UK UK- Eve Stratford, 21, Bunny @ Playboy Club, posed for mag. cover, later her mutilated & grotesquely staged body found @ home, London 18/03/75 *DNA*

[dotr]

Man recalls unsolved killing

Police statements taken from a man stopped by a hitch-hiker 32 years ago, yards from where Hounslow teenager Lynne Weedon was murdered are being…

www.richmondandtwickenhamtimes.co.uk

2007 By Colleen McDonnell rbbm
''Bernard Andrews, a retired BBC producer, now aged 74, was driving home to Wraysbury from London along the Great West Road at about 1am on the night Miss Weedon was murdered in September 1975.
A hitch-hiker flagged him down at the Sutton Lane junction with the Great West Road, Hounslow''.

Recalling what happened on the night of September 3 1975, Mr Andrews said: "A man waved me down and I rolled the window down to ask him where he was going. He said he was going to the west country, but he was very agitated. I had an instinctive sense I was to get away from him.
"I thought I have got to get out of here, so I drove off and left him there.''

"The next day I saw on the TV that a young girl was raped and murdered and I said I've got to tell the police what I saw the night before."

''Lynne Weedon, 16, was said to have been attacked between 11pm and 11.45pm on a footpath just 400 yards away from the spot where the hitch-hiker flagged Mr Andrews down.

He described the hitch-hiker as aged about 26 with longish hair, wearing a brown jacket and carrying a black executive briefcase.''

 

[tes1984]

There was a double murder, similar to Eve/Lynne in Essex in 1977.

Victim one in April 1977, was 16 year old schoolgirl Coral Vidler, who was walking home from a disco when she was bludgeoned to death with an axe and dragged into a garden, yards from her home in Hornchurch.

Victim two in July 1977, was 36 year old mother Joan Smith, who had also been to a disco in Basildon and was offered a lift home. Instead she was taken to a field in Stanford-Le-Hope, where her throat was cut and she was raped as she lay dying.

The killer turned out to be 19 year old store detective Gary Kemp, from Hornchurch. He was a known car thief and was caught when Joan's handbag was found in a stolen car. He had been questioned for Coral's murder, and his girlfriend was a friend of Coral's.

There are a lot of similarities with Eve/Lynne in terms of different victimology, MO and geographical locations.

Kemp was in custody when Elizabeth Parravicini and Lynda Farrow were murdered, but I'm not sure where he was in 1975 when Eve and Lynne were murdered. He had an accomplice for his car thefts.

 

[sportstergirl]

That's extremely disturbing a young man of 19 committed such savage crimes. He would be 17ish when Eve and Lynne were murdered.
Wouldn't do any harm to check the whereabouts of this wrongun against any other unsolved crimes.

 

[tes1984]

That's extremely disturbing a young man of 19 committed such savage crimes. He would be 17ish when Eve and Lynne were murdered.
Wouldn't do any harm to check the whereabouts of this wrongun against any other unsolved crimes.

Agreed, but I can't find any London links so far.

Looks to me like Coral Vidler was probably Kemp's first murder. Low mobility crime, close to home, and a friend of his girlfriend. Second murder and he becomes more mobile, dumps the body miles away etc which is 'classic' progression. JMO though.

The Eve/Lynne killer seems to do things the wrong way round... Eve is the more 'complex' murder IMO as a home invasion, and then he 'regresses' with Lynne?

 

[tes1984]

Who knows, but I don't think Lynne was the sort of 16 year old who went to a lot of pubs. She was a keen student and didn't usually go out in the evenings.

I think I might have been wrong about this. I think she did go out to music venues etc.

 

[tes1984]

i am baffled sutton thinks there is a link with stratford/weedon cases.

I think you mean Stratford/Farrow, and let's wait and see. Colin Sutton usually knows what he's on about!

 

[sportstergirl]

Gary Kemp specialised in stealing Ford Corsairs, a very distinctive looking English Ford with a Thunderbird style front end. Only made between 1964 and 70 it wasnt a big seller.

 

[TheRockingRev]

I think I might have been wrong about this. I think she did go out to music venues etc.

