The cruel Thames: the job of pulling bodies from a dark, dangerous river

On average about 30 bodies are retrieved from its waters in London each year. Only a few ever make the headlines

Historic placenames along the River Thames in London once summed up its macabre past. There was Dead Man's Dock at Deptford, Dead Man's Steps at Wapping, and Dead Man's Hole, which still exists, at Tower Bridge. They evoked stories of people who were executed, murdered or killed themselves.

News that during the search for the chemical attack suspect Abdul Ezedi the river had surrendered two bodies unrelated to the case, serves to highlight its gruesome present.

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