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An absolute brilliant film............I urge you to watch it either renting or buying. Stars the brilliant Timothy Spall, and goes some way of showing that a film can be brilliant without explosions, monsters or car chases.
A BIG UP to a forumite here, who will remain nameless, but knows who he is for obtaining me an edition of this DVD

Except he wasn't the last hangman.

I understand the film to be brilliant - pity about the title, it's wrong, on two counts.

The last two UK executions were in August 1964, on the same day and "at the same time" in Strangeways Manchester and Walton Liverpool, 8 years after Pierrepoint resigned. Therefore no-one knows which of the two executioners involved was Britain's last and the statement in the title is historically incorrect.

I have seen the film, It was great acting from spall and co, as far as facts being wrong, I think 'the last hangman' refers to the full time job, which Peirrpoint had, as he was appointed by the government, or can you tell us of other 'full time' executioners MM, it wasn,t O'Leary,s father was it..

Liz is correct, and also, the title sways towards the idea that he was the last hangman of distinction and held the title and with it compassion and respect towards the condemned prisoners, some of the others were braggers and held no respect towards their victims, whereas Albert was decent and totally professional.
I know who'd I would rather have string me up out of those you saw on the film!!

i see its directed by adrian shergold who did juliet bravo.hanging was stopped in 1965 yet imdb says nov 65 people were still being hung?

Her we go lads, just for clarification...."The Last Hangman".
There are alot of people that believe that Albert Pierrepoint was the last executioner in the UK. He was not. You can find this out by paying attention to history or by reading his autobiography, "Executioner: Pierrepoint" which I have read, cover to cover, three times. Albert Pierrepoint was not the last hangman in Britain. He was the last Official Chief Executioner in Britain. When he resigned his position in 1956, capital punishment continued in Britain for another eight years until 8:00AM 13 August 1964 when Gwynne Owen Evans was hanged at Strangeways Prison in Manchester by Harry Allen and Peter Anthony Allen was hanged simultaneously at Walton Prison in Liverpool by Robert Leslie Stewart. These were the last two executions ever carried out in England and done so that no one man could claim that he was the last hangman. He is also referred to as the most prolific hangman in British history having been credited with the executions of some 433 men, 17 women, 6 U.S. Soldiers at Shepton Mallet and some 200 condemned Nazi's at the end of the Second World war (In Hamelin, Germany, on December Friday the 13th, 1945, before 13 official witnesses, he hanged 13 people (10 men, 3 women), at half hour intervals, for crimes committed at Bergen Belsen and Auschwitz. The women were hanged individually, the men in pairs.)

Ace has obviously got hold of a pirated Timecoded copy, which he should not really be shouting about?

I do agree though the film is excellent and spall plays the role brilliantly!!!

Cheers

My contact obtained this film here........



He has an account with amazon, I do not, hence him getting me, so stop with the snide comments about pirated copies, ok?

Lizard,

All executioners in the 20th century were appointed by the Home Office (i.e. the government) so you point is incorrect. As to your reference to O'Leary, do you always have to make yourself look an idiot?

Ace,

Thanks for the clarification. As far as it goes, I too have read Pierrepoint's autobiography with particular interest for two reasons:

1. He was a close friend of my godmother during the war years and into the early 1950s.

2. My father in law has a signed copy of his autobiography and met him a number of times whilst taking photos of him for various newspaper articles.