This podcast preserves and shares a unique collection of true crime and historical stories donated to the Sunderland Antiquarian Society by the late Mr. Norman Kirtlan, one of our most esteemed members and crime scene analyst.

From the historic East end of Old Sunderland to the heart of the town and beyond, listen to the authentic, true account of murderous Wearside, local true crimes, court trials and historical intrigues.

We move through Victorian Sunderland where punishment rarely feels tidy, from a reprieved hanging that enrages the town to mob violence that answers fear with fear. We end by putting a killer’s fate in your hands, because sometimes the hardest part is deciding what “justice” should look like. 

• William Rigg convicted of murdering Jane Rigg then reprieved, sparking a public petition in Sunderland 
• The Bird In The Hand pub story, Billy Lynn’s death, and the funeral that requires removing a window 
• Riding the stang as public punishment, and how it turns into a deadly warning for Jotty Coates 
• Jane Jameson’s poker attack on her mother, the slow death that follows, and the hanging sentence 
• Nicholas Haddock’s brutal killing of Thomas Alder, the unanswered why, and our question to listeners about compassion and punishment 

Welcome to the True Crime audio archives of Sunderland Antiquarian Society. 

1. YOU WILL BE FOUND DEAD, OUR BILLY!

A lighter Murderous Wearside true crime podcast tale, authored by the Sunderland Antiquarian Society, more comic than horror story. In 1888, hefty Penshaw publican Billy Lynn died in his bed above the Bird Inn, so large that his coffin could not fit through the door and had to be passed out through the window. Among our gentler scary stories from historic Sunderland, proof that not every Wearside tale ends in true horror.

2. NOBODY LIKES A GRASS

A Murderous Wearside true crime podcast episode from the Sunderland Antiquarian Society, exploring the old custom of riding the Stang. In 1783, informer Jotty Coates was dragged through Sunderland streets by furious sailors for betraying men to the press gang, then hunted down and killed. A brutal true horror of mob justice, and one of the darkest scary stories in historic Sunderland.

3. HAPPY NEW YEAR, MOTHER

A grim Murderous Wearside true crime podcast tale, researched by the Sunderland Antiquarian Society. In 1826, prostitute Jane Jameson, desperate for drink money, killed her own mother with a red hot poker from the fire. A shocking horror story of historic Sunderland, and true crime at its most tragic.

4. I KNOW NOT WHY I KILLED THEE

This Murderous Wearside true crime podcast entry, created by the Sunderland Antiquarian Society, is among our most senseless scary stories. In 1745, keelman Nicholas Haddock murdered farmer Thomas Alder near Hylton Lonnen without reason or warning, mutilating his body before witnesses. A chilling true horror case from historic Sunderland, where Haddock could offer no motive at all.

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FOLLOW now to be notified when new true horror episodes of Murderous Wearside True Crime Podcast are published as they unfold, and if you enjoyed this podcast, please help us grow by sharing with just one person you know who would be interested.

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Subscribe now to be notified when new true horror episodes of Murderous Wearside True Crime Podcast are published as they unfold, and if you enjoyed this podcast, please help us grow by sharing with just one person you know who would be interested. 

We open this episode of Murderous Wearside true crime podcast with a hard question about what people are capable of when life becomes unbearable, then take you into our true crime archives where Victorian cases collide with real court verdicts. The final story leaves judgement in your hands, asking whether compassion belongs in the sentence when the violence is undeniable.

• Introducing the Sunderland Antiquarian Society true crime archive and our listener-as-jury twist.
 • Revisiting Alfred Johnson’s case and the reprieve that changes his fate.
 • Joseph Cutter’s storm-day pub crawl and escalating threats.
 • The razor attack that nearly kills Constable David Allen.
 • The courtroom shift from attempted murder to GBH and a 12-month sentence.
 • Catherine Duff’s abuse, the death of her baby, and the shockingly short punishment.
 • The chimney discovery of a toddler’s remains and why the truth disappears.
 • Jane Rigg’s sustained domestic terror and the question of your verdict.

If you enjoyed this true crime podcast please FOLLOW US and you can help us grow by sharing with just one person you know who would be interested. Thank you meet you again over there.

Our website: sunderland-antiquarians.org

YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@SunderlandAntiquarianSociety

https://www.facebook.com/SunderlandAntiquarianSociety/  

Our new podcast page https://www.buzzsprout.com/2631549 

also available on whatever platform you listen to just click this link https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2631549.rss 

Subscribe now to be notified when new true horror episodes of Murderous Wearside True Crime Podcast are published as they unfold, and if you enjoyed this podcast, please help us grow by sharing with just one person you know who would be interested. 

Our website: sunderland-antiquarians.org

YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@SunderlandAntiquarianSociety

https://www.facebook.com/SunderlandAntiquarianSociety/  

Our new podcast page https://www.buzzsprout.com/2631549 

also available on whatever platform you listen to just click this link https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2631549.rss 

Subscribe now to be notified when new true horror episodes of Murderous Wearside True Crime Podcast are published as they unfold, and if you enjoyed this podcast, please help us grow by sharing with just one person you know who would be interested. 

During the nineteenth century, Wearside had its fair share of murders and without exception the Mackem public devoured scary stories and every horror story with relish. 

These are extraordinary true crime stories about ordinary people in the lanes and alleys of Sunderland: People who snapped; people who were so addled by drink or hatred that the consequences of their actions were only felt when the noose was placed around their necks. 

We revisit those dark days in Murderous Wearside and take a closer look at the true crime cases that made the headlines in times gone by in historic Sunderland. 

Inside of every one of us is a murderer. One day, when the world gets too much to bear, or the one we love just won’t take the hint and stop nagging – that’s when we snap; sometimes with disastrous consequences. Agree or Disagree?

Welcome to the true crime archives of the Sunderland Antiquarian Society. 

“Each episode tells stories of Murders on Wearside in the late 1800s, followed by the verdict of the Jury, but with a unique twist. In one story of each episode, YOU, yes YOU the listener, are the Jury.”

Our website: sunderland-antiquarians.org

YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@SunderlandAntiquarianSociety

https://www.facebook.com/SunderlandAntiquarianSociety/  

Our new podcast page https://www.buzzsprout.com/2631549 

also available on whatever platform you listen to just click this link https://feeds.buzzsprout.com/2631549.rss 

Subscribe now to be notified when new true horror episodes of Murderous Wearside True Crime Podcast are published as they unfold, and if you enjoyed this podcast, please help us grow by sharing with just one person you know who would be interested.