New play about 19th Century serial killer to debut in Newtown

What’s Your Poison? follows 19th Century medic William Palmer who allegedly poisoned a number of people including his wife, his alcoholic brother, his mother-in-law and four of his children.

The play is a true-crime murder mystery and is the first by journalist and author Steve Orme.

“I’ve been captivated by this story for more than a decade,” said Orme.

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“There’s no doubt he was a rogue, a gambler and a womaniser, who defrauded his mother out of thousands of pounds. But was he a serial killer?”

The play is seen from two perspectives: the Victorian era with the doctor, his family and his trial, and the modern day with a couple eager to explore whether Palmer’s conviction was a miscarriage of justice.

Orme said he became intrigued with the story when a friend alerted him to it.

“It’s a gripping tale. When Palmer was on trial Charles Dickens described him as ‘the greatest villain that ever stood in the Old Bailey’.

“But where is the evidence? Palmer was hanged for the murder of John Parsons Cook who was supposed to have been poisoned with strychnine – but at his post-mortem examination no strychnine was found in his body.

“Audiences can finally make up their own minds as to how many people William Palmer poisoned – if any.”

What’s Your Poison will be at The Hafren, Newtown on Saturday November 18.