One of the reasons the horror of the Portencross Murder endures in the public imagination to this day, is the notion that we too might be sitting in our living room on a peaceful Saturday evening when bullets come raining through our window, shot by an unknown assailant for no known reason. In 1913, this is what happened to Alexander McLaren, his wife Jessie, and her younger sister Mary Gunn. The unfortunate Mary died instantly from a shot to the heart, whilst the other two occupants of that tiny room in a remote cottage, were wounded. The murderer or motive was never discovered, until now. Stephen Brown, West Kilbride local historian, has investigated the crime using records from all the newspapers, including the detailed reports from the local Ardrossan & Saltcoats Herald. He believes he has finally found a solution as to who shot the revolver that killed Mary Gunn, and why. In his book ("Who Killed Mary Gunn?" available worldwide on Amazon and www.TransparentPublishing.co.uk, Price £5.95 - ISBN 978-1986633734) he argues that the local police were inadvertently lead by Alexander McLaren to look for a specific individual, and by the time they arrived at this conclusion, the real murderer had hidden almost every piece of evidence linking them to the crime. In his book, he details the case from the reports of all the newspapers and revisits the scene of the crime as detailed in the local paper. From this contemporary evidence he has proposed a new theory of who the murderer was, and why they shot the three occupants of the tiny living room in a remote Portencross cottage. Published 18th October 2018,
About the Author: Stephen Brown is a gentleman of no particular consequence or merit, slowly working towards the grave. Originally trained as a professional accountant, then as a professional HR manager, he has served on the board of multinational and national companies, and some of the largest charities in the country. Lately he has been elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and has written several books on local history. Previously he has written an international bestseller of internet gaming, and composed the popular "21st Century Desiderata". He lives in West Kilbride with his wife Catherine, and four children. A modern day polymath, his interests are many, accomplishments too few.