Mary Ann Cotton is known as the first British female serial killer. A trail of bodies, many her own children, followed her through life. Bodies she happened to have insurance policies out on. Arsenic appears to have been her poison. How very Victorian. But Mary Ann Cotton was only proved to be guilty of killing one of her alleged victims. So was she really a serial killer? How hard could life be for working class women in Victorian society? Maddy tells Anthony the story. Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal is a History Hit podcast. Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. All music from Epidemic Sounds. History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™ #HistoryHitPodcast #AfterDark