Is it really any surprise that Britain's most famed hangman was a drunk? How soul sapping of a job must it really have been especially in the early days before the technique of the short drop was perfected? Gah!

The execution diary of one of the UK's best known hangmen offers hints at the slide into drinking which ended his career in 1910. The log book is currently being auctioned off.

Here is a snippet from the BBC:

Henry Albert Pierrepoint was sacked for arriving for an execution "considerably the worse for drink" and fighting with his assistant, John Ellis.

The erratic handwritten entries in his log towards the end of his career are said to be evidence of this drinking.

It is expected to fetch up to £3,000 at auction in Knutsford, Cheshire.

Henry, originally from Nottingham, was the first of the Pierrepoint family to become an executioner when he started his career in 1901 - he was involved in 105 hangings.

He took great pride in his work, was known to calculate his drops carefully and is said to have never "bungled" an execution, said auction house Frank Marshall and Company.

Full BBC Article Here