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May 23, 2013 · Bedded in the wall above the main entrance is a visible reminder of the Bailey’s turbulent past. “These things are our little battle mementos,” says Mr Henty, pointing to a two-inch shard of ...
- It's Not A Bailey
- It's Not All That Old
- Justice Is Not Blind
- Underground River
- Dead Man's Walk
- Charles Dickens Was Inspired Here
- Famous (and Less Famous) Trials
- OH, and Strictly No Phones...
The name 'Old Bailey' comes from the street on which the court is located. The road marks the route of the City's original fortified wall (or 'bailey'). 'Old Bailey' is only a nickname for what's really called the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales. Old Bailey sounds better.
There's been a jail on this site for over 1,000 years, and a court since the 16th century (serving the old Newgate Prison). Various fires and attacks have seen the court rebuilt again and again, and the famous domed Old Bailey we now know only opened in 1907. Some of the bricks in the Old Bailey's façade are repurposed from the demolished Newgate P...
The 22-ton, 3.5m tall figure of Lady Justice is the Old Bailey's crowning glory — clutching the sword of retribution in her right hand, and the scales of justice in the other. But contrary to the well-worn adage, this particular Justice is not blind(folded). Apparently the inside of the Old Bailey's dome is "incredible", but it only gets to be seen...
Delve into the depths of the Old Bailey's former coal room, and you'll find a hatch in the floor, beneath which is a ladder leading down to the culverted River Fleet. It's said that prison reformer Elizabeth Fry once collected water here for inmates, although how much good drinking from what was basically a sewer did them, we're not sure.
A grizzly remnant of Newgate Prison is 'dead man's walk'. This is a series of archways which become increasingly smaller, through which condemned prisoners were led through on their way to the gallows. Check out this Stephen Fry documentary below, from 22 minutes in. In 1868, at the last public hanging here, 20,000 people came by tube.
As a young court reporter, Dickens was a regular as the Old Bailey, and the tales he heard sometimes inspired his own fiction. Take this report of convicted thief Thomas Knight, deported to New South Wales, who then returned to England — just like Magwitch in Great Expectations.
Some of the country's most notorious trials have happened at the Old Bailey, including those of the Krays (Ronnie quipped to the judge: "If I wasn’t here, I could be having tea with Judy Garland."), Doctor Crippen, the Yorkshire Ripper and Ruth Ellis — the last woman to be executed in the UK. Dig into the archives, and you find some lesser-known, b...
You can visit the Old Bailey every weekday* for free. However, you'll have to ditch your phone somewhere first. You can't take in into the courts, and there's nowhere to leave it outside. *Reduced court sitting in August
- Will Noble
- 47 min
- The man condemned because he could not read. In July 1677, Richard Hazelgrove was sentenced to death for the crime of bigamy, namely having two wives at the same time.
- The case of the wagging dog. Also in July 1677, a strange and shocking case came before the Old Bailey, reportedly one of the most talked about trials of the time.
- The woman accused of witchcraft. A very weird case came before the court in June 1682. 60-year-old Jane Kent was indicted for causing the death of a young girl through ‘witchcraft and several diabolic arts’.
- The elderly hellraiser. In May 1689, George Russel was brought to court and tried for killing John Fairbeard. The court heard that, on the night in question, Russel was a drunken, violent, murderous hellraiser – and he was 86 years old.
The Proceedings of the Old Bailey, 1674-1913. A fully searchable edition of the largest body of texts detailing the lives of non-elite people ever published, containing 197,752 trials held at London's central criminal court, and 475 Ordinary’s Accounts of the lives of executed convicts. If you are new to this site, please see Getting Started ...
Jun 9, 2013 · The secret world of the Old Bailey. 9 June 2013. By Andrew Bomford. BBC Radio 4's PM programme. Step through a door marked "do not wedge open" at the Old Bailey and you immediately start to ...
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Tom Helmore stars in "Secrets of the Old Bailey," set in London's famous courthouse. Featuring Naomi Chance.
- 25 min
- 1108
- Alan Eichler
May 13, 2024 · Old Bailey’s nickname is taken from the street where the building is located. The road itself runs along the same course as London’s original fortified wall, which was called a “bailey.” The present structure is the latest rendition of a series of court buildings that have been built, demolished, or remodeled on the site since the 16th ...
