-
ADD TIME NEWS
- MOBILE APPS
- NEWSLETTERS
Top 10 Ye Olde British Criminal Trials
The records of 1.4 million British criminal trials from the 18th and 19th centuries have gone online for the first time. From the murderous doctor who claimed to be Jack the Ripper to the crook thought to have inspired Charles Dickens' Fagin, TIME takes a look at 10 particularly outlandish cases
Dr. Thomas Neill Cream

Jack the Ripper in one of his notorious slashing attacks at London's East End in 1888
After he was released from prison in the U.S. several people he had allegedly operated on had died the Scottish-born doctor returned home to the U.K. and just kept on killing. Cream seemed to specialize in murdering both prostitutes and wealthy members of society, but his despicable behavior caught up with him when he tried to frame two fellow doctors. He wrote to the police accusing the doctors of killing several women, including one named Matilda Clover. But by providing so many details about Clover's death, Cream inadvertently revealed that it was, in fact, he who had killed her, and he was hanged in 1892. In a final twist, some believe Cream's final words were "I am Jack ...," a reference to notorious serial killer Jack the Ripper. But it was probably a case of wishful thinking, as records show Cream was still in prison in the U.S. at the time of the Ripper's murders.
View the full list for "Top 10 Ye Olde British Criminal Trials"Latest Lists
Most Popular »
- Will Your Next Car be Made in India?
- Israel vs. Hizballah: Drumbeats of War
- The Pentagon Prepares for a Missile Attack from 'Iran'
- Top Stocks of the Decade: What the Winners Tell Us
- The '00s: Goodbye (at Last) to the Decade from Hell
- Made in India: The $12,000 Electric Car
- The Eurostar Breakdown: 'Tis the Season to Be Livid
- Have Yourself a Sandinista Christmas...
- Agent Orange Poisons New Generations in Vietnam
- Despite U.S. Help, Yemen Faces Growing Al-Qaeda Threat
- Top Stocks of the Decade: What the Winners Tell Us
- Agent Orange Poisons New Generations in Vietnam
- Will Your Next Car be Made in India?
- Super-Earth: Astronomers Find a Watery New Planet
- Who Will Inherit Joel Stein's Kid?
- Have Yourself a Sandinista Christmas...
- Israel vs. Hizballah: Drumbeats of War
- Despite U.S. Help, Yemen Faces Growing Al-Qaeda Threat
- Brits Get Some Holiday Cheer: No British Air Strike
- Iran's Opposition Loses a Mentor But Gains a Martyr










RSS