After another stint in a factory he decided to follow his father's trade by becoming a barber and hairdresser in Rochdale, where he subsequently also opened a newsagent's shop, which he ran with his wife and children.

[4] Suicide was at that time a criminal offence, and Ellis was charged and bound over for 12 months at Rochdale Magistrates Court.

[5] Eight years later, in September 1932, after another bout of heavy drinking, Ellis died by suicide, cutting his throat with a razor.

Pierrepoint, arriving at Chelmsford prison slightly intoxicated on 13 July 1910, had started a row, and would have beaten Ellis up, had not warders intervened.

[7] Ellis was persuaded to take on the dramatic role of executioner in the play The Life and Adventures of Charles Peace, which opened in Gravesend in December, 1927.