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| Gunpowder, treason and plot: literary conspiracy theories for bonfire night | Gunpowder, treason and plot: literary conspiracy theories for bonfire night |
| (about 17 hours later) | |
| Remember, Remember the Fifth of November, the day Guy Fawkes was discovered in the cellar of the House of Lords with 36 barrels of gunpowder, in one of history’s great conspiracies. The precise details of the gunpowder plot have been contested over the centuries. Was Fawkes part of a group of Catholic militants planning on blowing up the Parliament at its 1605 state opening, as the best-known story goes. Or was the whole plot organised by the Earl of Salisbury as a way of pressuring King James I to toughen up his anti-Catholic laws, as recent conspiracy theorists have suggested? Either way, we’ve decided to celebrate bonfire night with eight of the best literary conspiracy theories. | Remember, Remember the Fifth of November, the day Guy Fawkes was discovered in the cellar of the House of Lords with 36 barrels of gunpowder, in one of history’s great conspiracies. The precise details of the gunpowder plot have been contested over the centuries. Was Fawkes part of a group of Catholic militants planning on blowing up the Parliament at its 1605 state opening, as the best-known story goes. Or was the whole plot organised by the Earl of Salisbury as a way of pressuring King James I to toughen up his anti-Catholic laws, as recent conspiracy theorists have suggested? Either way, we’ve decided to celebrate bonfire night with eight of the best literary conspiracy theories. |
| 1) Charlotte Brontë killed her sisters | 1) Charlotte Brontë killed her sisters |
| According to criminologist James Tully, the author of Jane Eyre was not the secluded, intellectual spinster we imagine, but a violently envious and lustful murderess. All was peaceful in the Brontë household, Tully says, until the 1845 appearance of a (debatably) handsome and wily curate named Reverend Arthur Bell Nicholls. Tully claims that Nicholls encouraged Charlotte’s already envious disposition, and together they poisoned each one of her siblings. Emily and Branwell (who another theory says wrote Emily’s Wuthering Heights) died in 1848 at ages 30 and 31 respectively. Anne died in 1849 at 29. The common conception is that they all contracted tuberculosis or cholera, but Tully, who is also an expert in 19th-century poison, is convinced that they were murdered. A few years later Charlotte’s father “angrily chased” Nicholls from their estate. Soon after that, Charlotte eloped with Nicholls, only to die a year later. Tully claims that it was Nicholls’s plan all along to inherit the Brontë estate, and thus Charlotte met the same bleak fate as her siblings. Tully originally wrote his theory as non-fiction, but was unable to find a publisher; so he retold the story as fiction from the point of view of real-life maid Martha Brown. His book, The Crimes of Charlotte Brontë, gained some recognition, but was generally rejected by Brontë enthusiasts. | According to criminologist James Tully, the author of Jane Eyre was not the secluded, intellectual spinster we imagine, but a violently envious and lustful murderess. All was peaceful in the Brontë household, Tully says, until the 1845 appearance of a (debatably) handsome and wily curate named Reverend Arthur Bell Nicholls. Tully claims that Nicholls encouraged Charlotte’s already envious disposition, and together they poisoned each one of her siblings. Emily and Branwell (who another theory says wrote Emily’s Wuthering Heights) died in 1848 at ages 30 and 31 respectively. Anne died in 1849 at 29. The common conception is that they all contracted tuberculosis or cholera, but Tully, who is also an expert in 19th-century poison, is convinced that they were murdered. A few years later Charlotte’s father “angrily chased” Nicholls from their estate. Soon after that, Charlotte eloped with Nicholls, only to die a year later. Tully claims that it was Nicholls’s plan all along to inherit the Brontë estate, and thus Charlotte met the same bleak fate as her siblings. Tully originally wrote his theory as non-fiction, but was unable to find a publisher; so he retold the story as fiction from the point of view of real-life maid Martha Brown. His book, The Crimes of Charlotte Brontë, gained some recognition, but was generally rejected by Brontë enthusiasts. |
| 2) JK Rowling didn’t write Harry Potter | 2) JK Rowling didn’t write Harry Potter |
| No one that pretty could actually have been that poor and that good at writing, right? No, Rowling is obviously an actress hired by a panel of shadowy ghostwriters. Or at least that’s what Norwegian film-maker Nina Grunfeld believes . “But can a person be so productive and commercially successful in a media industry where nothing is left to coincidence?” Grunfeld asked in an article for the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten. Grunfeld put forward the theory that the Potter series was in fact written by a large team of people, all of whom were perfectly happy to receive no credit for the worldwide phenomenon. Rowling is an actress they hired to be the face of the series, and her story was cleverly crafted to give hope to impoverished single mothers everywhere. After all, “is it possible that one person can write six thick books that are translated into 55 languages and sell more than 250 million copies in less than 10 years?” Yes, if you have a million-pound paycheck dangling in front of you as motivation. | No one that pretty could actually have been that poor and that good at writing, right? No, Rowling is obviously an actress hired by a panel of shadowy ghostwriters. Or at least that’s what Norwegian film-maker Nina Grunfeld believes . “But can a person be so productive and commercially successful in a media industry where nothing is left to coincidence?” Grunfeld asked in an article for the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten. Grunfeld put forward the theory that the Potter series was in fact written by a large team of people, all of whom were perfectly happy to receive no credit for the worldwide phenomenon. Rowling is an actress they hired to be the face of the series, and her story was cleverly crafted to give hope to impoverished single mothers everywhere. After all, “is it possible that one person can write six thick books that are translated into 55 languages and sell more than 250 million copies in less than 10 years?” Yes, if you have a million-pound paycheck dangling in front of you as motivation. |
