This Much is True Crime

"I know where you live. Be very afraid." Those were the words in the emails that began arriving at a regional newsroom, aimed at its main evening news presenter, Alexis Bullwater. The stalking ran through both of her pregnancies, while she was visibly pregnant on air, and on through a year of maternity leave. It was pure cyberstalking, so nobody knew who was behind it. As Alexis puts it, that made it everyone, all the time, everywhere. Outside broadcasts needed extra security. Police drove past her home three times a day, and she slept with a Home Office approved...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Supported by True Crime Channel. ------- For years, women in Bournemouth reported finding locks of their hair mysteriously cut off. The man responsible would eventually be exposed as a double murderer. Danilo Restivo, nicknamed the 'Haircut Killer', was convicted of murdering 48-year-old Heather Barnett in her Bournemouth home in 2002. Investigators also linked him to the murder of 16-year-old Elisa Claps, who disappeared in Italy in 1993. Her remains were not discovered until 17 years later, hidden in the roof space of a church. Restivo's disturbing fascination with cutting women's hair became a crucial...

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What is it really like to spend 25 years working with some of Britain's most troubled and dangerous offenders?

Former probation officer Elizabeth Baxter joins This Much Is True Crime to discuss her new book, A Murderer's Guide to Cleaning, and the extraordinary people she encountered throughout her career in Britain's probation service.

From violent offenders to some of the more bizarre characters she worked with, Baxter offers a different perspective on the criminal justice system and the people caught...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. ------- Lisa Hayden-Johnson convinced the country that her young son Matthew was suffering from a series of life-threatening illnesses. But the truth was far more disturbing. From cerebral palsy and cystic fibrosis to diabetes and severe allergies, Matthew was subjected to hundreds of medical appointments, made to use a wheelchair and fed through tubes, despite not having the conditions his mother claimed. The story attracted national attention, with Matthew receiving a Child of Courage award and the family meeting figures including Tony Blair and the Duchess of Cornwall. But behind the...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Christa Pike was supposed to become the first woman executed by Tennessee in more than 200 years. Instead, she survived her own execution. Pike was sentenced to death for the 1995 torture and murder of 19 year old Colleen Slemmer. On September 30, Tennessee attempted to execute her by lethal injection, but after two doses of pentobarbital, Pike continued breathing and was eventually rushed to hospital in critical condition. The extraordinary failure has thrown Tennessee's execution system into turmoil. Governor Bill Lee has halted executions for the remainder of the year and ordered an independent...

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In November 2001, 90 year old Mabel Leyshon was murdered inside her home on Anglesey in one of Wales's most disturbing murder cases.Her killer was 17 year old Mathew Hardman, a former paperboy who had developed an obsession with vampires and the idea that he could achieve immortality.

Mabel was stabbed 22 times before her body was subjected...

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The case of Luigi Mangione has become one of the most closely followed criminal cases in America.

Mangione is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, who was shot dead in Manhattan in December 2024. The case has attracted extraordinary public attention, from the circumstances surrounding Thompson's death to the reaction...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. SimpliSafe: For an exclusive 35% OFF and a FREE outdoor camera, click the link below and use the promo code: TRUECRIMEhttps://simplisafe.co.uk/build-my-system?utm_code=TRUECRIME Bombshell new findings from the Thirlwall Inquiry have concluded that Lucy Letby could and should have been stopped sooner, potentially saving the lives of three of her victims. The inquiry found serious safeguarding failures at the Countess of Chester Hospital and concluded that the failure to alert police earlier to concerns about Letby's conduct had devastating consequences for children and their families. Professor David...

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The trial of Lindsay Clancy has become one of the most closely watched criminal cases in America, but after weeks in court, it ended without a verdict.

Clancy was on trial over the deaths of her three young children, with her defence arguing that she was not criminally responsible by reason of insanity. After deliberations, the jury was...

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How did a serving police officer with a history of concerning allegations remain in the Metropolitan Police?

Professor David Wilson and Martin Frizell examine the murder of Sarah Everard by serving Metropolitan Police officer Wayne Couzens and the series of failures that preceded her death.

