Holloway Prison: Ruth Ellis and the Executed Women

HM Prison Holloway was Britain’s largest and most notorious women’s prison from 1852 until its closure in 2016. During its operation, five women were executed within its walls, most famously Ruth Ellis in 1955—the last woman to be hanged in Britain. The prison was demolished in 2016, but the site remains haunted by the ghosts of the executed, particularly Ellis, whose controversial execution shocked the nation and helped end capital punishment.

The History

Victorian Origins

Holloway Prison opened in 1852 as a mixed-gender facility but became exclusively for women in 1903. Its gothic castle-like facade was iconic, but the interior was harsh and unforgiving.

The Five Executed Women

Between 1903 and 1955, five women were hanged at Holloway:

• Amelia Sach and Annie Walters (1903) - the “Finchley baby farmers”
• Edith Thompson (1923) - convicted of murdering her husband
• Styllou Christofi (1954) - murdered her daughter-in-law
• Ruth Ellis (1955) - shot her abusive lover

Ruth Ellis: The Last Woman Hanged

Ruth Ellis’s execution on July 13, 1955, became a watershed moment:

• She shot her lover David Blakely outside a Hampstead pub
• The trial took less than a day and a half
• She showed no remorse: “It’s obvious when I shot him I intended to kill him”
• Public outcry over executing a woman who had been abused
• Her death galvanized the anti-capital punishment movement
• She was 28 years old

Closure and Demolition

The prison closed in 2016 amid controversies over conditions. It was demolished the same year, with plans for housing development on the site.

The Hauntings

Ruth Ellis’s Ghost

The most frequently reported apparition:

• A blonde woman in 1950s clothing
• Seen both when the prison stood and after demolition
• Walking near where the execution chamber was located
• Residents of new buildings on the site report seeing her
• Often appears sad but composed
• Some witnesses report she looks directly at them before vanishing

The Execution Chamber Area

Before demolition, staff reported intense activity:

• Overwhelming feelings of injustice and rage
• The sound of a trapdoor mechanism
• Choking sounds
• A woman’s voice saying “I understand”
• Cold spots that persisted year-round

The Condemned Cell

Ruth Ellis’s final holding cell:

• Staff refused to use this area for storage
• The sound of crying
• Pacing footsteps
• The smell of cigarette smoke (Ellis chain-smoked before execution)
• An overwhelming atmosphere of dread

Edith Thompson’s Presence

The woman hanged in 1923, possibly innocent:

• Screaming heard near her execution site
• Thompson famously had to be carried to the gallows
• Her ghost appears distressed and terrified
• Some believe she was executed for adultery rather than murder

The Modern Site

Since demolition and redevelopment:

• Construction workers reported strange occurrences
• New residents experience unexplained phenomena
• Ruth Ellis continues to be seen
• The ground remembers what happened there
• Some refuse to live on the site due to its history

Cultural Impact

Ruth Ellis’s execution had profound effects:

• Widespread public revulsion at hanging a woman
• Momentum built for abolishing capital punishment
• The death penalty for murder was suspended in 1965
• Her case remains controversial
• She became a symbol of capital punishment’s cruelty

The Ruth Ellis Pub

A pub near the execution site was later named after her, acknowledging the historical significance of her case and the site’s dark history.

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Holloway Prison held women for 164 years and executed five of them. The building is gone, demolished and redeveloped, but Ruth Ellis—the last woman Britain hanged—still walks where the execution chamber stood. She accepted her fate in life; in death, she cannot leave it behind.