50 years since last hangings in Britain

It has been 50 years since the last hangings in Britain. Gwynne Evans and Peter Allen were from the Workington area and were two of the last men to face the death penalty.

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The last men to face the death penalty in Britain

It's the 50th anniversary of the last hangings to take place in Britain following the murder of a man near Workington. Gwynne Evans and Peter Allen were executed for killing laundry worker John West in April 1964.

They're now remembered as the last men put to death by the British justice system.

Ryan Dollard has been taking a look back at the case and its significance to the capital punishment debate.

'So brutal a crime': Why two men were the last to face the death penalty

Today (13th August) marks 50 years since the last hangings in Britain.

The two men who were the last to receive the death penalty were Gwynne Evans and Peter Allen. They were found guilty of robbing and murdering van driver John Alan West in Seaton, near Workington, in April 1964.

Paul Heslop is a True Crime author. He explains why the men were hanged despite few people being sentenced to the death penalty.

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50 years since hangings for Workington murder

Gwynne Evans and Peter Allen were found guilty of murder in April 1964 Credit: ITV

It has been 50 years since the last hangings in Britain.

Gwynne Evans, from Maryport, and Peter Allen were two of the last men to be hanged. They had been found guilty of murdering a van driver, John Alan West, near Workington in April 1964.

Evans and Allen were found guilty of murdering van driver, John Alan West Credit: ITV
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