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Criminal

The Plot

Criminal

Vox Media Podcast Network

Society & Culture, True Crime

4.739.4K Ratings

🗓️ 20 February 2026

⏱️ 45 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In 1864, a 41-year-old woman named Mary Surratt was running a boarding house in Washington, D.C. One of the most famous actors in the country began visiting her – which led to her becoming known as the woman who “kept the nest that hatched the egg." Kate Clifford Larson’s book is The Assassin’s Accomplice. Join our newsletter by 2/28/26 to be entered to win a free year of Criminal Plus: ⁠thisiscriminal.com/newsletter⁠. (Additional rules apply.) Say hello on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. Follow the show and review us on Apple Podcasts. Sign up for Criminal Plus to get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal, ad-free listening of all of our shows, invitations to virtual events, special merch deals, and more. We also make This is Love and Phoebe Reads a Mystery. Artwork by Julienne Alexander. Check out our online shop. Episode transcripts are posted on our website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Support for the show comes from Virgin Atlantic.

0:03.6

Every trip you take is special.

0:05.9

That's why for every flight, you need a crew that makes you feel special, showing up for you like the VIP you are.

0:12.8

Virgin Atlantic offers warm, personalized service from the moment you step on board.

0:17.8

Its upper class cabin features four-course signature dishes, private suites with fully

0:22.1

lay flat beds, and hours of award-winning in-flight entertainment. Make the journey as exceptional

0:27.7

as the destination when you fly Virgin Atlantic. Go to virginatlantic.com to learn more.

0:35.1

Now, are all the traitors present?

0:39.6

Let's get started, shall we?

0:41.0

From rags to riches.

0:42.2

I'm so sick of this.

0:44.1

Working like a dog and being treated worse.

0:45.9

Yorkshire to New York.

0:47.3

Poor climbers, you and me.

0:49.4

A life dedicated to revenge.

0:51.8

Let's make this an occasion to remember. A Woman of Substance on Channel 4, stream now.

0:57.0

In 1863, a widow named Mary Surrott was running a tavern in a small town in Maryland,

1:04.1

just outside of Washington, D.C.

1:06.6

There was a post office in the same building.

1:09.9

Her youngest son, John, was the postmaster.

1:13.9

He was also a spy for the Confederate Army.

1:17.6

How much did she know of what John was doing?

...

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