The Last Hanging in Cardiff Prison

The Last Hanging in Cardiff Prison

In September 1952 Mahmood Hussein Mattan became the last to be hanged at Cardiff Prison, but Mahmood had in fact been framed by the police and 45 years later his conviction was quashed. Mahmood had been a merchant seaman who had ended up settling in Cardiff and marrying a Welsh woman called Laura Williams. They lived in the Tiger Bay district of Cardiff and had three children but in 1950 had separated. Mahmood had had a number of encounters with the police and had committed some minor offences such as small thefts. His vocal distrust of the police had made him unpopular with the local force though and when Lily Volpert, a Cardiff shopkeeper, was found murdered and her shop robbed they quickly turned to Mahmood. Despite a lack of any firm evidence linking him to the crime, he became the prime suspect. Poorly represented in court and facing a hostile jury he was convicted in July 1952 and sentenced to be hanged. The sentence was carried out three months later, but the case never truly went away. His family kept the fight alive for 45 years until 1998 when his case was the first to be reviewed by the newly created Criminal Cases Review Commission. His conviction was quickly quashed and his families fight for justice was finally over.


To discuss Mahmood's case author Nadifa Mohamed joins Dan for this episode of the podcast. Her novel The Fortune Men, which has been longlisted for the Booker Prize, is based on the case and she immersed herself in the case, Mahmoud's life and the history of Cardiff's multicultural Tiger Bay area to bring this story of injustice to life.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jaksot(1488)

THE LEADERS: Churchill

THE LEADERS: Churchill

Does Churchill deserve the legacy he has? He took the reigns from a foundering Chamberlain and proved himself to be the man the country needed. But of course, he is not a man without controversy or co...

7 Maalis 20251h 3min

D-day to Berlin: The Americans Cross the Rhine

D-day to Berlin: The Americans Cross the Rhine

80 years ago this week, American forces unexpectedly discovered an intact bridge across the river Rhine - the last natural defence of the crumbling Third Reich. They mounted a ferocious assault and af...

5 Maalis 202531min

THE LEADERS: Hitler

THE LEADERS: Hitler

Could Germany have won the war if not for Hitler's hubris? Dan is joined by Professor Phillips O'Brien to explore Hitler's biggest decisions during WWII and how he shaped the course of the war. They e...

3 Maalis 202556min

Why Do Humans Wage War?

Why Do Humans Wage War?

Why, despite knowing the devastation it causes, do humans insist on starting wars? Countless battles have littered the pages of our shared human story. Powerful leaders, hungry for glory and conquest,...

28 Helmi 202534min

THE LEADERS - Mini Series Coming 3rd March

THE LEADERS - Mini Series Coming 3rd March

Why do we, as humans, allow such individuals to hold such power over us? And at what cost? Our world is shaped by choices—some calculated, some reckless, most irreversible. From Kennedy and Khrushchev...

27 Helmi 202553s

Mary, Queen of Scots

Mary, Queen of Scots

This is the story of the incredible rise and fall of Mary, Queen of Scots. She was queen of Scotland, she was queen of France, and she could have been queen of England. She led armies, lived as a fugi...

26 Helmi 202542min

Soho: London's Most Notorious Neighbourhood

Soho: London's Most Notorious Neighbourhood

Soho was once a thriving melting pot of speakeasies, sex work and organised crime. From razor gangs of the 1920s to money laundering, the area has always been a hotbed for thieves, conmen, drug dealer...

24 Helmi 202529min

Dogs

Dogs

From the small corgis that drove cattle to Smithfield market to the Dalmatians that protected carriages from highwaymen, humans and dogs have relied on each other for millennia. Historian and dog-love...

21 Helmi 202526min

Suosittua kategoriassa Historia

olipa-kerran-otsikko
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
mayday-fi
huijarit
mystista
tsunami
totuus-vai-salaliitto
rss-ikiuni
konginkangas
rouva-diktaattori
rss-subjektiivinen-todistaja
sotaa-ja-historiaa-podi
rss-i-dont-like-mondays-2
tiedetta-ja-sirkushuveja-vanhojen-aikojen-podcast
rss-peter-peter
rss-kirkon-ihmeellisimmat-tarinat
maailmanpuu
rss-iltanuotiolla
romani-podcast
rss-kalmakabinetti