In the third episode of Lucy Worsley’s “A Very British Murder”, the Wallace case received coverage.
The start of this segment is at 36:50 of the video below.
Information?
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I am a firm believer in Wallace as the murderer.
Here is just one of the many objections I have in accepting that Parry or any other person were at the Wallace home that evening.It is based on what I expect,from living through the 1930’s,the actions people would take.
Julia would not have taken anyone,friend or stranger,into an icy cold front room,when there was a cosy warm kitchen to be had.It would have been unthinkable.Additionally,there would have been no need to don a raincoat just to answer the front door,which would have taken just a minute or two,to either admit,or decline entry to someone.
What would have been unthinkable was for Julia to take a visitor into an untidy kitchen, warm or not. There is ample evidence to show visitors were always received into the parlour (Parry, Amy Wallace etc). Julia had a bad cold, it was a winter’s evening and she had no way of knowing how long she may have to stand on the doorstep. To throw a conveniently situated mackintosh over her shoulders would be a perfectly normal thing to do.
I go with Puss the cat here. And what do we have here then, in just the two replies we have a for and an against, just like most of the Wallace case in fact.
As Puss says, it is not for us to opinionate on whether Julia would have used the kitchen or the parlour, it is known fact from previous visitors that the parlour was used for visitors as it was for most people right up until the 70s and 80s in this type of dwelling.
The much more personal kitchen where things were might be strewn about and it is ‘lived in’ would not be welcoming for visitors who would be shown into the lesser used posher room.
As for the mac around the shoulders, i’ve seen people myself answer the door with a shawl, cardigan throw over (70s/80s) and these days a hoodie when it is cold.
The mackintosh may be damp from the morning rounds (no radiators, winter). Some books claim there had been rain based on William saying he wore a different jacket due to the weather “turning out fine”. However I don’t see proof of it meaning there had been rain.
Historical weather records may help.
Wallace’s musing that the intruder walked out and grabbed his jacket seems more plausible, than Julia walking around with a damp jacket around her neck.