| 3) Hunter S Thompson was assassinated | 3) Hunter S Thompson was assassinated |
| According to this internet theory, Thompson knew the truth about 9/11. This “truth” is that it was clearly a ploy to give the “Neo-conservatives their Pearl Harbor,” as the site thompsonmurder.com says, and was entirely organised by the American government. Therefore in 2005, the CIA or the Illuminati or someone, decided Thompson had to be taken down before he shared this knowledge with the world, and so they staged his suicide. Thompson was on the phone with his wife as he died, and he left behind a brief though characteristic suicide note titled Football Season Is Over. According to his friends Thompson had talked of suicide for decades, but the site insists the suicide was clearly staged for a number of reasons including: “He was on good relations with his wife, Anita, a cute young blonde with no problems.” The most convincing cause for suspicion mentioned by thompsonmurder.com, is that the day before he had reportedly told a friend: “They’re gonna make it look like a suicide, I know how these bastards think.” Personally, I wouldn’t put it past Thompson to have said that just to keep us guessing. | According to this internet theory, Thompson knew the truth about 9/11. This “truth” is that it was clearly a ploy to give the “Neo-conservatives their Pearl Harbor,” as the site thompsonmurder.com says, and was entirely organised by the American government. Therefore in 2005, the CIA or the Illuminati or someone, decided Thompson had to be taken down before he shared this knowledge with the world, and so they staged his suicide. Thompson was on the phone with his wife as he died, and he left behind a brief though characteristic suicide note titled Football Season Is Over. According to his friends Thompson had talked of suicide for decades, but the site insists the suicide was clearly staged for a number of reasons including: “He was on good relations with his wife, Anita, a cute young blonde with no problems.” The most convincing cause for suspicion mentioned by thompsonmurder.com, is that the day before he had reportedly told a friend: “They’re gonna make it look like a suicide, I know how these bastards think.” Personally, I wouldn’t put it past Thompson to have said that just to keep us guessing. |
| 4) William Godwin killed Percy Shelley’s first wife | 4) William Godwin killed Percy Shelley’s first wife |
| Frankenstein author Mary Godwin and poet Percy Shelley began their affair when Mary was 16 and Shelley was still married to his wife Harriet. The pair ran off for a holiday with Lord Byron and his mistress in Geneva, where they launched a contest as to who could write the best horror story, and the manuscript of Frankenstein was begun. While they were away, Harriet Shelley abandoned her child with Percy and went missing. She was discovered a month later, in an advanced stage of pregnancy, floating dead in a lake – an apparent suicide. The incident was relatively hushed up, and Harriet’s name was smeared for years afterward by the Shelleys and Godwins with accusations of alcoholism, infidelity and prostitution. Consipiracy theorists have suggested that Mary’s father, William Godwin - a well-known author - was responsible for Harriet’s demise, basing the theory on the fact that he insisted on Mary and Percy’s wedding happening less than a month after the death, and that he noted Harriet’s death in his diary several weeks before anyone knew she was dead. | Frankenstein author Mary Godwin and poet Percy Shelley began their affair when Mary was 16 and Shelley was still married to his wife Harriet. The pair ran off for a holiday with Lord Byron and his mistress in Geneva, where they launched a contest as to who could write the best horror story, and the manuscript of Frankenstein was begun. While they were away, Harriet Shelley abandoned her child with Percy and went missing. She was discovered a month later, in an advanced stage of pregnancy, floating dead in a lake – an apparent suicide. The incident was relatively hushed up, and Harriet’s name was smeared for years afterward by the Shelleys and Godwins with accusations of alcoholism, infidelity and prostitution. Consipiracy theorists have suggested that Mary’s father, William Godwin - a well-known author - was responsible for Harriet’s demise, basing the theory on the fact that he insisted on Mary and Percy’s wedding happening less than a month after the death, and that he noted Harriet’s death in his diary several weeks before anyone knew she was dead. |
| 5) Queen Elizabeth I wrote Shakespeare’s plays | 5) Queen Elizabeth I wrote Shakespeare’s plays |
| I am not normally one to buy into all the “Shakespeare was too poor to be smart” theories, but this one is particularly appealing. The argument is that Shakespeare was simply too uneducated and untravelled to have penned so many genius plays about historical figures, famed myths, strange and distant lands. Elizabeth, on the other hand, had a royal knowledge of history, politics and geography. She also published some poetry under her own name in her lifetime, so we know she had a decent handle on a phrase. She could never publish such raunchy plays under her own name, she paid Shakespeare to use his, which is probably how he could afford that golden hoop earring. | I am not normally one to buy into all the “Shakespeare was too poor to be smart” theories, but this one is particularly appealing. The argument is that Shakespeare was simply too uneducated and untravelled to have penned so many genius plays about historical figures, famed myths, strange and distant lands. Elizabeth, on the other hand, had a royal knowledge of history, politics and geography. She also published some poetry under her own name in her lifetime, so we know she had a decent handle on a phrase. She could never publish such raunchy plays under her own name, she paid Shakespeare to use his, which is probably how he could afford that golden hoop earring. |
