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Scandals: The Victorians | 4. The dark heart of Victorian London

Scandals: The Victorians | 4. The dark heart of Victorian London

Professor Rosalind Crone and Ellie Cawthorne follow an undercover journalist on his mission to expose child exploitation in Victorian London

Ellie Cawthorne

Published: January 7, 2025 at 7:00 AM

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In July 1885, the Pall Mall Gazette ran an exposé so shocking that ‘squeamish’ readers were encouraged not to read it. It followed undercover journalist WT Stead on a mission to expose child exploitation in London – and, as it turned out, Stead was prepared to go to extraordinary lengths to get his story. In this first series of History’s Greatest Scandals, Professor Rosalind Crone and Ellie Cawthorne uncover some of the most infamous episodes of the Victorian age. This episode follows Stead’s incognito investigation – and explores what it can reveal about 19th-century London’s dark underbelly.

Authors

Ellie CawthorneHead of content (audio)

Ellie Cawthorne is head of content (audio) at HistoryExtra