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Poison Pen
A poison pen letter (or poisoned pen letter) is a letter or note containing unpleasant, abusive, or malicious statements or accusations about the recipient or a third party. It is usually sent anonymously, often by employing the ransom note effect to avoid exposing the author's handwriting. Poison pen letters are usually composed and sent to upset the recipient, and differ from blackmail, which is intended to obtain something from the recipient. The reference to poison is figurative rather than literal. In the United Kingdom, Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 covers most cases of poison pen letters. See also * Ransom note * Dear John letter * Dear Boss letter * From Hell letter * Hate mail * Chain letter * Stalking Stalking is unwanted and/or repeated surveillance or contact by an individual or group toward another person. Stalking behaviors are interrelated to harassment and intimidation and may include following the victim in person or monitorin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ransom Note
Ransom refers to the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extortion, extort money or property to secure their release. It also refers to the sum of money paid by the other party to secure a captive's freedom. When ransom means "payment", the word comes via Old French ''rançon'' from Latin ''redemptio'', 'buying back'; compare "wikt:redeem, redemption". Ransom cases Julius Caesar was captured by pirates near the island of Pharmakonisi, Pharmacusa, and held until someone paid 50 Attic talent, talents to free him. In Europe during the Middle Ages, ransom became an important custom of chivalry, chivalric warfare. An important knight, especially nobility or Royal family, royalty, was worth a significant sum of money if captured, but nothing if he was killed. For this reason, the practice of ransom contributed to the development of heraldry, which allowed knights to advertise their identities, and by implication their ransom value, and made them less likely to be killed out ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Letters (message)
Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech or none in the case of a silent letter; any of the symbols of an alphabet * Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alphabet, either as written or in a particular type font * Rehearsal letter in an orchestral score Communication * Letter (message), a form of written communication ** Mail * Letters, the collected correspondence of a writer or historically significant person ** Pauline epistles, addressed by St. Paul to various communities or congregations, such as "Letters to the Galatians" or "Letters to the Corinthians", and part of the canonical books of the Bible ** Maktubat (other), the Arabic word for collected letters * The letter as a form of second-person literature; see Epistle ** Epistulae (Pliny) ** Epistolary novel, a long-form fiction composed of letters (epistles) * Open letter, a public letter a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Littlehampton Libels
The Littlehampton libels were a series of letters sent to numerous residents of Littlehampton, in southern England, over a three-year period between 1920 and 1923. The letters, which contained obscenities and false accusations, were written by Edith Swan, a thirty-year-old laundress; she tried to incriminate her neighbour, Rose Gooding, a thirty-year-old married woman. Swan and Gooding had once been friends, but after Swan made a false report to the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children accusing Gooding of maltreating one of her sister's children, the letters started arriving. Many of them were signed as if from Gooding. Swan brought a private prosecution against Gooding for criminal libel, libel; in December 1920 Gooding was found guilty and imprisoned for two weeks. On her release the letters started again, and Swan brought a second private prosecution against Gooding. In February 1921 Gooding was again found guilty and imprisoned for twelve months. W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wicked Little Letters
''Wicked Little Letters'' is a 2023 British period black-comedy mystery film directed by Thea Sharrock, written by Jonny Sweet and starring Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Anjana Vasan, Joanna Scanlan, Gemma Jones, Malachi Kirby, Lolly Adefope, Eileen Atkins and Timothy Spall. Based on the Littlehampton libels of the 1920s, it follows an investigation into the anonymous author of numerous crudely insulting letters sent to the residents of the seaside town of Littlehampton. ''Wicked Little Letters'' premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 9 September 2023, and was released in the United Kingdom by StudioCanal on 23 February 2024. It received generally positive reviews from critics, and grossed $27.2 million on a $12.6 million budget. Plot In 1920, Edith Swan, a devout Christian in Littlehampton, becomes the target of hate mail, an issue of great distress to her controlling father Edward and gentle mother Victoria. Having endured 19 such letters filled with pro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James Forster (poison Pen Letter Writer)
