British Pathe

Lewisham, London & Brighton, East Sussex.

GV. Victorian Villa in Lewisham Park, & nearer shot. Top view, behind villa showing the gardens. SV. The entrance to shed above cave at bottom of the garden. SV. Mrs Marshall pulling back corrugated iron to show gap inside of the shed where note was...

Lewisham, London & Brighton, East Sussex.

GV. Victorian Villa in Lewisham Park, & nearer shot. Top view, behind villa showing the gardens. SV. The entrance to shed above cave at bottom of the garden. SV. Mrs Marshall pulling back corrugated iron to show gap inside of the shed where note was put through, & CU. GV. Interior of the shed above cave, & SV. Various gadgets set up. CU. Manhole cover in shed. SV. Marjorie Jordan, a girl who was kept in underground cave, and her sister Joyce Purssord standing on the front at Brighton. CU. Marjorie Jordan laughing. SV. Police and the girl's kidnapper John Bridal go into the shed. SV. Policemen going down through manhole into cave. SCU. Detective making his way through the narrow metal shaft to the cave below. SCU. Interior of the cave. Detective walks over and looks at the electric cooking stove. SV. Pan, interior of the cave showing chairs, table, wireless. Pan to show the improvised bed. SV. Bed that consists of wood supported by bricks. SV. Interior of the cave showing layout. SCU. Police photographer photographing a motorcycle. SV. Detective tampering with the motorcycle. SV. Towards, John Bridal coming away from shed accompanied by detectives. Starts to walk up the garden path. CU. Group of youngsters looking on. SV. Towards, John Bridal accompanied by detective makes his way towards police car. SV. Towards as police car leaves with him.

On July 17 1957, The News & Courier newspaper reported the following: “A 27-year-old labourer was sentenced to three years in jail today for keeping a girl imprisoned in a hole in the ground for 3 and half months. John Raymond Bridal was accused of forcing Marjorie Jordan from her bedroom, binding her mouth and hands and then carrying her on his motorcycle to the hole in the ground in the back of his home. Miss Jordan, 28, told police Bridal never tried to make love to her. All he did, she said, was either beat her or make her undress as punishment if she refused to follow his orders. Those orders, the court was told, were mainly to help him enlarge the hole in the ground so he could carry out some experiments on a new invention and to do his laundry. Detective Inspector Leonard Herbert testified that the experiments involved a long piece of wire connecting circular metal discs buried in the earth. Miss Jordan, who said she had never seen Bridal before he broke into her bedroom and took her away, was rescued by police after a neighbour found a note she had tossed over the fence.”