ST8982 : View along the aisle of St Mary's churchST9387 : The woman killed by a tiger in Wiltshire Hannah Twinnoy (1670-1703)A 19th-century antiquarian mentions the existence of a memorial plaque (now long lost) in the church at Hullavington to Hannah Twinnoy, believed to be the first woman in Britain to be killed by a tiger. In 1703 an 'Exhibition of Wild Beasts' was held in Malmesbury. Despite warnings from the zookeeper, Hannah persisted in teasing and provoking the big cat who eventually broke out of his cage and fatally mauled her.
The Malmesbury parish registers record the burial in the Abbey churchyard on 23 October 1703 of "Hannah Twynney kild by a Tygre at ye White Lyon" (the local inn at 8 Gloucester Street, a private house since 1967, where she worked as a barmaid).
There is however no evidence that Hannah had any personal or family connection with Hullavington .