Court Number One cover art

Court Number One

The Old Bailey Trials That Defined Modern Britain

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Court Number One

By: Thomas Grant
Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £16.99

Buy Now for £16.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Court Number One of the Old Bailey is the most famous court room in the world and the venue of some of the most sensational human dramas ever to be played out in a criminal trial.

The principal criminal court of England, historically reserved for the more serious and high-profile trials, Court Number One opened its doors in 1907 after the building of the 'new' Old Bailey. In the decades that followed it witnessed the trials of the most famous and infamous defendants of the 20th century. It was here that the likes of Madame Fahmy, Lord Haw Haw, John Christie, Ruth Ellis, George Blake (and his unlikely jailbreakers, Michael Randle and Pat Pottle), Jeremy Thorpe and Ian Huntley were defined in history, alongside a wide assortment of other traitors, lovers, politicians, psychopaths, spies, con men and - of course - the innocent.

Not only notorious for its murder trials, Court Number One recorded the changing face of modern British society, bearing witness to alternate attitudes to homosexuality, the death penalty, freedom of expression, insanity and the psychology of violence. Telling the stories of 12 of the most scandalous and celebrated cases across a radically shifting century, this audiobook traces the evolving attitudes of Britain, the decline of a society built on deference and discretion, the tensions brought by a more permissive society and the rise of trial by mass media.

From the Sunday Times best-selling author of Jeremy Hutchinson's Case Histories, Court Number One is a mesmerising window onto the thrills, fears and foibles of the modern age.

©2019 Thomas Grant (P)2019 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
Great Britain True Crime Inspiring Thought-Provoking England
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

Jeremy Hutchinson's Case Histories cover art
Unlawful Killings cover art
Fake Law cover art
Dirty Briefs cover art
Great and Horrible News cover art
The Mandela Brief cover art
In Your Defence cover art
Not Just Evil cover art
Nothing Like the Truth cover art
A Life of Crime: Memoirs of a High Court Judge cover art
Line of Duty cover art
"Until You Are Dead" cover art
Little Shoes cover art
In Two Minds cover art
The Best New True Crime Stories cover art
Very Bad People cover art

What listeners say about Court Number One

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    313
  • 4 Stars
    81
  • 3 Stars
    22
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    305
  • 4 Stars
    56
  • 3 Stars
    10
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    281
  • 4 Stars
    61
  • 3 Stars
    22
  • 2 Stars
    9
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Engrossing from start to finish

Engrossing from start to finish. Brilliantly written, very well narrated. Intriguing but also heart breaking in places.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A fascinating listen into a number of the great criminal cases in Great Britain

I absolutely loved this. It’s not at all dry and very engaging. Wonderfully read and highly recommended if you are interested in true life criminal history.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Very good narrator

The narrator was great, but at times the story was hard to follow. I still thoroughly enjoyed the book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent a great listen

Well written, well narrated packed with interesting historical facts. A highly recommended historical account of Court no 1 at the Old Bailey

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating cultural history

Very insightful look at some momentous trials and the process of a society casting judgement on an individual. Sexuality, espionage, murder and society’s collective conscience populate the ‘pages’!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

fascinating

each chapter is a pin in time. All told from a place of knowledge and respect. 5 *. Thoroughly recommended

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Enlightening

A major addition to the layman's understanding of the UK's Justice System. impeccably narrated and well worth a credit.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

PAGE TURNER

I must have getting on for 200 Audible books but this is only the second time I have left a review. This book is so well written & so interesting I couldn’t put it down & it’s one of those you don’t want to finish. Thomas Grant has done a remarkable in writing this book and I really recommend it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant

A thorough and engaging analysis and narrative of key criminal events. I learnt so much.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating

Fascinating accounts of trials in Court 1. Informative and intriguing. Another well narrated book. I would recommend to anyone interested in court trials.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!