Reynolds News, Sunday 29 October 1950

[Rob Clack]

Here's the whole Terence Robertson article, with the first mention of fairy Fay.




Rob

[Howard Brown]

Thanks very,very much, Rob...

Here again is the seaman theory being hoisted as one most likely.

[Paul Kearney A.K.A. NEMO]

The telegraph link between Leman St and Commercial St police stations is interesting

Is there confirmation of that elsewhere?

[Monty]

The telegraph link between Leman St and Commercial St police stations is interesting

Is there confirmation of that elsewhere?

Hi Nemo,

A Telegraph link was first used by the Met in 1851 and connected Scotland Yard with, indirectly, Buckingham Palace. However that was the only connection they had for some years.

Though they got 'wired up' 6 years after the Met, in 1857, the City of London Police introduced a telegraph system between The Old Jewry HQ and their 6 other stations of Moor Lane, Snow Hill (Smithfield West), Fleet Street (St Bride's Church), Bow Lane south end, Seething Lane (Tower Street) and Bishopsgate Churchyard in 1859. Do you recall Collard telegraphing HQ with news of Eddowes murder?

City were also connected to the main network around that time.

In 1866 the Met then connected all their Stations and also connected to the City Police so one large Police Telepgraph system across London was introducted by the end of the 1860s.

Cheers
Monty

[Debra Arif]

Great stuff, Rob. xx
Thanks for posting this, I've never read the full version before.

[Paul Kearney A.K.A. NEMO]

Thanks very much for the info Neil

Would it be likely then that a telegraph system was set up as per the article specifically to organise police activity if a Ripper victim was found? - it doesn't sound likely to me

By the way - I was meaning to ask you if you had seen the various handwriting examples of policemen contained in the Gale database of letters that Deb recently posted about

There is handwriting from the Station Sgt at Leman St for example (Donald Calder)

I'm still ploughing through the letters and will post anything I think significant

Regards

Nemo

[Howard Brown]

Ditto to Nemo's kudos, Neil....thank you !

[Chris G.]

Hi Rob

Thanks for posting the actual article by Terence Robertson with his story about Fairy Fay.

As an aside, it's interesting to see the article set beside the period ads of the day. The nefarious Ripper does his work... then cries out "Oh oh - Dry Scalp!" and "Is my job causing this rheumatism, doctor?" I wonder if the Ripper used Phospherine for extra vitality -- no wonder he was never caught!

Cheers

Chris

[Chris G.]

Terence Robertson (1921-1970)



Hi all

As an aside on Terence Robertson, some of you may be interested in the following short video interview with Robertson in the CBC Digital Archives where he is being asked about his 1962 book on the failed World War II Dieppe raid, Dieppe: The Shame and the Glory. I mention it in my article on Robertson and Fairy Fay in Ripperologist 73:

http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/war-conflict/second-world-war/the-contentious-legacy-of-dieppe/interview-with-terence-robertson.html

Robertson's book on the Canadians' role in the Dieppe raid continues to be controversial, 52 years after its first publication. Some of the criticism of Robertson's book is reflected in a sound interview with a participant in the raid, Wallace Rayburn:

http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/war-conflict/second-world-war/the-contentious-legacy-of-dieppe/review-of-the-shame-and-the-glory.html

Best regards

Chris

[Chris G.]

Hi again all

Terence Robertson's wife had an unusual name, Olgalita. She was born Olgalita Mayne. The couple married early in 1951 and emigrated to Canada later in the decade. Robertson eventually committed suicide in New York while working on a new book that was not going well, a book on the Bronfman dynasty who own Seagram's the Canadian liquor company. He is said to have had both mental problems as well as having been an alcoholic. Mrs. Robertson only died last year. You can read her obituary at http://yourlifemoments.ca/sitepages/...asp?oid=722532. As you can see, she was quite a "looker" and it turns out that she had been a ballerina and dancer who appeared with the Crazy Gang. See http://www.turnipnet.com/crazygang/theatre.htm. Thanks to Robert Linford for helping research some of this information.



Olgalita Robertson (1929-2013)

[AP Wolf]

Very interesting!
I'm currently researching 'Terence' Robertson in connection with his role in the sudden death of Vicki Martin (Valerie Mewes) in a car accident.
Despite his voluminous output of literature on the 2nd World War, mostly in regard to the Royal Navy, he was actually court-martialled on the 26th September 1942 under his real name of 'Harold' Robertson for fraud, theft and absence without leave, for which he spent a year in prison. Soon after release he travelled to South Africa where he established himself as a journalist, returning to London in 1949 to become the news editor of Reynolds News.
I would be very interested, and very grateful, if any of the many renowned researchers on the forums have any further information on the chap and his many exploits in 1950s London.

[Howard Brown]

A.P.

Nothing to contribute on my end, research wise, but welcome back.

[AP Wolf]

Thanks How, nice to be back!
Robertson served on the HMS Beagle, destroyer, for about a year, end of 1939 and beginning of 1941. Then on HMS Landguard, escort ship, 1941-1942; and after that HMS Philante, armed yacht and training vessel.
His offences took place at the naval base HMS Beaver, 1942.

[AP Wolf]

Prior to the appearance of Robertson's article on Fairy Fay in the Reynold's News in October 1950 he had written a dramatised version of an amateur play featuring murder and mayhem called the 'House of Lynch' - alternatively called 'Lynch of Galway' - which had actually been produced by the St Brigid's Dramatic Class, before the publication of the Fairy Fay article. The 'Drogheda Arus and Leinster Journal' reviewed Robertson's dramatisation on the 24th February 1951, where they revealed that the original author of the play was a certain F. Fay... sound familiar?

[Howard Brown]

Great find, A.P. ! Thanks for sharing.....