![\"Night](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_281811222-49c2.jpg\")
\n\t\tNightclub hostess\u00a0Ruth\u00a0Ellis\u00a0went to the gallows in July 1955, three months after shooting dead David Blakely (Picture: Hulton Archive\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tNightclub hostess\u00a0Ruth\u00a0Ellis\u00a0went to the gallows in July 1955, three months after shooting dead David Blakely (Picture: Hulton Archive\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The family of the last woman to be hanged in Britain<\/a> said \u2018justice has finally been done\u2019 after it was announced she will be given a posthumous conditional pardon.<\/p>\n Nightclub hostess\u00a0Ruth\u00a0Ellis\u00a0went to the gallows in July 1955, three months after shooting dead David Blakely. The mum-of-two, 28, was convicted after jurors deliberated for just 15 minutes.<\/p>\n She never disputed shooting Blakely at The Magdala Pub in Hampstead, north London<\/a>, but evidence she was \u2018badly treated by her lover\u2019 was never heard at the trial, her family said.<\/p>\n They appealed to justice secretary David Lammy<\/a> seeking a conditional pardon.<\/p>\n Mr Lammy told the Commons today: \u2018I have the honour to say that His Majesty the King has accepted our advice to grant Ruth Ellis a conditional pardon, the last woman to be hanged in the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n \u2018While the pardon does not claim she was innocent of killing David Blakely, it replaces the death penalty with a sentence of life imprisonment to recognise a profound injustice in this exceptional case.\u2019<\/p>\n Mr Lammy said Ellis\u2019s grandchildren Laura Enston and Stephen Beard were in Parliament<\/a> to see him make the announcement.<\/p>\n Ms Enston said of the news: \u2018Today, justice has finally been done for our grandmother, Ruth Ellis \u2013 the last woman to be hanged in England<\/a> in 1955.<\/p>\n \u2018This pardon does not undo what happened 71 years ago. It does not restore the lives that were broken \u2013 the children left behind, the years lost. <\/p>\n \u2018But it says, formally and finally, that Ruth should not have been executed; that the justice system failed her. That acknowledgement matters profoundly to our family.<\/p>\n \t\t \t\t\t\tThis Is Not Right\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t On November 25, 2024 Metro launched This Is Not Right, a campaign to address the relentless epidemic of violence against women.<\/p>\n With the help of our partners at Women’s Aid, This Is Not Right aims to shine a light on the sheer scale of this national emergency.<\/p>\n You can find more articles here<\/a>, and if you want to share your story with us, you can send us an email at vaw@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n Read more:<\/p>\n \t\t \u2018Ruth was a victim of sustained and brutal abuse. Her children \u2013 our mother and uncle \u2013 never recovered. My uncle took his own life; my mother\u2019s trauma left her unable to be the parent we needed. <\/p>\n \u2018The shadow of Ruth\u2019s execution has fallen across two generations. We have carried shame that was never ours to bear.<\/p>\n \u2018We are deeply grateful to the Justice Secretary for having the courage to act.<\/p>\n \u2018We hope Ruth\u2019s story serves as a lasting reminder that the justice system must reckon with the abuse that drives women to the edge \u2013 and must never be afraid to acknowledge when it has got things wrong.\u2019<\/p>\n In their application, Ellis\u2019s grandchildren claimed her responsibility for the killing was profoundly shaped by domestic abuse, trauma and circumstances that were never properly recognised at her trial.<\/p>\n Under modern law, she could possibly have argued the partial defences of loss of control or diminished responsibility, reducing the conviction from murder to manslaughter.<\/p>\n The Ministry of Justice said the pardon posthumously replacing her sentence with one of life imprisonment is \u2018an act of mercy recognising the historic injustice of the death penalty in this exceptional case\u2019.<\/p>\n Speaking to Metro as she launched her appeal, Ms Enston said withheld evidence now makes it clear her gran\u2019s \u2018punishment did not fit the crime<\/a>\u2019. <\/p>\n \t\t Ms Enston continued: \u2018There is plenty of evidence \u2013 there are medical records, there are accounts of her turning up at hospital in a wheelchair. There\u2019s lots of evidence to prove the abuse.\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018All of this stuff was never explored at the trial.\u2019<\/p>\n She added: \u2018I now view\u00a0Ruth\u00a0as remarkable. She had no education but carved a career for herself and achieved so much. She was abused by every significant man in her life, even her own father.<\/p>\n \u2018She was ultimately put on trial for what she represented \u2013 she managed a club in Knightsbridge, was an active, single parent who came from nothing.<\/p>\n \u2018The narrative around the case was, \u201cWorking-class woman traps upperclass gentleman\u201d. But he (Blakely) was no gentleman. He was sponging off her.<\/p>\n \u2018She was let down by the system. Her story is a blot on Britain\u2019s consciousness. We won\u2019t rest until it is changed. <\/p>\n \u2018The issues we\u2019re discussing happened 70 years ago but remain relevant to today.\u2019<\/p>\n Mr Lammy said: \u2018For 70 years, the family of Ruth Ellis have fought for her story to be heard.<\/p>\n \u2018We cannot change what happened seventy years ago. But we can recognise that this was an exceptional case.<\/p>\n \u2018Today\u2019s conditional pardon is an act of mercy. We hope it brings some measure of peace to Ruth\u2019s family.\u2019<\/p>\n Minister for Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Catherine Atkinson said: \u2018For seventy years, Ruth Ellis\u2019s family have carried the weight of what happened to her. <\/p>\n \u2018Today we recognise the exceptional circumstances surrounding her case and the impact they had on her life.<\/p>\n \u2018I want to thank her grandchildren for their determination in bringing this case forward, and for making sure her story was finally heard.\u2019<\/p>\n Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/p>\n For more stories like this, check our news page<\/a>.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"File](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_304514626-3596.jpg\")
\n\t\tDavid Blakely (left), the racing driver who was killed by Ruth Ellis (right) in 1955 (Picture: PA)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/This-is-Not-Right-7-1-b167.jpg\")
\t<\/p>\n![\"Laura](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_304519136-0b88.jpg\")
\n\t\tLaura Enston (centre), the granddaughter of Ruth Ellis, makes a statement to media outside Portcullis House at the Houses of Parliament (Picture: PA)<\/p>\n![\"Undated](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_304514624-05eb.jpg\")
\n\t\tEllis never disputed shooting Blakely at The Magdala Pub in Hampstead, north London, but evidence she was \u2018badly treated\u2019 was never heard at the trial, her family said (Picture: PA)<\/p>\n
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