Had the chance to re-watch the ITV doc on the cases of Eve and Lynne over the Christmas break. In it the friend of Lynne's mentions that they regularly went out to pubs in the evening. They would sit with other friends, males, and have a drink that would last them all night.
Could it be that the killer was someone who had seen Lynne in the pub and either knew her route home (presumably on her own such as the night of her attack) and then struck, or did it on the off-chance that night? If that's the case then it could be a local.

 

[Der Detektiv]

There are some interesting and equally fascinating suggestions and theories suggestions on this thread and I thank all who have participated.

I'd like to add my own twopence into the mix.

Firstly, it was mentioned that the killer of both Eve Stratford and Lynda Farrow was left-handed. It was not, however, also pointed out that in certain religions and cultures the left-hand is reserved for actions considered "impure" or "dirty".

Furthermore I have to disagree with the "denim fetish" theory, which had been proposed because all four women were wearing jeans at the time of their murder. Denim jeans were incredibly popular among younger women in the mid-70s, especially during the colder autumnal and winter months.

Lastly, it was cleverly suggested that the murderer in the Eve Stratford case may have disguised himself as a policeman or meter-reader, something that would have made her more willing to invite him upstairs. This made me ponder on other potential ways the perpetrator could have tricked his way in.

Eve had recently been temporarily suspended from the Playboy club where she was an employee. This leaves her without a steady income for two months and London rent is expensive. Eve strikes me as the sort of girl who did not enjoy lazing around or relying on others to pay for her. On the day of her death, we know that she was meeting her agent in central London for potential new modelling opportunities. She was a "hustler" - in the positive sense of the word.

What if the man who came to the flat that afternoon had promised her a paid photoshoot?

A last-minute appointment that would not find its way into diaries or conversations. Our murderer brings his equipment, including camera and concealed knife, in a bag or coat with deep pockets which does not arouse her suspicion. Eve buys the dried flowers to pose with as in Mayfair. Indeed, I can't say I have ever read just why Eve had bought these and whether it was a regular occurrence - was there an upcoming birthday or anniversary?

Eve claimed in the Mayfair article, provided her commentary was transcribed accurately, that she didn't enjoy being tied up during sex. I thus believe there may have been protests or audibly raised voices had the murderer tried to bind her hands without her consent. He therefore does it under the guise that it is for a crime-fiction book photoshoot, as Eve had similarly done earlier in the month.

The clothes Eve's body is found wearing (negligee with underwear) would not look inappropriate for such a front cover that was trying to be "appealing", hence why she chooses to wear them for this occasion. Eve spends approximately just over an hour in the company of this fiend, chatting calmly with him. This sounds just about the right length of time for a couple of shots in different poses.

In one final insult, the murderer "poses" her body after she is slaughtered and takes one last picture.

Of course, this is all my own opinion and an attempt to look at the case from a different angle. I hope some of you can comment on my theory and suggest other alternatives. I truly hope this can be solved sometime soon.

I have attached a photo of the book cover that Eve did in the hope it makes this theory a bit more sensical.

 

[dotr]

There are some interesting and equally fascinating suggestions and theories suggestions on this thread and I thank all who have participated.

I'd like to add my own twopence into the mix.

Firstly, it was mentioned that the killer of both Eve Stratford and Lynda Farrow was left-handed. It was not, however, also pointed out that in certain religions and cultures the left-hand is reserved for actions considered "impure" or "dirty".

Furthermore I have to disagree with the "denim fetish" theory, which had been proposed because all four women were wearing jeans at the time of their murder. Denim jeans were incredibly popular among younger women in the mid-70s, especially during the colder autumnal and winter months.

Lastly, it was cleverly suggested that the murderer in the Eve Stratford case may have disguised himself as a policeman or meter-reader, something that would have made her more willing to invite him upstairs. This made me ponder on other potential ways the perpetrator could have tricked his way in.

