Brown

Top criminal barristers Sasha Wass QC and Jeremy Dein QC re-examine an infamous case of a housewife accused of murdering her young husband. She became the last woman to be publicly hanged in Dorset, and her story inspired a legendary novel.

Dorset, 1856. In the early hours of the 6th of July, Martha Brown, a resident of Birdsmoorgate in rural Dorset, called on her neighbour begging for help. She believed her husband John had been attacked by his vicious horse and was lying in a critical condition in their home.

When Martha returned with assistance, John was found dead having succumbed to multiple head wounds. After a hasty investigation, Martha was charged and convicted of the murder of her husband. She continued to maintain her innocence, but on 9 August 1856, she was executed at Dorchester Prison.

Now, over 160 years later, sisters Fran and Irene, relatives of Martha Brown, have been researching the case. They are keen to separate fact from fiction, as the story of Martha famously inspired Thomas Hardy’s classic novel Tess of the D'Urbervilles, a tale in which the eponymous Tess is executed for the murder of her husband.

Jeremy and Sasha review the hasty investigation, consider the pathological evidence, and undertake a psychological evaluation of Martha and John’s relationship. Will they be able to prove that Martha Brown was wrongly convicted?