History of Kilburn and West Hampstead

This is the most detailed account ever published of an unusual story about Spiritualism, which has local connections to West Hampstead and Hampstead. Louisa Ann Meurig Morris (Getty) On Sunday evening 11 January 1931, the audience at the Fortune Theatre waited in anticipation of something special. They had come to see a young woman trance medium, Mrs Meurig Morris. Also on the stage was Lady Jean Conan Doyle and her 22-year old son Denis. Her husband, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, had died six months earlier, and had spent the last years of his life speaking and writing to promote Spiritualism. Lady Doyle said they were there to show their support for Spiritualism and a collection would be made at the end for a memorial to Sir Arthur. After the audience had sung hymns, the producer and playwright Laurence Cowen spoke about how he met Mrs Morris at his local Kenton Spiritualist church in 1929. He said he had gone as a lifetime agnostic but after hearing her spe...

In December 1942 William Lilley and his business manager Arthur Richards, were refused a licence by the LCC to run their new treatment centre in Bulstrode Street Marylebone. Despite this ruling and losing an appeal in January 1943, the clinic continued there until 1948. At the time Lilley was living at 142 Cholmley Gardens in Mill Lane.   William Henry Lilley He was a well-known spiritual healer who had been born in Oulton, a village on the outskirts of Leeds in 1914. When he was ten , his mother Sarah (Sally) Ellen took him to a monthly spiritualist meeting held in room above a pub in the neighbouring village of Kippax. Here he was taken over by his control White Hawk and began speaking in a strange voice. After a few more sessions William began holding regular spiritual healing meetings at his home, now controlled by an Indian called Dr Letari. In 1930 William was employed at the Yorkshire Copper Works in Leeds when he met seamstress Nancy Overton. They married in 1...