Click here for the Glossary page
Click here for the main index of the Burton Latimer Heritage Society site
Click here to return to the previous page
Summary of event prepared by Margaret Craddock, 2008. Information and images kindly loaned by Pam Mills

Mrs Pamela Mills

Photograph of Pam Mills

A brave local woman widely honoured


On the morning of Thursday, 8 June 1995, Mrs Pam Mills was carrying out a transaction at Barclays Bank in Burton Latimer, Northants, when she noticed a man at the counter brandishing what appeared to be a gun and proceeding to demand money from the cashier. Mrs Mills was of the opinion that it was not a real firearm and, stepping forward, pushed the object away from the cashier. The man then pointed the object at Mrs Mills and again she pushed it away although by this time she feared it was a real firearm. The raider then left the scene without any cash. He was later captured and sentenced to 7 years imprisonment for various offences.

Pam Mills received a letter of thanks from Barclays, but the full details of the incident and her bravery only came fully into the public domain much later, once reporting restrictions had been lifted after the trial. In fact, it was a full year after the event that national media channels began to report the story.

For her bravery, Mrs Mills received various awards from local and county organisations, and the incident was reported widely in the national press. The Daily Star awarded Pam Mills one of its annual Gold Stars which was presented to her by World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Lennox Lewis at a glittering event at The Savoy Hotel in London, followed by a reception at 10 Downing Street with the then Prime Minister, John Major. Mrs Mills subsequently appeared on a number of television shows, including those hosted by John Stapleton, Robert Kilroy-Silk and Esther Rantzen.  Magazines such as Best and Readers Digest also printed feature articles on the case.

Click on a link below to read the various reports, features, and details of some of the events.

Click here to return to the Main Index
Click here to return to the People Index