Murder of a Cotswold Village

After graduating Ian Smithers joined the Ministry of Information in London to work on projects for the Queen's Coronation in June 1953. In February 1953 the new Head of Department, known as the Colonel and obsessive about secrecy gave Ian a top-secret assignment to find a village with specific characteristics within three miles of a RAF station. The village was to be used in a survey. Ian located a remote Cotswold village that met all the requirements and reported back to the Colonel. His next topsecret assignment was to photograph the village. To stop the locals being suspicious a young lady, Jane Belmont, would go with him. Having completed that assignment they returned to their normal duties. Six weeks before the Queen's Coronation something unusual happened, Ian was posted to Edinburgh and Jane to Washington DC. Ian had little work to do in Edinburgh and realised they had been posted away from London because of their involvement in the top secret assignments. Ian thought something sinister was going-on. Ian and Jane returned to London a few days before the Queen's Coronation. On Coronation Day, Tuesday 2nd June, they hitch-hiked to the remote Cotswold village and spoke to a local man who worked at the nearby RAF station. Ian's worst fears were confirmed. Events of a terrifying nature were about to unfold.