I’m pleased to be a part of #TimeForCrime, a new Q&A blog series over at chapterinmylife that goes behind the page or screen to delve into our minds as authors and bloggers.
Dr. Goodall’s character in my novel Night and Day was partially inspired by two great cases in British history. Regina v. Adams (1957) and Regina v. Shipman (2000). Both are suspected in the deaths of hundreds of their victims. Dr. Shipman was convicted on multiple counts of murder. Dr. Adams was found innocent however he was found guilty of multiple counts of prescription fraud, obstruction a police search, forgery of cremation documents, and failure to keep a dangerous drugs log. He was stricken from the Medical Record in 1957 and reinstated in 1961.
Dr. Goodall’s name was coined by a phrase that people called Dr. Adams. They would call him “that good Dr. Adams.” Dr. Adams was known by his elderly patients for appearing compassionate and good to his patients, just like Goodall’s character appears to be with Lydia. I based Lydia’s treatment by Goodall upon information from a 1939 case of Dr. Adams. I had already formulated the method for Dr. Goodall but I was awestruck just how uncanny his methods were with Dr. Adams. Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction.
Want to know how Adams and Shipman differ from Goodall’s character? You’ll have to read Night and Day.
