The lady vanishes
A new book could shed light on one of the most sensational murder cases of the 20th century, writes LAURA CONNOR
THE “Porthole murder”, involving a beautiful actress who vanished from a luxury liner after a sexual encounter with a lowly deck steward, caused waves back in the 1940s.
Although James Camb, a man with a history of sex assaults on young women, was convicted of murdering Gay Gibson, 21, a sensational new book suggests she may have died of natural causes.
Gay was on the Durban Castle liner in 1947, sailing from South Africa to Southampton, with dreams of making it in London’s West End, when she disappeared.
She had allegedly invited handsome Camb, who was 10 years her senior, into her first-class cabin.
But, 70 years on, what happened inside Cabin 126 is a mystery.
Camb was found inside by a night watchman after alarm bells were pushed from beside Gay’s bed.
Camb was arrested at Southampton and claimed Gay suffered a fit and died during consensual sex, but admitted panicking and pushing her body through the porthole.
His trial heard Gay’s urine was found in the cabin, with her blood and saliva, suggesting she had been strangled. Camb, who had been accused of sexually assaulting three other women, had scratches on his wrists and shoulders.
He was found guilty of murder and given a death sentence, later commuted to life imprisonment.
But new information revealed by crime writer Antony M. Brown in Death of an Actress, published by Mirror Books, has cast doubt on the murder conviction.
His research suggests it was manslaughter, not murder.
In 2015, the Hampshire Constabulary History Society gave him access to the case files.
He says: “Opening the boxes was like revealing Tutankhamun’s tomb”.
The files included evidence of Gay’s poor health, with friends noting how she had a “weak chest” and had fainting fits, when her mouth, hands and nails turned blue.
Actress Doreen Mantle, who was later Mrs Warboys in One Foot In The Grave, worked with Gay weeks before she died. She confirmed what others said about Gay’s health, which was never mentioned at trial.
Antony says: “I think the simplest explanation for all these symptoms is congenital heart disease.”
In 1959, Camb was freed on licence, but was rearrested for sexual offences against schoolgirls and sent back to prison.
He died a year after his final release in 1979, protesting his innocence until his dying day.
Antony says: “James Camb was certainly up to no good that night. But I don’t think he was a murderer.”