Mortlake mistake

It’s a shame that your “contemporary newspaper graphic” [ FT405:57] showing the location of the ‘Stripper’ murders in Cathi Unsworth’s article wasn’t examined a little more closely by someone with a knowledge of the mystical centres of west London. The site where Gwyneth Rees’s body was found is (more-or-less) correctly described in a panel as “a Mortlake ashpit”. Unfortunately, the graphic points to a spot somewhere in Brentford. Mortlake is actually located where the word ‘Barnes’ appears on the map. I would have expected Fortean Times to be able to distinguish between the haunt of the Brentford Griffin and the site of Dr John Dee’s alchemical laboratory!

John Rimmer

Magonia Review, London