Jenny Ashford is a horror, true crime, and paranormal writer, graphic designer, and podcaster. Her most recent books are a three-volume true crime compilation collectively known as The Faceless Villain: A Collection of the Eeriest Unsolved Murders of the Twentieth Century. Volume One was published in 2017, Volume Two in 2018, and Volume Three in 2019. Her other books include four paranormal nonfiction books: The Unseen Hand: A New Exploration of Poltergeist Phenomena, The Mammoth Mountain Poltergeist (with Tom Ross), House of Fire and Whispers: Investigating the Seattle Demon House, and The Rochdale Poltergeist (both with Steve Mera); as well as three horror novels, Red Menace, Bellwether, and The Five Poisons; two short story collections, Hopeful Monsters and The Associated Villainies; and a graphic novel, The Tenebrist. A second edition of The Associated Villainies was published in 2019, featuring four new stories, an enhanced print layout, and an audio book version. A second edition of The Five Poisons was published in 2020. Her short stories have appeared in several anthologies, including The Nightmare Collective, History Is Dead, 2012AD, ChimeraWorld #3, and ChimeraWorld #4. Her horror blog, Goddess of Hellfire, contains writing news, short stories and articles, and her reviews and opinions on horror films and books. She also co-hosts a podcast with Tom Ross called 13 O'Clock, on which they discuss true crime, unexplained mysteries, paranormal weirdness, horror movies and books, food, and other fun, creepy topics. They recently collaborated on a 13 O'Clock cookbook. Jenny's graphic design work can be seen on everything from books and business cards to posters and packaging. She runs an online store called Gravecake selling products with her designs, and also has a board-and-card game concern called Giallo Games, which produces games based around the beloved Italian horror/crime genre, among many other themes.
On the morning of December 12th, 1945, a severed arm was found on the shore in Torry, Aberdeen, Scotland. Though the rest of the remains were never found, police were able to identify the arm as belonging to Elizabeth “Betty” Hadden; the seventeen-year-old maid and waitress’s fingerprints were on file from a previous arrest for … More Betty Hadden
Thomas Weldon Atherstone (born Thomas Weldon Anderson) was originally from Liverpool, England, and became a prominent actor in the English music halls around the end of the nineteenth century. He was married to an Irish actress named Monica Kelly for a time, but the pair separated in 1900, after which Thomas took up with another … More Thomas Weldon Atherstone
Ten-year-old Elizabeth “Lizzie” Peers lived with her parents, Elizabeth and William, and her five brothers in Toxteth, Liverpool, England. On October 28th, 1905, Lizzie’s mother asked her to go to a nearby butcher shop to buy pork and potatoes; the shop was only a six-minute walk from the family’s residence. In spite of the proximity, … More Elizabeth Peers and Margaret Kirby
Between four and four-thirty on the sunny afternoon of June 11th, 1906, in Heathfield, Camberley, Surrey, England, a sixty-two-year-old woman named Caroline Hogg was spotted running through the grounds of her large estate, clutching her bleeding throat and screaming, “I’m murdered, I’m murdered!” Upon investigation, it was discovered that both Caroline and her sixty-eight-year-old sister … More Mary Anne Hogg
On January 29th, 1990, thirty-three-year-old financial adviser Surinder Gill dropped his daughter and his brother’s children off at school in the morning as he usually did, and then drove to his West London office in his distinctive maroon Mercedes. At around lunchtime, he was spotted buying a sandwich from a shop in South Road, and … More Surinder Gill
Jacob “Jaap” Bornkamp was originally from Rotterdam, the Netherlands, but moved to London, England when he was nineteen years old to pursue a career as a florist. He found success almost immediately, landing a job with the prestigious firm Pulbrook and Gould, which provided floral arrangements for royals and important political figures. When Jaap was … More Jaap Bornkamp
Fourteen-year-old Teresa Martin was a bright but shy girl, a student at a convent school called Regina Assumpta College in Montréal, Quebec, Canada. She lived with her parents, a school principal and a private investigator, and spent weekends riding horses at a nearby ranch. On September 12th, 1969, Teresa had gone to the movies with … More Teresa Martin
Over a few months in the latter half of 1985, at least four people were killed in a bizarre series of crimes known either as the Mineral, Washington Murders, or the Tube Sock Killings. Despite a thorough investigation and a great deal of public attention, including being featured on Unsolved Mysteries in 1989, the homicides … More The Mineral, Washington Murders
On the afternoon of August 10th, 1975, eight-year-old Helen Bailey left her home in Great Barr, Birmingham, England to play nearby. However, she never returned from her excursion, and her alarmed mother reported her missing that night. The following day, the girl’s body was discovered in the woods near Booths Farm by her father after … More Helen Bailey
On June 7th, 1958, sixty-one-year-old credit draper Harry Baker was due to visit a house at a little past one p.m. It was a Friday, and he had a specific route he followed every week to collect payments from families who had bought textiles or drapery on credit. He never made his one-ten appointment, though … More Harry Baker
Crime Immemorial 