JOHN Bickford was the lawyer who defended nightclub manager Ruth Ellis during her murder trial.
Ruth’s story was dramatised in the ITV series Ruth Ellis: A Cruel Love which follows John’s attempts to save her from the death penalty.
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Ruth Ellis’ crime
Ruth was working as a nightclub manager in Knightsbridge, London, when she shot her boyfriend David Blakely to death in on Easter Sunday 1955.
Blakely was extremely abusive throughout the relationship and had caused Ruth to have a miscarriage months before she murdered him.
She admitted her crime immediately, beginning a trial which would change British law forever.
Defending Ruth in court
Ruth’s lover Desmond Cussen chose John as her defence.
However, according to solicitor Victor Mishcon, Ruth said that Cussen had actually given her the gun with which she killed Blakely.
John was reportedly aware of Desmond’s involvement but was unable to use it as evidence in court, as Ruth refused to speak out against her ex-lover.
The lawyer represented Ruth at trial and was eager for Ruth to express how her relationship has led her to commit the crime.
Toby Jones, the actor playing John, said: “It was Bickford’s job to try and find some mitigating circumstances but his struggle was that he couldn’t persuade her to change her plea from guilty to not guilty.
“She kept saying she was guilty but he couldn’t understand why.
“He wrestled with this and he tried to get her to use the domestic violence that she’d suffered as a mitigating factor but she wouldn’t do that until it was too late.”
After being found guilty, Ruth was executed by hanging in July 1955.
The Judge, Cecil Havers, was eager to save Ruth from the death penalty but had his request for mercy denied by the then-Conservative Home Secretary.
After Ruth’s death, a wave of protests began as the public turned against the idea of capital punishment.
The practice was finally outlawed in 1969 by Harold Wilson’s Labour government.
Fight for justice
John never gave up in trying to get authorities to investigate Cussens.
In 1973, he told Scotland Yard that Ellis had lied in the trial which launched a police investigation.
However, no further action was taken against Cussens.
The Court of Appeal rejected applications to overturn Ellis’ conviction in 2003 and 2007.
A Cruel Love
In A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story, Lucy Boynton stars in the titular role.
The show takes viewers through Ruth’s entire life story, including her affairs with Desmond and Blakely.
The series kicked off on March 5, 2025, but fans can watch the full series on ITVX.
