Sugar Ray Robinson in Windsor in 1951

And the Murder of Christine Butcher

Published in Windlesora 20 (2003)

© WLHG

On Wednesday, 4th July 1951 Windsor was buzzing with excitement. Peascod Street was thronged with people and the police had to keep the traffic moving. Sugar Ray Robinson, middleweight champion of the world, had arrived with his formidable entourage at the Star and Garter in Peascod Street. The local paper wrote that two Rolls Royce cars carried 128 pieces of luggage, but most admired by the crowd was his flamingo coloured open-top Cadillac parked outside the Star and Garter. The official history states that Sugar Ray arrived for a tour of Europe with 53 suitcases, his first wife Edna Mae a former nightclub dancer, a hairdresser, a trumpeter, a French tutor and a midget who acted as court jester. Sugar Ray had been offered £30,000 to fight Randolph Turpin at Earl’s Court on Tuesday 10th July.

The Star and Garter had a gym in which former boxers like Len Harvey, Freddie Mills and Kid Berg had trained. Now they were all here to welcome Sugar Ray. Five days of training at the gym, a few rounds of golf at Stoke Poges and early morning road work in Windsor Great Park were to prepare Sugar Ray for the great fight on Tuesday.

On Sunday afternoon crowds of young people had gathered around the pink Cadillac hoping to catch a glimpse of the champ or even get his autograph. At 3.30 Christine Butcher aged 7 Y2 left her parent’s flat at 138 Peascod Street, above Prices Tailors Ltd, to show her black doll called Blackie to Sugar Ray. Her mother watched her melt into the crowd outside the Star and Garter not 30 yards away. When she had not returned by 5 pm the police were informed and a search organised. Neither the boxer nor his entourage had seen the little girl. On Monday the troops of both barracks were called out to assist in the search. Tuesday was the day of the big fight, but no one recorded Sugar Ray’s departure from Peascod Street. They were all searching for the little girl. The police were busy trying to interview every household in the town, taking 1,800 statements.

About seven o’clock on Tuesday evening Gordon Costins and his girlfriend, Irene Rogers were walking back to Slough through the Home. They had enjoyed the day fishing on the Thames. There in a place called Stephen’s Meadow, hidden in the high grass they found Christine’s body. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted. The murderer has never been found.

And Sugar Ray Robinson? Well, he was beaten by Turpin on points over 15 rounds. This was only his second defeat in 132 contests.

Brigitte Mitchell

Sources

Windsor, Slough & Eton Express 6th July, 13th July and 21st Sept 1951

Patrick Myler, A Century of Boxing Greats

Kellys Directory of Windsor 1950