Dark London - by Drew Gray (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

From dark crimes of passion to shocking tales of grave robbing, gruesome murders, dens of iniquity, Victorian séances and haunted houses - not far beneath London's everyday bustle and glitter there has long been a fascinatingly rich underworld of criminality, superstition, scandal and macabre debauchery.

Explore this rich seam of morbid history, case-by-case, with social historian Dr Drew Gray, a specialist in the history of crime and punishment. Who were the London Burkers, for example, whose ringleader confessed to stealing and selling nearly 1,000 dead bodies to keen 1830s anatomists? What was 'The Whitechapel Tragedy' of 1875, and who was its unfortunate headless victim? Why was there so much public panic about crime in Victorian London, and how did the city's notoriously rough prisons, courts, workhouses and houses of correction deal with its perpetrators?

Dark London brings together the history of the city's seamier side, picking out the most scandalous, curious and bizarre aspects of London's shadowy and fascinating underbelly.

Review Quotes

An innovative and refreshing approach to the dark side of London's history in the modern era. Drew Gray provides readers with amusing and highly informative, bite-sized vignettes of significant individuals, institutions, events, locations, practices and other phenomena which together tell an evocative tale of life in England's capital city between 1750 and 1914. Dark London is both an irresistible volume for the coffee table of any history lover, and an incredibly useful reference book for budding social historians and anyone else who chooses to explore further the underbelly of the expanding, industrial metropolis.

Dr Rosalind Crone, Award-winning Historian, Writer and Broadcaster on Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley

In this gruesome look at the dark underbelly of London, historian Drew Gray (Nether World) surveys nefarious events from 1750 to the beginning of WWII. Strikingly illustrated throughout with contemporaneous etchings and engravings, this makes for a gloriously grisly mood board.

Publishers Weekly

Newcomers to London's sinister past and seasoned historians alike will greatly enjoy this journey with Drew Gray through the capital's underworld, the mile-stones thoughtfully selected, expertly related, and beautifully presented.

Adam Wood, Crime and Policing Historian

This is one of those pick up, dip in, and find something interesting type of books. The trouble is, once you pick it up and dip in, it's hard to put down. From beginning to end, this examination of London's dark, curious, and extraordinary history is as surprising as it is fascinating. A smashing book full of all-too-brief accounts of the extraordinary and often bizarre events in the history of London. Drew Gray is in his element. London has a dark history, some of which is truly extraordinary, and Gray knows it all.

From Paul Begg, Author of Jack the Ripper: The Facts

About the Author

Dr. Drew Gray is a social historian of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries who specialises in the history of crime and punishment. Drew is Head of Subject for Culture (Humanities, Media, & Performance) at the University of Northampton and teaches modules on both the History and Criminology programmes. His previous works include Murder Maps: Crime Scenes Revisited; Phrenology to Fingerprint 1811-1911 and London's Shadows: The Dark Side of the Victorian City.