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Albert Woodville-Gentle (AKA the Faceless Man, Mark 1) was an unsanctioned magical practitioner of 'Master' level. He operated in London criminal circles from the 1960s-1970s but was never caught or charged. During this time he was known for his violent approach to dealing with opposition and rivals in brutal and cruel ways.[1] He trained the second Faceless Man.[2]

Education[]

Woodville-Gentle attended college at Oxford University, Magdalen college starting in 1958. He was a member of the Little Crocodiles Dining Club and was trained in Newtonian magic by Geoffrey Wheatcroft along with many others. This training was received outside the sanctioned magical education of the Folly, and without Inspector Nightingale's knowledge.

London 1960's-1970s[]

During the 1960's and 1970's Woodville-Gentle likely worked as the legitimate head of a non-governmental charity organization. Through this organization he raised funds for the medical work of Lady Helena Linden-Limmer in India.[3] However little is known about his non-criminal and non-magical work during this period.

The Club on Brewer Street[]

Woodville-Gentle owned and operated an exclusive entertainment and sex club in the Soho area of London during the 1970s. It is known to have operated from 1974 1979 as Varvara Sidorovna and Helena Linden-Limmer visited it during these years however, it likely started operating even earlier.[4][3]

The entertainment at the club featured Chimerae and other individuals who had been mutilated by magic such as the disembodied head of Larry the Lark, which featured in the club foyer.[1] There is also evidence that Woodville-Gentle was involved in sex trafficking Chimerae to club members such as, Jerry 'Greasy' Johnson.

The club on Brewer street was passed on to the Faceless Man, Mark 2 who was attempting to revive it. In 2012, Peter Grant with information from Alexander Smith, uncovered the remnants of this club in Moon Over Soho. Peter subsequently dubbed it "the Strip Club of Doctor Moreau".[1]

Relationship with Lady Helena[]

Lady Helena Linden-Limmer met Albert Woodville-Gentle in the early 1960s while they were involved in the Demi-monde. They quickly began a romantic and sexual relationship, along with exchanging magical skills and information. In the summer of 1966 the two of them broke the bank in Monte Carlo, and spent the following winter in Tangiers. They returned to London in in October 1967.[3] At this time Lady Helena sensed that the city had changed, however she felt Albert preferred London in its changed state.[3]

Lady Helena Linden-Limmer returned to London in 1979 and visited the Strip Club of Doctor Moreau. Furious with what Woodville-Gentle had done with her medical magic, she dueled him in a room at the Pontypool Hotel where she believed she killed him.[3]

Woodville-Gentle has suffered a hyperthaumaturgical degradation-related stroke, which is likely what rendered him inactive for the next few decades.[2]

1980's-Present[]

After his stroke, Woodville-Gentle lived in a care home outside Oxford. Sometime in the 1990s' or 2000's Varvara Sidorovna located him after a 6-month search on the request of the Faceless Man, Mark 2.[5] He was resettled in Shakespeare Tower at London’s brutalist Barbican Estate and was cared for by Varvara and other nurses. Peter Grant and Lesley May interviewed him during their investigation into the Little Crocodiles dining club.[2] Woodville-Gentle's dead body was found on a building site on the Elizabeth Line a part of the Crossrail project.[2]

References[]

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