Gregory and Richard Brandon were father and son. Richard Brandon is often named as the executioner of King Charles I, although the identity of the executioner on that occasion is not definitely known.
Jack Ketch was an executioner employed by King Charles II. He was appointed to execute Lord (William) Russell in 1683 for his part in the Monmouth Rebellion, and two years later the Duke of Monmouth (James Scott) himself. On both occasions several blows of the axe were required, and Ketch was excoriated for his brutality and alleged incompetence. His modern fame rests at least partly on his appearances as a character in Punch & Judy shows.
The most famous execution carried out by Thomas Cheshire (known as Old Cheese, according to capitalpunishmentuk.org) was that of William Corder for the murder of his lover Maria Marten in 1827 – the so–called Red Barn Murder, which provoked sensational newspaper coverage and inspired numerous songs and plays.
Albert Pierrepoint was the third person of that memorable surname to be employed as an executioner – after his father, Thomas Pierrepoint, and Thomas's brother, Henry. Albert Pierrepoint was not (as is sometimes said) Britain's last hangman, but he carried out several controversial executions in the 1950s that undoubtedly hastened the abolition of the death sentence in the following decade. Derek Bentley, Timothy Evans and Ruth Ellis were all hanged by him (as was John Christie, the actual perpetrator of the murders for which Evans was hanged).
© Haydn Thompson 2023