Lucy Boynton set out to 'humanise' Ruth Ellis in new drama
Lucy Boynton has described how she was determined to "humanise" Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain, in the ITV drama 'A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story'.
Lucy Boynton wanted to "humanise" Ruth Ellis.
The 31-year-old actress stars as the last woman to be hanged in Britain in the ITV drama 'A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story' and revealed that she was determined to present a different side to the woman who was sentenced to death in 1955 for murdering her abusive racing driver lover David Blakely (Laurie Davidson) than is often portrayed.
Lucy told the i newspaper: "I really just wanted to humanise Ruth because the public impression of her at the time was so coloured by the media reporting of her. It's not always favourable. It shows her quite starkly.
"I do find it interesting when I'm asked how likeable I think she was. I'm quite stunned by that question because I hope this is an exercise in understanding that you don't have to like a person to think they don't deserve capital punishment."
The 'Bohemian Rhapsody' star thinks Ellis was a victim of a misogynistic and classist legal system during the 1950s as she made a successful living as a nightclub manager.
Lucy said: "Ruth was made an example of because of everything that she represented as a single, financially independent woman.
"The authorities did not want her to be the poster woman of possibility. So many people wrote to their MPs at the time, but they were just ignored. Ruth was used a political chess piece."
'The Ipcress File' star continued: "The court wasn't allowed to discuss Blakely's abuse, because it was seen as inappropriate to talk about the ugly behaviour of someone of his social standing."
Boynton considers her alter ego to be the "epitome" of feminism.
She explained: "The way she behaved was in such direct rebellion to the way a woman was told that she ought to behave.
"That's the epitome of being a feminist - challenging authority, challenging the way you are told you ought to be. Ruth didn't try to be rebellious. She just thought that women deserved more. She wanted more, and therefore thought she'd go after this big, bright life for herself."
