A SKULL thought to belong to a woman murdered 131 years ago has been found in the garden of Sir David Attenborough's Richmond home.

Workmen found the skull in the grounds of the legendary wildlife presenter's Park Road home on October 22. It was reported to the police, and an inquest has been opened by West London coroner Alison Thompson.

It is believed that it belongs to Julia Martha Thomas, who lived and was murdered in the road, near Sir David's home in 1879.

Investigating officer, A/DI Dave Bolton, said: "We are keeping an open mind as to whom the skull belonged to and the bones will be subject to further forensic examination and anthropological study seeking to establish the cause of death, age of the victim and possible identity. The skull was recovered from a building site, beneath foundations that had been in place for at least 40 years.

"The skull remains as the unidentified remains of a woman. However, one line of enquiry is the now widely speculated story that the skull comes from Mrs Julia Martha Thomas, who was murdered at a venue in 1879, very close to the site of the skull recovery. Police would therefore ask that if there are any living relatives of Mrs Thomas that they contact us.

"If scientists are able to subsequently extract DNA from the skull we will seek to compare the DNA of a known relative of Mrs Thomas to see if we can conclusively prove or disprove that the skull is indeed that of Mrs Thomas."

Anyone who can help is asked to contact Richmond police on 020 8247 5809.