Knowsley Hall Shootings

Date: October 9, 1952 • Location: Knowsley, United Kingdom

A footman shot and killed two colleagues and wounded the lady of the house at Knowsley Hall, England.

Shootings occurred on the evening of 9 October 1952 in Knowsley Hall, Merseyside, England. Harold Winstanley, a 19-year-old trainee footman at the house, shot his employer, Lady Derby, and three colleagues, two of whom died: the butler, William Stallard, and the under-butler, Douglas Stuart. Winstanley fled the scene, assaulting the chef while doing so, and went to a local pub. He later took a bus into Liverpool, where he surrendered to the police. Winstanley was tried for the two murders and found guilty but insane and committed to Broadmoor Hospital.