![]() ![]() Scheming of Taboo’s kind was likely unheard of. One of the most memorable elements of Taboo, meanwhile, has to be Delaney’s ruthless, horrifying violence with his trusty curved blades.Įnter Henry Martin – a criminal who used a butcher’s hook to murder both the prostitute he was involved with, and his love rival, back in 1866. He was sprung from a stage coach while being transported to prison, and then sailed the world as a fugitive: from Northern Europe, to the US, to Brazil and on to Australia. Solomon’s life was almost as eventful, too. While Hardy’s character is dubbed “the devil Delaney”, Solomon was branded “evil disposed”. Infamous crook Ikey Solomon operated a vast criminal network in London around the same time. He may have a real-life equivalent in Irish adventurer James Hanna, the first European to sail to that region to engage in the fur trade. ![]() In the show, Delaney’s father acquired rights to Nootka Sound in Canada. Taboo’s anti-hero is, according to co-creators Chips and Tom Hardy, a decidedly fictional composite of Bill Sykes, Hannibal Lecter and various figures from Greek tragedy.īut Delaney is, to some extent, reflected in notorious real-life figures of the 19th century. These accounts, found through searching court records and newspaper articles on genealogy website findmypast, certainly paint a less than genteel picture of 19th century Britain.Īs historian Greg Jenner notes, the society of that period was one of “gangs, violence, prostitution, vice and corruption” as well as frocks and country houses. In 1850, Glasgow was the scene of a robbery which saw another James Delaney, aged 26, sentenced to 15 years in prison. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven months in prison. In 1848, a James Delaney appeared at the Old Bailey charged with stealing 7lbs of pork, valued at 4s and 8d, from a man named Abraham William Dupere. That same year, a 27-year-old by that name appeared in court in Devon charged with assault – though the case was dismissed. In 1842, a James Delaney was convicted of larceny in Surrey and sentenced to four months in prison. Other criminal James Delaneys from the 19th century In any case, the era was not short of controversial men called James Delaney. And not short of intimidating lines (the “woe be” quote above is drawn unaltered from the officer’s testimony). Taboo enthusiasts will note some similarities here between Hardy’s protagonist and his historical namesake. It later emerged that he “had drunk until he became muddled” and “had no recollection” of the events. ![]()
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