Episode 29: The Body in the Wych Elm

It was a spring Sunday on April 18th, 1943 when four boys wandered into Hagley Wood in Worcestershire, England. They had no idea they were about to stumble upon a crime scene that would mystify the world for decades to come.

In a strange-looking tree, the boys discovered a skull. When investigators descended on Hagley Wood, they found not only a human skull been in the hollow of the tree, but a woman’s entire skeleton had been concealed inside.

 A massive search was launched to discover the identity of the woman. Dozens of theories arose regarding who she was and how she had died. These theories would include a ritual witch sacrifice, a murdered German spy and many more.

Others theorized that the woman in the wych elm was a prostitute who worked the streets around Hagley Road. Still others have said she was a gypsy murdered by her own people and shoved into the tree. A final theory claims she was a barmaid murdered by an American GI.

Today, the mystery remains. Not only of what happened to the woman discovered in the wych elm, but who was she?

Show Sources:

Who Put Bella In The Wych Elm?: Volume 1: The Crime Scene Revisited (The Body In The Tree Mystery) by Pete Merrill and Alex Merrill. Available on Amazon here.

Birmingham Live: Revealed after 75 years: The face of Bella in the Wych Elm

AV Club: Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?

Independent: Is This Bella in the Wych Elm?

Diabolique Magazine: Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?

Morbid Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/tr/podcast/episode-218-who-put-bella-in-the-wych-elm/id1379959217?i=1000513609238

This episode is sponsored by Darkness Stirring