The Michael Taylor Exorcism Tragedy

On October 6, 1974, in the English town of Ossett, Yorkshire, Michael Taylor murdered his wife Christine in one of the most brutal killings in British criminal history. Hours earlier, Taylor had undergone an all-night exorcism during which a group of clergy claimed to have expelled forty demons from him. But they warned that three demons remained—those of murder, violence, and insanity. What happened next made headlines across Britain and raised profound questions about the intersection of mental illness, religious belief, and criminal responsibility.

Background

Michael Taylor was a 31-year-old butcher living in Ossett with his wife Christine and their five children. By all accounts, he had been a normal, unremarkable man until 1974, when he joined a local Christian fellowship group.

The fellowship emphasized charismatic worship, including speaking in tongues and spiritual healing. Taylor became intensely involved. He also developed what appeared to be an obsessive relationship with the group’s leader, Marie Robinson, a 21-year-old woman.

During a group session, Taylor’s wife Christine accused him of having an affair with Robinson. Taylor’s response was explosive—he became violent, blasphemous, and apparently deranged. The group interpreted his behavior as demonic possession.

The Exorcism

On the night of October 5-6, 1974, a group led by Methodist minister Peter Vincent and Anglican vicar Raymond Smith conducted an exorcism on Taylor. The ceremony took place at St. Thomas’s Church in Gawber and lasted through the night.

The exorcists claimed to identify and expel numerous demons—some accounts say forty, including demons of lust, incest, and bestiality. The process was grueling. Taylor screamed, contorted, and spoke in voices the clergy interpreted as demonic.

By morning, the exorcists were exhausted. They had not completed the ritual but felt unable to continue. They released Taylor with a warning that three demons remained: insanity, murder, and violence. They advised Christine Taylor not to be alone with her husband.

The Murder

Within hours of returning home, Michael Taylor attacked his wife. The murder was extraordinarily violent—Christine Taylor was strangled, her face torn apart, and their dog was also killed. When police arrived, Taylor was walking naked in the street, covered in blood, his hands ripped by his own violence.

Taylor was arrested and charged with murder. The case became a national sensation.

The Trial

At trial, the prosecution argued that Taylor had murdered his wife while of unsound mind. The defense accepted this position. Taylor did not deny killing Christine but clearly had no understanding of his actions.

The exorcists testified about their belief in Taylor’s possession and their failure to complete the ritual. Their testimony was treated with skepticism by the court but raised difficult questions about their role in the tragedy.

Taylor was found not guilty by reason of insanity and committed to Broadmoor Hospital, a high-security psychiatric facility. He was eventually released after treatment and has lived quietly since.

Religious and Legal Implications

The Taylor case sparked intense debate about exorcism in Britain. Critics argued that the clergy had encouraged a mentally ill man’s delusions rather than seeking proper medical help. They had reinforced his belief in demonic possession and then released him with warnings that amounted to prophecy of violence.

The Methodist and Anglican churches reviewed their practices following the case. Guidelines were developed requiring psychiatric evaluation before exorcism and emphasizing that exorcism should not replace medical treatment.

Analysis

Modern analysis suggests Taylor was experiencing acute psychosis, possibly triggered by the intense religious atmosphere and the confrontation with his wife. His behavior—violence, blasphemy, apparent dissociation—could be explained by psychiatric illness without recourse to the supernatural.

The exorcism, rather than helping Taylor, may have intensified his delusions. Being told he was possessed by demons, being subjected to an all-night ritual, and then being warned that demons of murder remained in him created a framework within which Taylor’s violence became almost inevitable.

The case illustrates the dangers of treating mental illness as spiritual affliction. Taylor needed psychiatric care; instead, he received religious intervention that reinforced his disturbed mental state.

The Survivors

Christine Taylor’s death left five children motherless and eventually fatherless when Michael was committed. The impact on the family was devastating.

Marie Robinson, whose relationship with Taylor had sparked the confrontation, was not charged with any crime. The clergy involved faced no legal consequences, though they lived with the knowledge that their intervention had preceded a brutal murder.

Michael Taylor served many years at Broadmoor before eventually being released. His subsequent life has been private.

Legacy

The Taylor case remains a touchstone in discussions of exorcism, mental health, and religious responsibility. It demonstrated how religious beliefs can intersect disastrously with mental illness and how well-meaning interventions can enable tragedy.

The case has been cited in legal and medical contexts when evaluating claims of possession. It stands as a warning about the consequences of treating psychological disorders as spiritual problems, and about the dangers of releasing disturbed individuals with prophecies of violence ringing in their ears.

The tragedy of Ossett—a man driven to murder his wife hours after being told demons of murder remained within him—continues to resonate as both a horrific crime and a cautionary tale about the limits and dangers of faith-based intervention.