FATAL attraction

LUCY BOYNTON TALKS TO RACHAEL DAVIS ABOUT PLAYING RUTH ELLIS, THE LAST WOMAN TO BE HANGED IN THE UK

- RACHAEL DAVIS

ACTRESS Lucy Boynton seems to be carving quite a career for herself playing real people on screen.

She was just 12 when she portrayed a young Beatrix Potter in 2006's Miss Potter and she played Freddie Mercury's former fiancée Mary Austin in the 2018 Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody.

Now Lucy, 31, is diving into one of the most notorious cases in British criminal history as the lead in ITV's A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story.

The four-part drama explores the aftermath of Ellis's shooting of her abusive lover David Blakely in 1955, a killing which led to her being the last woman to be hanged in the UK.

"Ruth Ellis' story is a fascinating one," says Lucy.

"Both she and this complex case have always evoked a strong reaction... I'm looking forward to bringing a new perspective to both familiar audiences as well as those who are unaware of her mark on British history."

Ellis's execution in July 1955, just a month after her conviction for murder, was highly controversial.

The 28-year-old shot Blakely dead outside The Magdala pub in Hampstead, London, following a tumultuous relationship involving infidelity on both sides, an aborted pregnancy, and physical abuse by David including a punch in the stomach during an argument that led to a miscarriage.

Ellis confessed her guilt and the jury took just 20 minutes to convict her of murder, a charge which carried the mandatory death sentence.