James Forster (1933–2017) was an English criminal who, between 1987 and 1999, orchestrated a hate campaign during which he sent 200 poison pen letters to residents of Manfield, district of North Yorkshire. A former Open University lecturer, he was found guilty of three counts of threatening to destroy property, three of sending indecent mail, and one of incitement to commit burglary. He died in 2017. Early life Forster was born in 1933 and was employed by the National Coal Board for 11 years before attending Kings College at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. There he studied for a BSc in applied sciences before taking an MSc and PhD. He then lectured at the University of Nottingham for five years before joining the Open University. He rose through the ranks from staff tutor to senior lecturer between 1971 and 1998, including a spell as acting deputy regional director in 1995. Crimes Between 1987 and 1999, residents of Manfield, district of North Yorkshire, began recei ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chain Letter
A chain letter is a message that attempts to convince the recipient to make a number of copies and pass them on to a certain number of recipients. The "chain" is an exponentially growing pyramid (a tree graph) that cannot be sustained indefinitely. Common methods used in chain letters include emotionally manipulative stories, get-rich-quick pyramid schemes, and the exploitation of superstition to threaten the recipient with misfortune or promise good luck. Originally, chain letters were letters sent by mail; today, chain letters are often sent electronically via email, social network sites, and text messages. Types There are two main types of chain letter: # Hoaxes: Hoaxes attempt to trick or defraud users. A hoax could be malicious, instructing users to delete a file necessary to the operating system by claiming it is a virus. It could also be a scam that convinces users to spread the letter to other people for a specific reason, or send money or personal information. P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hate Mail
Hate mail (as electronic, posted, or otherwise) is a form of harassment, usually consisting of invective and potentially intimidating or threatening comments towards the recipient. Hate mail often contains exceptionally abusive, foul or otherwise hurtful language. The recipient may receive disparaging remarks concerning their ethnicity, gender, religion, intelligence, political ideology, sense of ethics, or sense of aesthetics. The text of hate mail often contains profanity, or it may simply contain a negative message. Senders of hate mail normally send anonymous letters or pose as someone else (either a different or fictitious individual) in order to avoid being identified and tracked down, as the nature of some hate mail would inevitably result in criminal charges if the sender was identified. Notable examples of hate mail Hate mail has frequently been issued to footballers and managers by fans of rival football teams, and also by their own fans who are dissatisfied with t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
From Hell Letter
The "From Hell" letter (also known as the "Lusk letter") was a letter sent with half of a preserved human kidney to George Lusk, the chairman of the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee, in October 1888. The author of this letter claimed to be the unidentified serial killer known as Jack the Ripper, who had murdered and mutilated at least four women in the Whitechapel and Spitalfields districts of London in the two months prior to Lusk receiving this letter, and whose vigilance committee Lusk led in civilian efforts to assist the police in identifying and apprehending the perpetrator. The letter was postmarked 15 October 1888 and was received by Lusk the following day. An examination of the kidney revealed the individual from whom the Organ (anatomy), organ originated had suffered from Bright's disease. The author of this letter claimed to have fried and Human cannibalism, eaten the other half. Police, press, and public alike received many letters claiming to be from the Whitechapel M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dear Boss Letter
The "Dear Boss" letter was a message allegedly written by the notorious unidentified Victorian era, Victorian serial killer known as Jack the Ripper. Addressed to the Central News Agency (London), Central News Agency of London and dated 25 September 1888, the letter was postmarked and received by the Central News Agency on 27 September. The letter itself was forwarded to Scotland Yard on 29 September. Although many dispute its authenticity, the "Dear Boss" letter is regarded as the first piece of correspondence signed by one Jack the Ripper, ultimately resulting in the unidentified killer being known by this name. Content The "Dear Boss" letter was written in red ink, was two pages long and contains several spelling and punctuation errors. The overall motivation of the author was evidently to mock investigative efforts and to allude to future murders. The letter itself reads: Media publication Initially, the letter was considered to be just one of many hoax letters purportin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dear John Letter
A Dear John letter is a letter written to a man by his wife or romantic partner to inform him that their relationship is over, usually because his partner has found another lover. The man is often a member of the military stationed overseas, although the letter may be used in other ways, including being left for him to discover when he returns from work to an emptied house. Origin and etymology While the exact origins of the phrase are unknown, it is commonly believed to have been coined by Americans during World War II. "John" was the most popular and common baby name for boys in the United States every year from 1880 through 1923, making it a reasonable placeholder name when denoting those of age for military service. Large numbers of American troops were stationed overseas for many months or years, and as time passed many of their wives or girlfriends decided to begin relationships with new men, rather than wait for the soldiers to return. One of the earliest notable Dear Jo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
