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Mary Ann Cotton: Britain’s First Female Serial Killer
This book was the inspiration for the ITV drama Dark Angel. As one of the UK’s leading commentators, David Wilson shows how some serial killers stay in the headlines whilst others rapidly become invisible - or “unseen”. Yet Mary Ann Cotton is not just the first but perhaps the UK’s most prolific female serial killer, with more victims than Myra Hindley, Rosemary West, Beverly Allit or male predators such as Jack the Ripper and Dennis Nilsen. But her own north east of England (and criminologists) apart, she remains largely forgotten, despite poisoning to death up to 21 victims in Britain’s ‘arsenic century’. Exploding myths that every serial killer is a ‘monster’, the author draws attention to Cotton’s charms, allure, capability, skill and ambition - drawing parallels or contrasting the methods and lifestyles of other serial killers from Victorian to modern times. He also shows how events cannot be separated from their social context – here the industrial revolution, growing mobility, women’s emancipation and greater assertiveness. And concerning the reticence of ‘human nature’, like Dr Harold Shipman, Cotton was allowed to go on killing despite reasons to suspect her. The book contains other resonances to aid understanding of how serial murderers can go undiscovered despite such things as coincidence, gossip, whispers or motives that become more obvious with the benefit of hindsight. It is also a detective story in which the persistence of a single individual saw Cotton tried and executed, events analysed first-hand from the archives and location visits as the author fills the gaps in a remarkable story. By a leading expert on serial killers; Meticulously researched and highly readable; Fresh interpretations mean this book is destined to be the definitive title on Mary Ann Cotton. ‘An enthralling read…David Wilson does not write generic ‘true crime’, but history of the highest order’: Judith Flanders, best-selling author, journalist and historian. This book was the inspiration for ITV’s drama "Dark Angel": David Wilson is Professor of Criminology and Director of the Centre for Applied Criminology at Birmingham City University. An ex-prison governor he has broadcast for the BBC, Channel 4, Sky and Channel 5 (where he presents ‘Killers Behind Bars’). His books include Serial Hunting Britons and Their Victims 1960-2006 (2007) and Looking for Public Criminology and Hot News (2011).
268 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2013
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322 people want to read
About the author
David Wilson
25 books130 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
David Wilson is Professor of Criminology and founding Director of the Centre for Applied Criminology at Birmingham City University – one of the university’s “research centres of excellence”. He is the co-Editor of the prestigious Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, which is produced five times per year. Prior to taking up his academic appointment in September 1997, David was Senior Policy Advisor to the Prison Reform Trust, and between October 1983-April 1997 he worked as a Prison Governor.
David completed his PhD at Selwyn College Cambridge in 1983, and immediately joined HM Prison Service as Assistant Governor at HMP Wormwood Scrubs. He worked as a Prison Governor at a variety of establishments, including HMYOIs Huntercombe and Finnamore Wood – where at the age of 29 he was the youngest governing Governor in the country – and at HMPs Grendon and Woodhill. At HMP Grendon he ran the sex offender treatment programme, and at HMP Woodhill he designed and managed the two specialist units for the 12 most disruptive prisoners in the penal system. This experience brought him into contact with some of the most notorious criminals in the country.
David has advised on live police investigations related to a linked series of murders and has provided training to new Senior Investigating Officers who will take charge of murder inquiries.
His current research interests range from the phenomenon of British serial murder, family annihilation, hitmen and lethal violence within organised crime, to all aspects of prison history and penal reform.
His first work of fiction is The Rules of Restraint.
David Wilson is Professor of Criminology and founding Director of the Centre for Applied Criminology at Birmingham City University – one of the university’s “research centres of excellence”. He is the co-Editor of the prestigious Howard Journal of Criminal Justice, which is produced five times per year. Prior to taking up his academic appointment in September 1997, David was Senior Policy Advisor to the Prison Reform Trust, and between October 1983-April 1997 he worked as a Prison Governor.
David completed his PhD at Selwyn College Cambridge in 1983, and immediately joined HM Prison Service as Assistant Governor at HMP Wormwood Scrubs. He worked as a Prison Governor at a variety of establishments, including HMYOIs Huntercombe and Finnamore Wood – where at the age of 29 he was the youngest governing Governor in the country – and at HMPs Grendon and Woodhill. At HMP Grendon he ran the sex offender treatment programme, and at HMP Woodhill he designed and managed the two specialist units for the 12 most disruptive prisoners in the penal system. This experience brought him into contact with some of the most notorious criminals in the country.
David has advised on live police investigations related to a linked series of murders and has provided training to new Senior Investigating Officers who will take charge of murder inquiries.
His current research interests range from the phenomenon of British serial murder, family annihilation, hitmen and lethal violence within organised crime, to all aspects of prison history and penal reform.
His first work of fiction is The Rules of Restraint.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 30, 2017
BORING!
