A NEW ITV series has revisited the true story of Ruth Ellis – the last ever woman to be hanged in the UK.
Ruth, who was 28 at the time of the execution, left behind two children including a daughter named Georgina – here’s everything you need to know.
Ruth left behind a daughter named Georgina
Ruth’s family life
Ruth Ellis was born in 1926 in Rhyl, North Wales, and spent her childhood growing up in Basingstoke with her mum Bertha, her father Arthur, and her siblings.
After leaving school, she moved to London and met a married Canadian soldier called Clare Andrea McCallum.
At the age of 17, Ruth fell pregnant with her son Andy, however, it was decided that her mum would look after the baby.
Following the birth of her son, she went on to meet her first husband George Ellis – a divorcee who was 17 years older than her, and the father to her second child, Georgina.
Tragic love triangle
After Georgina was born, Ruth fell for a man named David Blakely in September 1953, and soon found herself stuck in a love triangle.
At the same time, Desmond Cussen came into her life, and he wanted to make her his wife, but the love triangle was soon to end in tragedy.
Her relationship with Blakely was abusive, which led to Ruth being assaulted on multiple occasions, including punching her in the stomach while she was pregnant, which led to a miscarriage.
It was allegedly Cussen who got the .38 Smith & Wesson pistol and brought it to Ruth.
Armed with the weapon, she waited for Blakely to emerge from The Magdala pub in Hampstead, North London.
After firing multiple shots, Ruth killed Blakely on April 10, 1955, and was soon arrested.
When the first officer arrived on the scene, she told him: ”I am guilty, I’m a little confused.”
At her trial, she said: “It’s obvious when I shot him I intended to kill him.”
It took the jury less than 20 minutes to come back with a guilty verdict and at that time, murder always resulted in the death penalty.
On July 13, 1955, Ruth Ellis was executed at Holloway prison in London.
GettyRuth Ellis pictured with Desmond Cussen[/caption]
Ten years later, capital punishment was abolished, making Ruth the last woman in Britain to be executed.
What happened to Georgina?
Georgina was taken by George to Warrington, where she was fostered.
Andy was 10 years old, and Georgina was aged three when their mother was executed.
As an adult, Georgina struggled with addiction issues and faced difficulties as a mum.
Speaking of Georgina, her daughter Laura Enston told the Telegraph: “My grandfather, Ruth’s first husband, George Ellis, a dentist with an alcohol problem, hanged himself three years after Ruth’s execution.
“In 1969, Ruth’s mother, Bertha Neilson, was found unconscious in a gas-filled room; she never fully recovered.
“My mother, Georgina Ellis, Ruth’s daughter, was three years old and living with an adoptive family when her mother was hanged.
“She led a chaotic life thanks to her childhood; she could not be the mother that my siblings and I needed, drank heavily later in life and died of cancer aged 50.”
Georgina later went on to write a book about her mother before she sadly passed away in 2001.
Prior to her passing, Georgina argued that her mum ‘’was not in her right mind the night Blakely died’’.
She said: ‘’She’d suffered a miscarriage, was taking sedatives and she’d had a lifetime of men being cruel to her.’’
In 1982, at the age of 37, Ruth’s son Andy took his own life.
How to watch A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story
The first episode of A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story premiered on ITV on Wednesday, March 5, 2025.
The following three episodes will air on ITV1 weekly at 9pm.
The four-part drama is also available to watch on ITVX.
RexLucy Boynton portrays Ruth Ellis in the ITV series[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
