Ladbroke Grove's Criminal Past

Event information

Between 1959-65, eight women were murdered and their bodies left in what appeared to be a pattern, in and along the Thames west of Hammersmith. Detectives thought it was the work of a serial killer but – despite the biggest manhunt in Metropolitan Police history – they never managed to catch him. Untangling the multiple mysteries of what might have happened to the victims of the so-called Thames Towpath or Jack the Stripper murders and how they connected beyond their profession as sex workers was a complex task. But they all had one pivotal thing in common – they all lived and/or worked in Ladbroke Grove, at the time it was the biggest red light district in London.

Along the streets of W11 walked the killer, his victims and the police. Through the windows came the sounds that Joe Meek crafted, from the tower of Lansdowne Studios to his flat on Arundel Gardens. In rackety basement jazz clubs and bedsit studios, the students from the RCA who would become known as the Pop Artists traded ideas and shaped new worlds on canvas and collage. Behind curtains, by candlelight, the Spiritualists tuned into the aether. And all around, the immigrants and Teds, dodgy politicians and slum landlords, slumming ladies and rude boys lived, loved, fought, danced and dreamed.

Join us as we retrace their footsteps and recreate the world of “Bad Penny Blues”.


Cathi Unsworth is the author of five novels and two works of nonfiction, all of which have attracted enormous praise. She has also edited the award-winning short story collection, “London Noir”. In parallel to working on books, she has written journalism for the “Guardian”, “Financial Times”, “Melody Maker”, “Sounds”, “Mojo”, “Uncut”, the “Fortean Times”, “Bizarre”, and many other publications.