They discuss the...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. ------- SimpliSafe: For an exclusive 35% OFF and a FREE outdoor camera, click the link below and use the promo code: TRUECRIME https://simplisafe.co.uk/build-my-sys... ------- What’s new in the Preston Davey Scandal? Child killer Jamie Varley has been under 24hr hour watch since his jailing for the murder of toddler Preston Davey, he’s even changed his name at notorious Wakefield Prison hoping it might protect him from other inmates at what’s called ‘Monster Mansion’. Meanwhile, the campaign to force a public inquiry into the crime that shocked th...

Simon Levy sexually assaulted women on the London Underground before going on to murder two women.

Professor David Wilson and Martin Frizell examine Levy's crimes and the failures of the Metropolitan Police in dealing with his offending. They discuss how his behaviour escalated, whether warning signs were missed and whether more could have been done to stop him before he went on to kill.

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This week, we're discussing the case of James Desborough, the killer whose crimes in Cornwall earned him comparisons to the fictional serial killer Dexter Morgan.

Desborough murdered two men at his isolated shack in the Cornish woods before later killing his own cellmate while serving time in prison.

We look at Desborough's three murders, what happened at the secluded woodland shack, and how a man already convicted of killing twice was able to murder again behind bars. We also explore the comparisons between Desborough and Dexter, and what we...

Does the motive for the alleged kidnapping of grandmother Nancy Guthrie lead back to a Manhattan tv studio and an obsessive fan?Kidnapping claims, mysterious ransom notes, and fresh developments—this episode examines the latest verified updates in the Nancy Guthrie case, separating confirmed facts from rumor and exploring what investigators have revealed so far. On 1 February 2026, 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC News journalist Savannah Guthrie, was abducted from her home in Arizona. Bloodstains found at the scene confirmed she had been taken against her will, triggering a major investigation involving the FBI, US Customs and Border Pr...

Britain’s prisons are full — and thousands of offenders are being released earlier than expected to create space.

But who is being let out, how much of their sentence are they actually serving, and what happens when prison capacity begins to dictate justice?

In this episode, we examine Britain’s overcrowding crisis and the emergency early-release schemes introduced by the government. We also look in detail at the devastating killing of PC Andrew Harper, the sentences handed to the three men responsible, his widow Lissie Harper’s campaign for Harper’s Law, and why the possibilit...

This week, we're discussing one of Britain's most enduring unsolved mysteries: the disappearance of Suzy Lamplugh. 40 Years on, Suzy Lamplugh’s killer, it has to be him! It is still one of the great murder mysteries of modern times, who killed 25 year old estate agent Suzy Lamplugh? In this episode, Britain’s leading criminologist Professor David Wilson revisits the evidence and is left in no doubt who abducted and killed Suzy and where he likely first saw her In July 1986, the 25-year-old estate agent left her office to meet a client known only as "Mr Kipper" and was never seen...

This week, we're discussing the extraordinary case of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain.

After shooting her lover, David Blakely, outside a London pub in 1955, Ellis was convicted of murder and executed just months later. More than 70 years on, her case continues to divide opinion, with fresh debate surrounding her conviction, the abuse she suffered, and whether justice was truly served.

We explore the events leading up to the murder, the trial that shocked the nation, and why Ruth Ellis has now been granted a conditional posthumous pardon.

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Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Check out our Patreon for bonus weekly episodes and access to live recordings, plus monthly newsletters! Click here to join: https://www.patreon.com/c/ThisMuchisTrueCrime Join our Murder Club: https://www.patreon.com/c/ThisMuchisTrueCrime Follow us on social media: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thismuchistruecrime Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thismuchistruecrime Steve Gallant was serving a life sentence for murder when his life took an extraordinary and unexpected turn. In 2019, while temporarily released from prison to attend a rehabilitation event, Gallant became one of the members of the public...

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British TikTok influencer Brooke George is facing a possible death...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Check out our Patreon for bonus weekly episodes and access to live recordings, plus monthly newsletters! Click here to join: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ThisMuchisTrueCrime?l=en-GB Join our Murder Club: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ThisMuchisTrueCrime?l=en-GB On 18th June, Jamie Varley was found guilty of the murder of Preston Davey and sentenced to life imprisonment. His partner, John McGowan Fazakerley, was sentenced to 25 years after being convicted of causing or allowing the death of a child. The verdicts brought to a close one of the most disturbing...

Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Check out our Patreon for bonus weekly episodes and access to live recordings, plus monthly newsletters! Click here to join: https://patreon.com/ThisMuchisTrueCrime Join our Murder Club: https://patreon.com/ThisMuchisTrueCrime The abusive monster who murdered his partner before blowing up their London home was jailed for life last week with a minimum term of 23 years. Annabel Rook had been domestically abused by Clifton George, her partner of 10 years, and when finally telling him she was ending the relationship he attempted to strangle her before stabbing her to death 31 times...

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In 1989, 22-year-old Julie Hogg was murdered in her own home in Billingham. Her killer, Billy Dunlop, walked free twice despite damning evidence - protected by an 800-year-old legal loophole. It took one determined mother to change the law forever - Anne Ming

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Hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates. Check out our Patreon for bonus weekly episodes and access to live recordings, plus monthly newsletters! ⁠⁠Click here to join. The heartbreaking police bodycam footage of teenager Henry Nowak — arrested, handcuffed, and slowly dying from stab wounds — has shocked Britain. Henry was just 18 years old when he was murdered in Southampton in December last year. The case has raised serious questions about policing, justice, and the actions of those around killer Vicrum Digwa, who was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 21 years. At the centre of this story are two fami...

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In 1992, Rachel Nickell was walking on Wimbledon Common with her two-year-old son when she was brutally murdered in broad daylight.

The attack shocked the nation — not only because of its horror, but because of what followed: a deeply flawed police investigation, a controversial undercover operation, and the wrongful targeting of an...

There's an outcry over a judge's decision to allow a gang of teenage rapists, aged 14 and 15, to walk free after they were convicted of 11 rapes on two girls in Fordingbridge in Hampshire. The Attorney General is now considering whether the sentencing was unduly lenient by the trial judge who said he had the welfare of the rapists uppermost in his mind as they were considered children. The court heard they used a knife, laughed and filmed their crimes and shared the video on social media.

In this special episode we examine claims the rapists were suffering from...

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The infamous ‘Black Cab Rapist’ has been told he’s still a high risk to women and must remain locked up in the most dangerous category of prisoners.

John Warboys victims, including Boris Johnson’s wife Carrie, welcomed the decision saying it was a huge relief but she continued to criticise the police for still not taking attacks against women seriously.

Warboys reign of preying on s...

If you like this episode please hit subscribe so you don't miss any updates... - Check out our Patreon for bonus weekly episodes and access to live recordings, plus monthly newsletters! ⁠⁠Click here to join. - In this episode, we investigate one of the most infamous missing child cases in modern history: the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. On the evening of 3 May 2007, three-year-old Madeleine vanished from a holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Portugal, while her family were on holiday. What followed became a global media storm, a decades-long investigation, and a case filled with theories, mistakes, and unanswered ques...

Scotland Yard are hoping to bring the German paedophile suspect Christian Brueckner to the Old Bailey to stand trial for the murder and abduction of the missing three year old.

This week, on the 19th anniversary of Madeline’s disappearance, Martin Frizell and Professor David Wilson have been to the Portuguese Algarve to trace the footsteps of her alleged killer. For the first time, they gain access to the holiday complex where the McCann’s spent an idylic week before their world changed for ever.

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What would you do if the person you loved confessed to killing someone?

In this episode of This Much Is True Crime, we look at the disturbing case of Alexander “Sandy” McKellar, whose relationship with forensic pathologist Caroline Muirhead took a horrifying turn when he revealed the truth about the disappearance of cyclist Tony Parsons.

What began as a romance became a nightmare of secrets, buried evidence and an impossible moral choice. Could Caroline protect the man she loved? Or w...

Please hit the subscribe button, it's free and means you won't miss another episode x ------- In this episode of This Much Is True Crime, we unpack the shocking case surrounding singer D4vd, born David Anthony Burke, following his April 2026 arrest in Los Angeles. Prosecutors allege Burke murdered 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose remains were discovered in the trunk of his impounded Tesla months after she disappeared. He has since pleaded not guilty and is being held without bail as the case moves through court. We explore the timeline of Celeste’s disappearance, the grim discovery that stunned th...