November 11, 2016
From wiki: Cotton's murders are most accurately classified as "Black Widow" murders, a classification which "applies exclusively to women who kill mates, generally for profit." This is appropriate as Cotton killed her husbands for monetary gain, sometimes after insisting that they take out life insurance. Cotton was not driven by emotion or lust, but only by monetary purposes. Unlike many male serial killers, who are frequently driven by sexual lust, female serial murderers tend to take a much more pragmatic approach to their killings. Cotton's husbands, with the exception of one, were all in regular employment when they died and so their accumulated wages would have been worth more than the single insurance payment.
February 4, 2017
'If we were looking at the most prolific serial killers in British history starting in 1850, Cotton would rank third in order, after Harold Shipman and Peter Dinsdale'.
This is a thoroughly interesting book written by David Wilson, a professor of criminology at Birmingham City University.
This book amalgamates crime and history (two of my favourite things!!) to produce a piece of work which highlights the notorious nature of serial killers. Although the case in hand refers to Mary Ann Cotton (often referred to as Britain's first female serial killer) or the West Auckland Arsenic Cases, the book also analyses other serial murderers - such as Harold Shipman, but most notably Jack the Ripper whose murders took place a mere 16 years after Cotton's.
Despite this, history suggests that Mary Ann killed more people than Jack the Ripper with only a fraction of the notoriety. It's even more difficult to maintain Mary Ann's guilt/innocence, considering she never actually admitted to any wrong-doing.
Folklore and legend maintains Mary Ann's guilt, but this book gives a holistic look at the life of Mary Ann and other Victorian families, particularly paying close attention to the Victorian society where arsenic was readily available and people were increasingly exposed to poison in upholstery, medicines, cosmetics and even wine.
I found the latter chapters very interesting, especially those concerning Thomas Riley's suspicions, the Coroner's inquiry, the Magistrates' hearings and the reports of Doctor Thomas Scattergood, all of which resulted in the demise of Mary Ann Cotton - despite her never admitting her guilt.
The issue of being so readily exposed to arsenic in Victorian times casts a shadow on Mary Ann's crimes - she expressed her concern that she was being wrongly accused of deaths she did not knowingly or purposely cause. Yet when viewed in the context of growing social mobility and increasing women's rights, Mary Ann Cotton may be considered a 'black widow'- killing husbands, partners, and children who no longer fitted in to the world she wished to create. Coming from a nursing background possibly allowed Mary Ann to play her role of caring mother and wife sufficiently enough to hide in plain sight. Her medical knowledge may have extended to the role of arsenic and how its symptoms are similar to other Victorian illnesses such as typhus and typhoid.
Whether Mary Ann was a calculated killer or an innocent bystander in the 'arsenic century' is up to the reader to decide. This book gives you an insight to the world of serial killings and allows you to make your own mind up about the psychology and guilt of Britain's supposed first female serial killer.
I would highly recommend this book for an interesting read.
This is a thoroughly interesting book written by David Wilson, a professor of criminology at Birmingham City University.
This book amalgamates crime and history (two of my favourite things!!) to produce a piece of work which highlights the notorious nature of serial killers. Although the case in hand refers to Mary Ann Cotton (often referred to as Britain's first female serial killer) or the West Auckland Arsenic Cases, the book also analyses other serial murderers - such as Harold Shipman, but most notably Jack the Ripper whose murders took place a mere 16 years after Cotton's.
Despite this, history suggests that Mary Ann killed more people than Jack the Ripper with only a fraction of the notoriety. It's even more difficult to maintain Mary Ann's guilt/innocence, considering she never actually admitted to any wrong-doing.
Folklore and legend maintains Mary Ann's guilt, but this book gives a holistic look at the life of Mary Ann and other Victorian families, particularly paying close attention to the Victorian society where arsenic was readily available and people were increasingly exposed to poison in upholstery, medicines, cosmetics and even wine.
I found the latter chapters very interesting, especially those concerning Thomas Riley's suspicions, the Coroner's inquiry, the Magistrates' hearings and the reports of Doctor Thomas Scattergood, all of which resulted in the demise of Mary Ann Cotton - despite her never admitting her guilt.
The issue of being so readily exposed to arsenic in Victorian times casts a shadow on Mary Ann's crimes - she expressed her concern that she was being wrongly accused of deaths she did not knowingly or purposely cause. Yet when viewed in the context of growing social mobility and increasing women's rights, Mary Ann Cotton may be considered a 'black widow'- killing husbands, partners, and children who no longer fitted in to the world she wished to create. Coming from a nursing background possibly allowed Mary Ann to play her role of caring mother and wife sufficiently enough to hide in plain sight. Her medical knowledge may have extended to the role of arsenic and how its symptoms are similar to other Victorian illnesses such as typhus and typhoid.
Whether Mary Ann was a calculated killer or an innocent bystander in the 'arsenic century' is up to the reader to decide. This book gives you an insight to the world of serial killings and allows you to make your own mind up about the psychology and guilt of Britain's supposed first female serial killer.
