Episode 88: Una Marson

In this episode, we meet Una Marson, a Jamaican writer, journalist, and radio producer, who shared her talents and voice in poetry, plays, and on the BBC, after her ambition took her to London in the 1930s. She described as the first Black feminist to speak out against racism and sexism in Britain. We know little about her life post-1945, when she returned to Jamaica and continued writing poetry and fighting discrimination – but a recent rediscovery in the UK has led to a TV documentary and a library named in her honor.

DLS co-founder Katy Derbyshire tells Una's story, and joins host/producer Susan Stone to set the scene.

To find out more about Una, visit our episode notes at https://deadladiesshow.com/podcast/

Katy also mentions her previous talk on another BBC notable, composer Delia Derbyshire (no relation!). You can hear it on Episode 60 here: https://deadladiesshow.com/2023/02/16/podcast-60-delia-derbyshire/

Hey friends in Berlin! Write this date on your calendar — June 7th. We will host our classic bilingual live show on a Sunday night, so save the date. Follow us on social media @deadladiesshow, or sign up to our newsletter at this link: https://deadladiesshowberlin.beehiiv.com/ to stay informed about live events.

You can get even more Dead Lady content, and help support us, by becoming a Patreon member at patreon.com/deadladiesshowpodcast ! Our members get access to our premium audio and written content where we talk about Dead Lady books, music, and more, and sometimes we offer a sneak preview of Dead Ladies we're going to feature in the future —we talked about Una Marson there last year. Memberships starting at 2 euros or 2 dollars and it really gives us moral as well as a little financial support. You can also follow our content there for free! Thanks for supporting us and sharing us with others!

The Dead Ladies Show was founded by Florian Duijsens and Katy Derbyshire. The podcast is created, produced and edited by Susan Stone.

Our theme tune is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon. We will be back again next month with another fabulous Dead Lady.

We kick off Season Nine of the podcast by meeting a woman who could be called the godmother of true crime.

Producer/host Susan Stone tells the story of F. Tennyson Jesse, an English journalist, criminologist, and writer. The daughter of a vicar who dragged the family around the British empire, she trained as a painter before moving to London in 1911. Journalism beckoned, but she was not put off by losing the use of her right hand in a plane accident, learning to type left-handed. Known as Fryn to her friends, she reported from the ground during World War I and published fiction, before moving into criminology and true crime writing. Her 1924 book Murder and its Motives set out six basic motivations for killing, a very influential theory, and she wrote about several of the most notorious crimes in the first half of the 20th century. Fryn also had a rather dramatic private life thanks to her doctor-turned-playwright husband Totty, who kept their marriage secret for several years.

DLS co-founder Katy Derbyshire joins Susan to introduce our new season.

To find out more about Fryn, visit our episode notes at https://deadladiesshow.com/2026/03/27/podcast-87-f-tennyson-jesse/

If you are in New York, you can see a live Dead Ladies Show on March 26th at the KGB Bar's Private Curtain — get more info on instagram via @deadladiesnyc or from their newsletter here: https://deadladiesshow.substack.com/

For our friends in Berlin, write this date on your calendar — June 7th! We will have our classic bilingual show on a Sunday night, so save the date. Follow us on social media @deadladiesshow, or sign up to our newsletter at this link: https://deadladiesshowberlin.beehiiv.com/

You can get even more Dead Lady content, and help support us, by becoming a Patreon member at patreon.com/deadladiesshowpodcast ! Our members get access to our premium audio and written content where we talk about Dead Lady books, music, and more, and sometimes we offer a sneak preview of Dead Ladies we're going to feature in the future — Fryn Jesse and her book A Pin to See the Peepshow were featured there back in 2020. Memberships starting at 2 euros or 2 dollars and it really gives us moral as well as a little financial support. You can also follow our content there for free! Thanks to all our existing supporters and free members!

The Dead Ladies Show was founded by Florian Duijsens and Katy Derbyshire. The podcast is created, produced and edited by Susan Stone.

Our theme tune is Little Lily Swing by Tri-Tachyon. We will be back again next month with another fabulous Dead Lady.