This is a true story. All the main characters in it actually lived in or near Abingdon at the end of the eighteenth century; most – ordinary working people of little note – would no doubt be greatly surprised to find themselves remembered over 200 years later. But that, I hope is part of the charm of this tale. Dramatic in its own right – what murder isn’t, after all? …” Mark Davies.
The story of the murder is interesting in it’s own right but the book also casts a light on how the people of Abingdon lived two centuries ago before police, before forensic science, when much was decided on hearsay when local people kept silent and would not or dare not inform on neighbours. And at the end of a book a mystery remains was GILES FREEMAN COVINGTON innocent, read the book , decide for yourself and then go and visit Giles in Oxford Museum St Aldgates where his skeleton resides even to this day
Lies on Their Lips A New Play
Lies on Their Lips is based on the book, The Abingdon Waterturnpike Murder, by Mark Davies, which has been specially adapted for the drama club by Joel Kaye and Gwilym Scourfield.
Directed by the drama club’s Eileen Bagshaw, Lies on their Lips will have its première during Abingdon’s 12th annual arts festival. Essentially, the story is woven from documents held at the Oxfordshire Record Office in Oxford. Based on a true story, all the main characters in the play actually lived in or near Abingdon at the end of the 18th century.
While providing a fascinating insight into the life of the labouring poor, with a murder thrown in, the writers have tried to keep to the truth of the story, leaving the audience to decide if justice was done. Most of the play’s main characters — ordinary working people of little note — would no doubt be greatly surprised to find themselves remembered more than 200 years later. This, plus the fact that those characters would have been familiar with the very buildings the play is performed in, adds to the intrigue.