Eve had recently been temporarily suspended from the Playboy club where she was an employee. This leaves her without a steady income for two months and London rent is expensive. Eve strikes me as the sort of girl who did not enjoy lazing around or relying on others to pay for her. On the day of her death, we know that she was meeting her agent in central London for potential new modelling opportunities. She was a "hustler" - in the positive sense of the word.

What if the man who came to the flat that afternoon had promised her a paid photoshoot?

A last-minute appointment that would not find its way into diaries or conversations. Our murderer brings his equipment, including camera and concealed knife, in a bag or coat with deep pockets which does not arouse her suspicion. Eve buys the dried flowers to pose with as in Mayfair. Indeed, I can't say I have ever read just why Eve had bought these and whether it was a regular occurrence - was there an upcoming birthday or anniversary?

Eve claimed in the Mayfair article, provided her commentary was transcribed accurately, that she didn't enjoy being tied up during sex. I thus believe there may have been protests or audibly raised voices had the murderer tried to bind her hands without her consent. He therefore does it under the guise that it is for a crime-fiction book photoshoot, as Eve had similarly done earlier in the month.

The clothes Eve's body is found wearing (negligee with underwear) would not look inappropriate for such a front cover that was trying to be "appealing", hence why she chooses to wear them for this occasion. Eve spends approximately just over an hour in the company of this fiend, chatting calmly with him. This sounds just about the right length of time for a couple of shots in different poses.

In one final insult, the murderer "poses" her body after she is slaughtered and takes one last picture.

Of course, this is all my own opinion and an attempt to look at the case from a different angle. I hope some of you can comment on my theory and suggest other alternatives. I truly hope this can be solved sometime soon.

I have attached a photo of the book cover that Eve did in the hope it makes this theory a bit more sensical.

Welcome to Ws @Der Detektiv, great post, also imo, a very plausible theory!

 

[tes1984]

Very interesting theory. There's no evidence Eve was moonlighting, but she had lost her regular income so you never know.

I'm not sure about her agreeing to host anything like that at her flat though. The place was a bit of a tip, wasn't very private. They could have been disturbed at any time. What if the photographer turns up half an hour late, or if her boyfriend unexpectedly finishes work half an hour early? She's taking a big risk with such a secretive plan.

Eve was a Playboy bunny and published glamour model. If she was doing things off the books, then wouldn't she still have expected a certain amount of professionalism in terms of the location? Or did someone offer her hundreds of pounds but said it has to be today and it has to be at your place? When could it have been arranged?

I also think Eve would have been unlikely to invite someone round unless she knew them well. She had been receiving hang up phone calls, which had just been reported to the police. She was also worried she was being followed. With all this going on, would she really invite someone to her home, when she was alone?

 

[Der Detektiv]

Thank you tes1984 for your interesting approach to my theory and questions.

I’d like to offer some counter-arguments if I may.

I have indeed seen the room was a bit of a “tip”, but the murderer may have spun the narrative that such a location would be the “perfect setting” for a photoshoot for a crime-fiction novel - i.e. it looks like the place has been ransacked and this beautiful lady is being held hostage inside. Alternatively, this young girl is being held hostage in her bedroom, the messiness exemplifying her youthful qualities.

In my theory, I don’t believe it was necessarily a “secretive” plan, just one that had been concocted last-minute, perhaps that very day, and thus no-one else had been made aware. A 21-year old in Eve’s position was probably jumping at the chance to earn a bit of extra money and potentially further her modelling career. Any red flags would have been dismissed.

We know the killer was quite a strong man - he may have arrogantly believed he could overpower her boyfriend, especially with Eve bound. Alternatively - did he believe Eve even had any roommates? Bear in mind in the Mayfair article she claimed she lived alone.

Were people more open in the 70s about inviting strangers back round? Eve wasn’t necessarily alone either, as she must have been aware that her two neighbours would have been downstairs. If they could hear her voice from below (and she theirs), then I imagine she might have felt safer, more able to raise the alarm (i.e. screaming). That’s why I believe she was taken by surprise when her throat was slit and this way of killing was chosen for precisely just that: stop her from shouting and screaming. Probably the same with Lynda Farrow, who we know had already tried to scream (and escape) when she saw the perpetrator in her house.