Seventy years ago, 28-year-old Ruth Ellis became the last woman executed for murder in the United Kingdom. Her crime? Fatally shooting her lover, the playboy David Blakely. A new four-part drama series on BritBox, "A Cruel Love: The Ruth Ellis Story," starring Lucy Boynton, revisits this controversial case, sparking renewed debate about the circumstances surrounding her conviction.

Based on Carol Ann Lee’s true crime book, the series challenges common misconceptions about Ellis. Lee emphasizes that Ellis wasn't simply a jealous woman driven by hysteria. Instead, she was deeply remorseful for her actions but believed in the principle of "an eye for an eye." Ellis's life was marked by hardship from a young age, including alleged sexual abuse by her father, according to the London Evening Standard. This tumultuous upbringing, coupled with a teenage pregnancy and abandonment by a married Canadian soldier, fueled her desire to escape poverty.

Captivated by the glamour of Hollywood, Ellis pursued modeling and immersed herself in London's nightlife. She married George Johnston Ellis and had a daughter, but the marriage dissolved amidst violence and accusations of infidelity. To survive, Ellis turned to sex work. She eventually found success managing a prominent London nightclub, frequented by celebrities and influential figures.

It was at Carroll’s Club in 1953 that Ellis met David Blakely, a race car driver. Their relationship quickly became intense and obsessive, but it was also marked by abuse. Blakely's alleged physical violence, including an incident that reportedly caused Ellis to miscarry, and his numerous affairs, took a severe toll on her. Meanwhile, Ellis sought refuge in a secret affair with Desmond Cussen, an accountant and former RAF pilot.

The events leading up to the shooting remain unclear, but on Easter Sunday 1955, Ellis confronted Blakely at The Magdala pub and shot him six times. She calmly confessed to the police. Lee argues that Ellis, perceived as a woman of ill-repute in a society that still largely confined women to the domestic sphere, was unfairly targeted by the press and the legal system. The trial lasted just one day, and the jury deliberated for a mere 14 minutes before delivering a guilty verdict. Despite subsequent evidence of Blakely’s abuse and a public outcry for clemency, Ellis was hanged at Holloway Prison on July 13, 1955.