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1st to 14th February 2011 - In celebration of St Valentine Love Potions and Prophecies
Valentine's Day may mean romantic celebration for most people but for
some, thoughts will turn instead to terrifying tales of murders and mayhem that took place throughout the centuries on 14
February, amid rumours of witchcraft, black magic and pacts with the devil........
The Event...
Join us for a chilling
hour of terrifying tales of murders, mayhem and magic by candlelight in the Victorian Theatre of the Dark Arts at the
Creaky Cauldron this Valentines weekend.
Friday 11th February at 6.30, 7.30, 8.30 and 9.30
Saturday 12th February - sold out - sorry!
Sunday 13th February at 6.30 and 7.30
Monday 14th February at 6.30,
7.30, 8.30 and 9.30
£7.50 per person or Special Couple Rate of £12.00
Prepare to be terrified...........
A Valentine's
Murder Tale...
The murder victim at the heart of this tale is Charles Walton, a farm labourer who had lived in Lower Quinton
all his life. He lived in a rented cottage opposite the village church, which he shared with his niece, Edie - and the cottage
is still there today. Despite Charles' advancing years - he was 74 when he died - he helped out on the local
farms right up until the day of his murder. Charles was an unusual character; he was reclusive and spoke little to his neighbours.
He was rumoured to be clairvoyant and was known for his amazing ability with animals - it was said he could summon them to
his hand for feeding.
He was a real country man and knew many rural tales and the old ways of
the countryside. However, some villagers were said to believe Charles' knowledge and talents were down to witchcraft and
some believed he took midnight trips to nearby Rollright and Meon Hill to take part in rituals.
On the day of his murder, 14 February 1945, Charles
was tending hedges on the lower slopes of Meon Hill. All he carried with him were his pitchfork, a billhook and a piece of
fruitcake packed by Edie for his lunch. Evening came and Edie, who carried out housekeeping duties for Charles, began
to get concerned when he didn't return from work. She alerted a neighbour and the pair travelled out to the field where
Charles had been working. It was there they made the gruesome and terrifying discovery. Charles body lay contorted by the
hedge. He had been pinned to the floor by his pitchfork and his hook was embedded in his body Perhaps most disturbing of all
was the sign of the cross, which had been carved into Charles' chest.
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| Original Crime Scene Photograph |
Who had carried out such a grizzly killing? And what could possibly be the motive for such a frenzied attack on a
peaceful country man?
Warwickshire police were baffled - it was time to bring in a specialist. Inspector Robert Fabian was one of the first real star policemen. He
was world-renowned for his sleuthing skills and he became famous for his roles on television and in film. He
worked with Supt Alec Spooner of Warwickshire CID and his assistant, Sgt Albert Webb, to try and track the killer. As the inquiry continued, a recurring theme emerged
- Witchcraft. Spooner gave Fabian a book,
Folklore, Old Customs and Superstitions in Shakespeare Land, in which the murder of young Alice Turner was detailed. She had
been mutilated with a pitchfork by a man who believed she had bewitched him. Carving the cross and pinning her to the ground,
her assailant said, was the only way to stop a witch rising from the grave.
Eerily, elsewhere in the book there was a tale related by a young man by the
name of Charles Walton. It was claimed as a youngster, this Charles had seen a ghostly black dog roaming Meon Hill on three
successive days.Days later, Charles' sister died. Was this Charles Walton the same as was so brutally slain in the fields?Towards the end of the enquiry, Fabian was walking by the murder place and was passed by a large
black dog. Was this just a spooky coincidence or something more sinister? Faced with increasing reticence by members of the public in the face of the enquiry, Fabian was
forced to concede defeat and headed back to London with the case unsolved.
It remains unsolved to this day.
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