The manager of an amusement arcade on the corner of Gerrard Street and Wardour Street in Soho, London, went to open the premises for business — it was just before 8 AM on Monday, April 3rd, 1989. Accompanied by his assistant, when the manager entered the building, he heard faint cries from the basement, and a strong smell of smoke hung in the air. They moved cautiously through the property, heading down some stairs to a locked storeroom. When they opened the door and went inside, they discovered a desperate situation…
Throughout the first two decades of the 20th century, life in Britain began to change rapidly. In the years preceding the first world war and the great depression, the economy was stable — although the divide between classes was significant, women were getting closer to equality, and the first female police officers began to patrol the streets. It had been many years since Jack the Ripper had terrified women in London, but a new predator was in their midst, someone who could lull his victims into such a false sense of security they had no idea he would strike when they were at their most vulnerable…
Elstree Studios is based in Borehamwood, an area where hundreds, if not thousands, of movies and TV shows have been filmed — it's not unusual to see the odd celebrity. But, in December, the high street is abuzz with a different excitement — it's Christmas time, and the festivities are in full swing…
November 1991 — rumours were circulating around the village of Northiam in Sussex, about 52-year-old Terry Daddow and his 51-year-old wife, Jean. The malicious gossip focused on their love life as well as Terry’s business dealings. In an attempt to set the record straight, Terry and Jean went to unusual measures. They addressed a letter to the local newspaper requesting that it be printed…
PLEASE LISTEN TO ‘SEASON 7 - EPISODES 23 & 24’ FOR PARTS ONE AND TWO OF THIS THREE-PART CASE. Late on the night of December 11th, 1975, police constables Stuart MacKenzie and Tony White were on patrol in the Nottinghamshire area of Mansfield Woodhouse, when they noticed a man walking in the shadows with his head down and a holdall bag over his shoulder… (Part 3 of 3).
PLEASE LISTEN TO ‘SEASON 7 - EPISODE 23’ FOR PART ONE OF THIS THREE-PART CASE. On February 10th, 1975, almost a month since Lesley Whittle’s kidnapping, detectives announced that the suspect was “the most wanted man in Britain”… (Part 2 of 3).
Highley is a village built along the banks of the River Severn in Shropshire. Previously a mining area — the collieries closed in 1969 — the village became a market town. In 1975, the population was small, around 3,000 residents. Among them were 17-year-old Lesley Whittle and her mother, Dorothy Walker… (Part 1 of 3).
Soon after midday, on Tuesday, January 19th, 2021, the London Ambulance Service received a frantic phone call from Susan Oliver. Susan lived in Mottingham, South London, with her 74-year-old husband, David. She hysterically told the operator that her partner had been stabbed at their home…
It was quiet in Ardoyne on Saturday, March 15, 2014. However, during the early morning hours, a woman living on Ardoyne Place was awoken by the sound of shouting. It was coming from somewhere in the neighbourhood, but at first, she couldn't make out the exact location. The loud voices sounded like several men who were upset — it was difficult to decipher what they were yelling about. As she lay in bed, the Ardoyne resident then heard a rhythmic thumping sound. She got up out of bed and glanced out of the window. Illuminated by the street lights, a man could be seen kicking the front door of a property, adjacent to hers…
Residents of Balne Lane were settling in for the night, preparing dinner and searching for something good to watch on television. It was March 15th, 1994 — a quiet Tuesday evening in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. Some employees at Green’s Printers, which overlooked the neighbourhood, were working late. Shortly after 6 PM, one of the silk screen print workers noticed a man approaching a red-brick, end-of-terrace property. The home belonged to 52-year-old Wendy Speakes…
Each episode of I HEAR FEAR plunges the listener into a tale inspired by real events, from a deadly dance party to a cursed film set. Join host and two-time Oscar nominee Carey Mulligan for six immersive stories designed to jangle your nerves and haunt your dreams.
Desperation can lead people to flee the country they call home in search of somewhere safer, a place where they might have better work prospects and a better quality of life. In some cases, they feel they have no choice but to turn to traffickers to get them out. When they arrive at their intended destination, they know they will be financially indebted to the traffickers, perhaps for the rest of their lives. But sometimes, the trafficked do not make it that far...