Podcast Summary: After Dark – Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal

Episode: The Railway Murder That Shook Victorian Britain

Hosts: Anthony Delaney & Maddy Pelling
Date: October 6, 2025

Overview

In this riveting episode, Anthony Delaney and Maddy Pelling delve into the infamous 1864 murder of Thomas Briggs, the first killing on a British railway. The grisly crime sent shockwaves through Victorian society, ignited a transatlantic manhunt, and laid bare anxieties about modernity, class, and immigration. The episode unpacks the circumstances, investigation, and lingering ambiguities of the case, questioning whether prejudice tipped the scales of justice against main suspect Franz Muller. The discussion deftly blends historical context, atmospheric storytelling, and critical reflection on justice and societal fears in industrializing Victorian Britain.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Setting the Scene: Murder on the Rails

• Maddy Pelling (02:15): The story opens in July 1864, with blood found in a first-class railway compartment, and respected banker Thomas Briggs discovered dying beside the tracks. The shocking event shattered illusions of railway safety and triggered a media firestorm.
• Anthony Delaney (03:19): Detailed reconstruction of the discovery—Benjamin Ames, the North London Railway guard, finds blood-soaked cushions and a squashed hat but no body.

The Crime and Early Investigation

• Briggs Found: Briggs is soon located, gravely injured by the tracks near Hackney Wick. He dies two days later.
• Timeline (05:32–07:57):
  • Briggs boards the train at 9:50 pm from Fenchurch Street.
  • Within about 10 minutes, he's attacked.
  • His body is spotted by another train’s driver between Old Bow and Victoria Park stations.
  • His valuables are missing except for five pounds remaining in his pockets.

Social Context: Railways, Anxieties, and Class

• Anthony Delaney (11:57): The railway is still a novel, awe-inducing technology in the 1860s. Murder in this space magnifies societal fears about modernity and the mingling of social classes.
• Class Tension (15:24–16:31):
  • The rigid social hierarchy extends onto the trains—first class carriages are exclusive, private, and supposed to be safe.
  • The murder's notoriety is heightened because the victim is an upper-middle-class professional (Briggs), not a working-class passenger.

The Isolation of Early Train Travel

• Maddy Pelling (17:43): Points out the absence of safety mechanisms—no way to communicate, no emergency cord—making a private compartment a place of both luxury and danger.

Portrait of the Victim: Thomas Briggs

• Anthony Delaney (18:02–19:18):
  • 69-year-old, chief clerk at the Bank of England, early commuter, respectable, quiet, nearing retirement—a classic Victorian professional.

The Suspect: Franz Muller

• Background & Motive (22:05–24:02):
  • Young German tailor, recently arrived in London, struggling for work and money; noted for a strong accent, which would later play into xenophobic narratives.
• Investigation Focus:
  • A cab driver, Jonathan Matthews, implicates Muller—accounts vary between identifying suspicious behavior and purchasing stolen jewelry from him.
• Crucial Evidence (27:45–28:39):
  • A distinctive hat swapped at the crime scene—Muller is found with Briggs’s hat, his own left behind.
  • Jewellery reportedly sold or attempted to be sold by Muller matches items taken from Briggs.

The Transatlantic Manhunt

• Muller’s Flight (30:28):
  • Muller leaves for New York on the SS Victoria with a suspiciously purchased first-class ticket, despite his lack of means.
  • Detective Inspector Richard Tanner boards a faster ship and arrives in New York three days before Muller, enabling a swift arrest (31:35).
• Maddy Pelling highlights the oddity of Müller’s expensive journey and speculates: "If you're running away from a murder you've done, do you buy a first class ticket?" (33:40)

Trial and Lingering Doubts

• Trial at the Old Bailey (34:39–36:09):
  • Muller cannot provide an alibi, and the jury finds him guilty based on circumstantial yet damning evidence: stolen property, suspicious behavior, and the hat.
  • The German Society pays Muller’s legal fees, arguing the trial is tainted by xenophobia.
• International Tensions: Wilhelm I of Prussia appeals for clemency, concerned about flimsy evidence and diplomatic implications (37:18).

Confession and Execution

• Controversial Confession (38:27–38:56):
  • Muller allegedly confesses in German only to a Lutheran minister just before execution, stating, “Ich habe es getan” (“I did it”)—but no one else is present, raising questions about credibility.
• Public Execution (41:07):
  • Muller is hanged before a crowd of 50,000 at Newgate Prison—public executions soon to be outlawed.

Legacy: Reform and Societal Fear

• Safety Measures (42:04):
  • The murder prompts the installation of emergency communication cords (“Muller lights”), guards patrolling carriages, and lamps in compartments.
• Xenophobia and Press Reaction (43:39):
  • The case sparks a surge of anti-immigrant sentiment, especially towards Germans and Irish—showing recurring patterns of scapegoating outsiders in British society.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the press and public fear:
  • Maddy Pelling (09:06): “The railway is still relatively new and this is the first time a murder has occurred… abso­lute fodder for the press.”
• On class and crime:
  • Maddy Pelling (16:31): “The fact that this murder takes place in the first class carriage… I wonder how infamous this would be if it had been a robbery in third class.”
• On railway travel as both marvel and menace:
  • Anthony Delaney (15:24): "Can you imagine also what this does to the idea of the perception of distance… That changes your impression of the world."
• On xenophobia:
  • Maddy Pelling (25:07): “His [Muller’s] accent here in this story is noted, obviously in terms of xenophobia… like a description of smell to me. It brings that world rushing up to meet me.”
• On circumstantial evidence:
  • Anthony Delaney (35:25): “It’s so circumstantial that it… I find it a little bit problematic.”
• On the confession and justice:
  • Anthony Delaney (38:27): “Apparently before he is hanged, he confesses… but nobody witnesses that confession apart from Louis Capel.”
• On legacy:
  • Anthony Delaney (42:21): “They put lamps in the carriages… in memory, I suppose, of Franz Muller—they’re called ‘Muller lights.’ Like the yogurt!”
  • Maddy Pelling (42:48): “I'm also obsessed with the fact they didn't call them Briggs lights… They were like, let's name them after the murderer.”

Important Timestamps

• 02:15–03:19: Opening scene and discovery of the crime
• 07:03–09:49: Reconstructing Briggs’s last journey and the press response
• 11:57–15:24: Railways, social upheaval, and new fears
• 18:02–19:18: Portrait and significance of Thomas Briggs
• 22:05–24:02: Introduction of Muller—background, suspicion, and prejudice
• 27:45–29:13: Key evidence—hat and jewelry
• 30:28–31:35: Muller’s escape and international pursuit
• 34:39–36:09: The trial and its complications
• 38:27–38:56: The contested gallows confession
• 41:07–42:48: The execution and post-murder reforms
• 43:39–44:13: Surge in anti-immigrant sentiment

Tone and Atmosphere

The episode maintains a lively, inquisitive, and occasionally irreverent tone, mingling dark humor (“I’d push him off a train myself” – Maddy, 19:27) with sensitive analysis of how modern fear, class prejudice, and xenophobia shape historical events. The hosts’ banter brings the Victorian setting to life, while their critical reflections ground the story in contemporary resonance.

Conclusion

This engrossing retelling of the Briggs railway murder uses atmospheric storytelling and keen analysis to revisit a crime that rocked a nation at the dawn of modern transit. The unresolved aspects—possibility of a wrongful conviction, role of prejudice, and long-term social impact—are sharply highlighted. The legacy is clear: a single crime not only haunted Victorian imaginations, but changed British railways and fueled ongoing debates about safety, justice, and the “other” in society.