On Thursday, August 8, anyone with an interest in the grisly history of murder and detective work is welcome to join author Angela Buckley as she celebrates the launch of her new book ‘The Bermondsey Murder’ at Medina Bookshop in Cowes.

Local author Angela’s new release is an exploration of the crime that became Scotland Yard’s first great challenge and an inspiration for Dickens.

When Patrick O’Connor went missing in August 1849, his friends were suspicious. The London dock worker was last seen in the company of Swiss-born Maria Manning and her husband in Bermondsey. By the time police officers discovered his remains under the kitchen floor, the couple had fled.

The search for the Mannings spread beyond England and was closely followed by the Victorian public, including prominent writers such as Charles Dickens who was haunted by the case and later immortalised some of the key characters in Bleak House, which was published just four years later. To this day, the Bermondsey Murder remains a legendary crime in the history of Scotland Yard and mid-nineteenth century London.

Dr Angela Buckley is a historian and writer specialising in Victorian crime and police history. Angela has a PhD in history and her thesis is on the evolution of Victorian and Edwardian police detective practice. Associate lecturer at Oxford Brookes University, she is also a member of the Crime Writers’ Association and the Historical Writers Association.

The book launch is free for anyone to attend and takes place at Medina Bookshop in Cowes on Thursday, August 8, at 6pm.