The Life and Death of the Laughing Highwayman: Jerry Abershawe
Never confused with the legend of Robin Hood or a 'gentleman robber' among highwaymen, there was really nothing to admire about Jerry Abershawe. He was a thief and he was a cold-blooded killer – several times over. Ruthless and intimidating, he was a "nightmare for travellers on those approach roads to London." There are stories boasting of Jerry's numerous and daring highway robbery acts – but, it's his behavior from capture to execution that gives us a chance to see who he was without his flintlock pistol.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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23:10
The First and Final Crimes of Jocelin Harwood
Jocelin Harwood was a highwayman who committed such “Barbarous Murders” – and he was just so ...wow – that his fellow criminal associates betrayed him and gave him up to the authorities after they couldn't stomach his depraved behavior the night of his final crime. Described as "a degenerate plant from a good tree," which seems like a pretty apt description, Jocelin's story has never been confused with the legend of Robin Hood. He was insolent; he was violent; and, this is his bloody story.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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22:28
The Tale of Highway Robber William Spiggot and His Death
William Spiggot was an 18th century English highwayman and the leader of a gang of at least eight men. While he may have started out as an apprentice cabinetmaker in London, he didn't end up following his family's legit path in life, instead deciding on a more... felonious one - as a robber, poacher, burglar, and murderer -- until he was sentenced to peine forte et dure.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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23:38
Scoop: John Nevison Was Not Dick Turpin and Dick Turpin Was Not John Nevison
John Nevison was a very good highwayman, though you may not recognize his name. And that's largely because his crimes have, over the years, gotten attributed to the stories of other notorious highway robbers, notably Dick Turpin – who hadn't yet been born when Nevison was prowling the roads. Turpin's romanticized legend seems to be a magnet for many things he didn't do. Much about Nevison's life is a bit of a mystery, partly because of that confusion with his cohorts. Let's look at those conflicting tales.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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23:36
The Adventures of Robber Lewis: Counterfeiter/Robber/Jailbreaker
Though dealing in counterfeit currency may have been David 'Davy' Lewis' first criminal efforts, he eventually added highway robbery as a lucrative gig – and that's when he gained the nickname, Robber Lewis -- and as a highwayman, he also came to be known as the “Robin Hood of Pennsylvania". Was he? Well, that may be a stretch – maybe a big stretch -- but that doesn't mean he doesn't have a good story, right?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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