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On a quiet evening in Nairn, Alistair Wilson answered his front door and stepped into a mystery that has never been solved. This is the story of a shocking murder, the questions left behind, and the search for the truth in one of Scotland’s most perplexing cases.

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Don't miss another episode! Hit the subscribe button. In this special on-location episode of This Much Is True Crime, David and Martin take the podcast to the shadowy streets of Edinburgh. Edinburgh may be beautiful, but beneath the surface lies a far darker past. In this episode, we dig into the city’s long history of public hangings, brutal justice, and the crimes that once shocked Scotland. Standing in the very places where crowds gathered to watch executions, we...

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New photographs and documents released from the millions of files linked to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein haver been welcomed by those raising doubts around the official reason for his death. Did he hang himself or was he strangled to prevent him naming names at his upcoming court case? His brother, Mark, has assembled an independent group of pathologists to reexamine Epstein’s autopsy with the results expected soon in what Mark Epstein promises will be a bombshell fi...

It was meant to be the romantic, inspiring triumph over adversity tale of a homeless couple, managing a terminal illness finding hope and health walking around England’s South West Coast. It made the authors a million and became a hit movie but The Salt Path was exposed as being misleading with allegations of embezzlement and doubtful medical claims. And now there’s a new scandal and this time it’s been confirmed by the author Raynor Wynn. Journalist Martin Frizell and Professor of Criminology David Wilson return to the Path to explore this new development and the stonewall defenc...

The Post Office Scandal is one of the biggest miscarriages of justice in British history, yet for years it unfolded quietly behind the counter of ordinary village post offices. Hundreds of sub-postmasters were accused of theft, fraud and false accounting after a faulty computer system made it look like money was missing.

Lives were ruined, reputations destroyed, and some victims were even sent to prison. Now, after decades of campaigning and a landmark ITV drama that reignited public outrage, the scandal is finally getting the attention it deserves.

But how did the Post Office get...

Hannibal the Cannibal has never really gone away, he's remained a pop cultural icon despite being a coldblooded serial killer. Now, thanks to Donald Trump and a new book on the elusive author Thomas Harris, the chianti supping monster is back in the news. But what was the origin of the fictional character brought to chilling life by Anthony Hopkins and Brian Cox? And why does he remain our favourite cannibal killer?

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His daughter had wanted him dead, his mum Lydia wanted peace for her family but she was still his mum. However, following a bedside visit she reportedly gave permission to unplug his ventilator.

Ian Huntley was fighting for his life after a ferocious attack by a fellow inmate in jail where the former school caretaker had been serving 40 years for the murders of schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman. Huntley’s injuries made him unrecognisable, catastrophic head and brain trauma, doctors reportedly said he was in a vegetative state.

If he had a better prognosis ,he...

Exclusive hour long chat with the remarkable Jason Rothwell who says he connected with the dead body of the Lancashire mum of two Nicola and led police to the stretch of river where she was eventually found. Jason says Nicola told him where to find her and she followed his instructions to free her foot allowing her corpse to rise to the surface. Police divers and search teams had looked in vain for 23 days before Jason intervened.

If you are sceptical or think it all sounds far fetched then have a watch or a listen and see...

We each have a foot in both camps in this episode. I, broadcaster and journalist Martin Frizell, have spent much of my career in breakfast and daytime tv, indeed I'm married to a former morning show anchor, Fiona Phillips. Professor of Criminology David Wilson has studied the reasons behind kidnapping and the typical profile of abductors. And yet there's something about the kindnap of NBC Today host Savannah Guthrie's 84 year old mum that is puzzling. Three weeks in and no sign of life from Nancy, no confirmation of a ransom note but a very amateurish break in at her...

He was one of America’s most prolific serial killers, John Wayne Gacy, murderer of 33 teens and young men, executed for his crimes - but what was the motive?

The new documentary on ITVX, Devil in Disguise, explores Gacy’s clown connection, the trauma on his victims and families, prejudice in 70’s USA and glaring police failings. The killer protested his innocence to the end but his crimes are now textbook reading and possibly led to copycat killings by British serial killer Dennis Nilsen.

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