| 6) Albert Camus was killed by the KGB | 6) Albert Camus was killed by the KGB |
| “I heard something very strange from the mouth of a man who knew lots of things and had very informed sources,” wrote the Czech poet and translator Jan Zábrana in his self-published diary Celý život. “According to him, the [car] accident that had cost Albert Camus his life in 1960 was organised by Soviet spies.” This passage was omitted from translations of the book and was only noticed in 2011 by Italian academic and poet Giovanni Catelli. It was then published in an article in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. Camus had a history of angering Russian leaders; at one point calling Moscow’s move to crush the 1956 Hungarian uprising the “Shepilov Massacres” in a published article, at another publicly supporting Boris Pasternak, whose novel Doctor Zhivago had been banned by Stalin. The KGB have been known to get up to some pretty nefarious activities, so an organised car accident does not seem too far-fetched. Even so, some Camus experts still vehemently reject this theory. | “I heard something very strange from the mouth of a man who knew lots of things and had very informed sources,” wrote the Czech poet and translator Jan Zábrana in his self-published diary Celý život. “According to him, the [car] accident that had cost Albert Camus his life in 1960 was organised by Soviet spies.” This passage was omitted from translations of the book and was only noticed in 2011 by Italian academic and poet Giovanni Catelli. It was then published in an article in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. Camus had a history of angering Russian leaders; at one point calling Moscow’s move to crush the 1956 Hungarian uprising the “Shepilov Massacres” in a published article, at another publicly supporting Boris Pasternak, whose novel Doctor Zhivago had been banned by Stalin. The KGB have been known to get up to some pretty nefarious activities, so an organised car accident does not seem too far-fetched. Even so, some Camus experts still vehemently reject this theory. |
| 7) Stephen King shot John Lennon | 7) Stephen King shot John Lennon |
| According to Steve Lightfoot and his website lennonmurdertruth.com, in 1980 Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan had had enough of Lennon’s peace movements and political songs. After a failed attempt to deport him, the two banded together and decided that the only logical plan of action was to get horror writer Stephen King to shoot him. Lightfoot claims that Chapman was an actor hired to take the fall for King. Lightfoot based this claim on “codes” in newspaper and magazine headlines published before and after the event (supposedly the method used by Nixon and Reagan to communicate their plan to King). Lightfoot has collected evidence from King’s books and interviews over 30 years, and has published a book on the matter. In spite of King ordering him to cease and desist, he has continued to spread his “truth”, occasionally following the author in a van painted with the words “Come Together Over This”. Even if you don’t buy Lightfoot’s theory, you have to admire his commitment. | According to Steve Lightfoot and his website lennonmurdertruth.com, in 1980 Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan had had enough of Lennon’s peace movements and political songs. After a failed attempt to deport him, the two banded together and decided that the only logical plan of action was to get horror writer Stephen King to shoot him. Lightfoot claims that Chapman was an actor hired to take the fall for King. Lightfoot based this claim on “codes” in newspaper and magazine headlines published before and after the event (supposedly the method used by Nixon and Reagan to communicate their plan to King). Lightfoot has collected evidence from King’s books and interviews over 30 years, and has published a book on the matter. In spite of King ordering him to cease and desist, he has continued to spread his “truth”, occasionally following the author in a van painted with the words “Come Together Over This”. Even if you don’t buy Lightfoot’s theory, you have to admire his commitment. |
| 8) Edgar Allan Poe was “cooped” | |
| It would have been so disappointing if Edgar Allan Poe, the master of mystery himself, had died peacefully of old age in his sleep. A week before his end, 40-year-old Poe went missing in Baltimore only to show up a few days later in a gutter, apparently drunk and dressed in someone else’s clothing. He died in the hospital four days later without ever being able to utter a sensible word. Most assume he was murdered, some say by his girlfriend’s protective brothers, but many are sure he was “cooped”. Cooping was a sinister 19th-century trend in which political gangs would kidnap men off the street, get them drunk, and force them to vote multiple times for one candidate. They would often dress them in multiple outfits so they were not caught while voting. The gang would usually rough their hostages up afterwards, for good measure. This explanation is quite convincing, but it must be noted that Poe did have a severe alcohol problem. It is perfectly possible that he went on a bit too much of a bender, borrowed a stranger’s clothing, and decided a gutter was a good place for a nap. But we’ll go with cooped. |
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