in which his father was not afraid to beat his children. He would make them go for long walks, which were more like military marches than strolls in the countryside. He was a frail child, disliked by his father, but spoilt by his mother. His emasculation was reinforced by the fact that he had four sisters. He was a very private child with few friends and, while still young, developed a pathological abhorrence of dirt. As he got older, he began to take part in activities at his local church, joining the choir and eventually becoming a scoutmaster. He enjoyed wearing the uniform.
His relationship with his sisters became complex. As a young child he had been disturbed to see one of his sister’s legs up to the knee. He became attracted to these women who bossed him about, hating them at the same time for their dominance over him. It is likely that at this time he began to develop an antipathy towards all women, mainly because he felt he could not satisfy them. The nicknames given to him at school when his first attempts at lovemaking ended in failure did not help – ‘Reggie-No-Dick’ and ‘Can’t-Make-It-Christie’.
He was a signalman during the First World War and at one point lost his voice for three years following a hysterical reaction to an incident when a mustard gas shell knocked him unconscious. This, however, does not seem to have stopped him marrying Ethel in 1920.
His marriage was blighted by his impotence and he continued visiting prostitutes afterwards, as he had been doing since the age of nineteen. All they served to do, however, was to remind him of his inadequacy with the opposite sex.
His first brush with the law occurred after he became a postman in 1920. He stole some postal orders and went to prison for three months. His life really began to fall apart in 1924, when he was twenty-five. He was put on probation at the post office for charges of violence and there were whispers that he had been using prostitutes. He walked out on Ethel and travelled to London.
In 1928, he was back in prison, sentenced to nine months for theft. When he was released, he lived with a prostitute but when he hit her on the head with a cricket bat, he returned to jail for six months. A few years later, he was arrested again and sent back to prison for the theft of a car. During this time there were police reports regarding his violence towards women, however these could not be proved.
In 1933, he asked Ethel to move back in with him. On the shelf at thirty-five and feeling lonely, she readily agreed, travelling down to join him in London. Little did she know the kind of man he had become in the ten years they had been apart.
Christie had been an inveterate hypochondriac since he was a child. Following an accident in which he was hit by a car, he began an incredible series of visits to the doctor – 173 over fifteen years. It gave him an excuse to remain at home and complain about his many ailments.
He moved with Ethel into the ground floor flat at 10 Rillington Place in December 1938. They were pleased with the flat because, as it was on the ground floor, they would enjoy exclusive use of the garden. Christie, meanwhile, had signed up as a volunteer member of the War Reserve Police. Incredibly, they asked no questions about his criminal record. He was delighted to pick up his uniform at Harrow police station and served for four years. Unfortunately, however, he became a little too fanatical about the role and was soon known to his neighbours as the ‘Himmler of Rillington Place’.
Meanwhile, he continued to consort with other women, one of whom worked with him at the police station. When her husband returned from fighting overseas, he gave Christie a severe beating.
In April 1948, Timothy Evans and his pregnant wife, Beryl, moved into the top floor flat at 10 Rillington Place and six months later Beryl gave birth to a daughter, Geraldine. Evans was a diminutive, uneducated Welsh lorry driver of limited
His relationship with his sisters became complex. As a young child he had been disturbed to see one of his sister’s legs up to the knee. He became attracted to these women who bossed him about, hating them at the same time for their dominance over him. It is likely that at this time he began to develop an antipathy towards all women, mainly because he felt he could not satisfy them. The nicknames given to him at school when his first attempts at lovemaking ended in failure did not help – ‘Reggie-No-Dick’ and ‘Can’t-Make-It-Christie’.
He was a signalman during the First World War and at one point lost his voice for three years following a hysterical reaction to an incident when a mustard gas shell knocked him unconscious. This, however, does not seem to have stopped him marrying Ethel in 1920.
His marriage was blighted by his impotence and he continued visiting prostitutes afterwards, as he had been doing since the age of nineteen. All they served to do, however, was to remind him of his inadequacy with the opposite sex.
His first brush with the law occurred after he became a postman in 1920. He stole some postal orders and went to prison for three months. His life really began to fall apart in 1924, when he was twenty-five. He was put on probation at the post office for charges of violence and there were whispers that he had been using prostitutes. He walked out on Ethel and travelled to London.
In 1928, he was back in prison, sentenced to nine months for theft. When he was released, he lived with a prostitute but when he hit her on the head with a cricket bat, he returned to jail for six months. A few years later, he was arrested again and sent back to prison for the theft of a car. During this time there were police reports regarding his violence towards women, however these could not be proved.
In 1933, he asked Ethel to move back in with him. On the shelf at thirty-five and feeling lonely, she readily agreed, travelling down to join him in London. Little did she know the kind of man he had become in the ten years they had been apart.
Christie had been an inveterate hypochondriac since he was a child. Following an accident in which he was hit by a car, he began an incredible series of visits to the doctor – 173 over fifteen years. It gave him an excuse to remain at home and complain about his many ailments.
He moved with Ethel into the ground floor flat at 10 Rillington Place in December 1938. They were pleased with the flat because, as it was on the ground floor, they would enjoy exclusive use of the garden. Christie, meanwhile, had signed up as a volunteer member of the War Reserve Police. Incredibly, they asked no questions about his criminal record. He was delighted to pick up his uniform at Harrow police station and served for four years. Unfortunately, however, he became a little too fanatical about the role and was soon known to his neighbours as the ‘Himmler of Rillington Place’.
Meanwhile, he continued to consort with other women, one of whom worked with him at the police station. When her husband returned from fighting overseas, he gave Christie a severe beating.
In April 1948, Timothy Evans and his pregnant wife, Beryl, moved into the top floor flat at 10 Rillington Place and six months later Beryl gave birth to a daughter, Geraldine. Evans was a diminutive, uneducated Welsh lorry driver of limited
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