Letter by murderer Ruth Ellis 'is coming home to Wales'

A LETTER written by convicted murderer Ruth Ellis the day before she was executed has been bought by an undisclosed buyer from Wales.

- DAVID POWELL

It is “coming home,” an auctioneer said.

Ellis penned the letter to her MP the day before she was hanged for killing her abusive lover David Blakely.

The nightclub hostess, originally from Rhyl, had shot Blakely outside The Magdala pub in Hampstead in London in 1955.

She was executed at HM Prison Holloway, London, aged 28.

This week, Forum Auctions in London auctioned the historic document Lot 41 in the sale of Fine Books and Manuscripts. It was expected to fetch £1,500 to £2,000 but sold for £4,500.

Rupert Powell, Forum Auctions’ managing director and head of books, said: “This poignant letter, written the day before her execution, hints at Ellis’ divulging to her lawyer Victor Mishcon that she had been given the gun which she used to kill her lover David Blakely by Desmond Cussen, who had also showed her how to use it.