believe he emigrated to Australia, where his wife Blossom sadly died.
Bruce Forsyth was another television customer of ours. What a personality that guy had! He was with Anthea Redfern then, although I spoke with her for only a few minutes. What an attractive woman she was. She was on the Bruce Forsyth show and I do believe they got married in 1973. Bruce Forsyth starred in Sunday Night at the London Palladium , The Generation Game and since 2004, Strictly Come Dancing . What a career this guy has had, and he is still going strong. He was born in 1928, so that makes him 85.
*Â Â *Â Â *
Back on my cab crawl of memories round London, I remember driving into Liverpool Street Station where there was a big queue for taxis. When I picked up my passenger, he had a big cue inhis hand. It was Terry Griffiths, the snooker player. Again I had to ask who he was. I admit, this sort of question can be a wee bit embarrassing. He had a nice but strong Welsh accent and was a great snooker player, but he took so long to take a shot. It was almost painful waiting, although when he eventually cued the ball it was usually pretty accurate.
*Â Â *Â Â *
Shirley Bassey was once one of our television customers. She
Seven years later, in 1934, the remains of a woman were found in a trunk at Brighton Station. The next day a case containingher legs was found at Kingâs Cross Station. The police called in a man that I had mentioned earlier, the eminent police pathologist Sir Bernard Spillsbury, who had worked on the Dr Crippen case in 1910.
Eventually, the authorities traced the trunk to Brighton. When the police kicked down the door of 52 Kemp Street they found another trunk, which revealed another limbless female torso with all the outer extremities removed. The killer was one Tony Mancini, a heavy drinker, who was found not guilty of murder in 1934. In 1976, aged 68, he confessed to the News of the World but could not be tried again and so got away with his crime.
Chapter 28
There was a time when I was on a rank at the Conrad Hotel, near Chelsea Wharf. I was next in line when out came this guy of about twenty-five. A crowd of people ran towards him. He was quite good with these people and took the time to satisfy the fans with his autograph. He then came over to my cab and told me where he wanted to go. I said that I knew his face, but I could not put a name to it. He said, âI am Nigel Mansellâ. I apologised to him and said that I did not follow motor racing. I asked him if he would like to drive my cab but he declined my offer. Anyway it would have been illegal for him to drive a London cab, so it was an empty gesture.
Speaking of racing drivers, I used to see Stirling Moss quite regularly on a moped, riding up and down Park Lane. Every time I saw him he had a smile on his face. If he was in his racing car he would not have been moving very fast because of the traffic. What a difference between a speedy, souped-up car and a moped, but a moped is the best way to get around London, especially if you are in a hurry.
Chapter 29
As a television engineer in the seventies, I once went to Max Bygravesâs flat in Victoria. He had had a very long run at the Victoria Palace Theatre and he strolled into our shop one morning and rented a very large colour television. I had to visit his flat quite few times, as these early sets were fairly unreliable. He would regularly ask his wife, Blossom, to make me a cup of tea while we were having a little chat. I would have preferred a couple of free tickets to his show, which was just around the corner, but the tickets never materialised. I thought that with a name like Bygraves he would have done well running a funeral parlour. (Just a joke.) Max was a very successful entertainer at that time and quite a jovial customer. I believe he emigrated to Australia, where his wife Blossom sadly died.
Bruce Forsyth was another television customer of ours. What a personality that guy had! He was with Anthea Redfern then, although I spoke with her for only a few minutes. What an attractive woman she was. She was on the Bruce Forsyth show and I do believe they got married in 1973. Bruce Forsyth starred in Sunday Night at the London Palladium , The Generation Game and since 2004, Strictly Come Dancing . What a career this guy has had, and he is still going strong. He was born in 1928, so that makes him 85.
*Â Â *Â Â *
Back on my cab crawl of memories round London, I remember driving into Liverpool Street Station where there was a big queue for taxis. When I picked up my passenger, he had a big cue inhis hand. It was Terry Griffiths, the snooker player. Again I had to ask who he was. I admit, this sort of question can be a wee bit embarrassing. He had a nice but strong Welsh accent and was a great snooker player, but he took so long to take a shot. It was almost painful waiting, although when he eventually cued the ball it was usually pretty accurate.
*Â Â *Â Â *
Shirley Bassey was once one of our television customers. She
Similar Books