I would highly recommend this book for an interesting read.
February 18, 2017
This book read like a research paper. All the information about Mary Ann Cotton could have filled one chapter. Save your time.
May 21, 2017
Pretty dry and the author is distracted by other serial killers. Also disorganized, so it was difficult to keep her husbands, children, step-children and their sequences straight.
January 26, 2023
Very intriguing book. I can't say I agree with everything but it's certainly interesting.
February 8, 2017
Heavy going
Doesn't really tell the story about Mary Ann
Very miss matched and no clear story line. Very hard to get into.
Doesn't really tell the story about Mary Ann
Very miss matched and no clear story line. Very hard to get into.
August 18, 2017
This book tried to shed light on a serial killer that time has forgotten. Mary Ann Cotton killed anywhere between 14 and 25 people with arsenic. The author of this book believes she killed 17, based on the fact that their are no birth or death records for children she is supposed to have killed. This body count puts her third on the list of most kills by a serial killer in Britain. And yet very little is known about her. The author attempts to create a narrative about why Mary Ann killed when and how she did while also analyzing the factors of the time that helped her get away with it. Finally the author attempts to figure out why Mary Ann Cotton has been subsequently forgotten in time.
I liked how the author blended firsthand accounts with information from two previous Mary Ann biographers. The author also did a decent job setting up various aspect historically speaking about the time period of Mary Ann. For example, he discussed the historical context of admitting evidence of other supposed murders in a trial and why Mary Ann's execution was private and not public. He uses other serial killers to show trends and make correlations between Mary Ann and other cases. Finally he attempted to explain her motivations for the murders and how that time period factored into her thinking.
While this book would be too dry for most people to enjoy, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys true crime non fiction or a background in criminology or psychology.
I liked how the author blended firsthand accounts with information from two previous Mary Ann biographers. The author also did a decent job setting up various aspect historically speaking about the time period of Mary Ann. For example, he discussed the historical context of admitting evidence of other supposed murders in a trial and why Mary Ann's execution was private and not public. He uses other serial killers to show trends and make correlations between Mary Ann and other cases. Finally he attempted to explain her motivations for the murders and how that time period factored into her thinking.
While this book would be too dry for most people to enjoy, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys true crime non fiction or a background in criminology or psychology.
January 28, 2023
An interesting semi-academic study of Cotton and her crimes. David Wilson begins this book like many true crime studies. He ends it by discussing Cotton's circumstances and mental state from a modern psychological perspective, however, giving it a unique stance. It was well written, and I have given it four stars as a result. Given its subject, I can't bring myself to rate it five stars. Nevertheless, I would recommend 'Mary Ann Cotton: Britain's First Female Serial Killer' to anyone interested in the crime or psychology.
December 19, 2017
3.5-4, I don't think I know much more about Mary Ann cotton than I did before I picked it up. I did enjoy reading about half this, it seemed to loose its chain of thought at points and become a bit rambly. Worth reading though.
December 29, 2017
A fascinating insight into a serial killer, who largely went unchecked until she got too cocky (Wilson actually suggests serial killers getting lax rather than good policing is often what leads to them getting caught) & then was subsequently forgotten.
Biggest issue with book is its lack of polish. It's from (I think) a small independent publishers and it could have benefitted from a serious bit of editing. Wilson has a tendency to repeat the same points over & over. Also, he veers from speculation to random ideas.
Therefore a worthwhile read as long as you're prepared to overlook its rather amateurish feel.
Biggest issue with book is its lack of polish. It's from (I think) a small independent publishers and it could have benefitted from a serious bit of editing. Wilson has a tendency to repeat the same points over & over. Also, he veers from speculation to random ideas.
Therefore a worthwhile read as long as you're prepared to overlook its rather amateurish feel.
January 21, 2018
This was such an interesting read though
February 5, 2019
Interesting comparison with other murderers of the period.
February 27, 2016
Interesting
By reading about Mary Ann Cotton, you get a history of Victorian killers starting before her birth in 1833 and going up to 2008. The author writes a lot about arsenic poisoning in the Victorian age. It seems like a lot of women used this going way back before Cotton did. There were never any witnesses to any of her 15 to21 killings and no one seemed to have anything bad to say about her. There was a lot of psychological phrases used too. at the end there was even an antisocial and psychological test they answered for her. By then I felt like an antisocial personality with psychological problems. The author never really proved to me that Mary Ann Cotton was guilty.
By reading about Mary Ann Cotton, you get a history of Victorian killers starting before her birth in 1833 and going up to 2008. The author writes a lot about arsenic poisoning in the Victorian age. It seems like a lot of women used this going way back before Cotton did. There were never any witnesses to any of her 15 to21 killings and no one seemed to have anything bad to say about her. There was a lot of psychological phrases used too. at the end there was even an antisocial and psychological test they answered for her. By then I felt like an antisocial personality with psychological problems. The author never really proved to me that Mary Ann Cotton was guilty.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews