Back in August 2007 – the murder of Sophie Lancaster ‘shook the nation’ – in part, because of the savagery of the assault that her and her boyfriend Rob Maltby endured – but equally because of the young age of the offenders. The case was treated as a hate crime and nearly 20 years later there are still questions around whether youth violence could ever be eradicated.

Dermot is joined by criminologist and expert in hate crimes Professor Jon Garland from the University of Surrey to understand where youth violence still exists and if hate crime can be prevented.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In 2017 Cathy Burke, a 55-year-old retired civil servant, was violently murdered in her own home and six weeks later, 22-year-old Iuliana Tudos disappeared on her walk home from work on Christmas Eve. Iuliana’s story gained huge traction, and the MET very quickly tracked down the killer – Kasim Lewis, who, to the MET’s shock, had Cathy’s DNA at his home as well as Iuliana’s. Only half of this story made the headlines and if Cathy’s murder had been resolved sooner there’s a chance Iuliana’s death might’ve been prevented.

Dermot Murnaghan is joined by former Met Police Detective Superintendent Shabnam Chaudhri, to understand why it is that some cases get more coverage than others and what learnings the Police need to take to protect women’s safety.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In January 2019, Lee Pomeroy boarded a train along with his 14-year-old son. Another man was also on the train – Darren Pencille. Shortly after they boarded, Pencille clashed with Lee and some angry words were exchanged, Pencille pulled out a knife and violently stabbed Lee in the neck and torso, 18 times in 25 seconds. Tragically, Lee died in his son’s arms, before the train reached the next stop. Pencille is a paranoid schizophrenic and had a history of not taking his medication, this along with the fact this all happened in the middle of the day lead many to question not only their safety on public transport but whether this could have been prevented.

Nikki Mitchell, BBC South Home Affair Correspondent, joins Dermot Murnaghan to discuss what went wrong.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In February 2023, 16-year-old Brianna Ghey was brutally murdered by two teenagers – one of whom claimed to be her friend. She was lured into a park in Warrington and stabbed 28 times, at least in part, because she was transgender. Brianna’s killers were both just 15 years old and had spent countless hours on the dark web and social media, planning the sadistic murder online. The safety of children online and their use of mobile phones has been questioned for a number of years and this case highlighted a lot of parents worries.

Journalist and Northern correspondent for the Daily Mail, Liz Hull joins Dermot Murnaghan to talk about the dangers of social media and the responsibilities major tech companies have for children’s safety.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In September 2022, Shakira Spencer’s body was discovered by the police in a badly decomposed state. Almost immediately police found clues that foul play was involved and during the investigation, it transpired that three, so called ‘friends’ – had in fact been abusing Shakira for years, dehumanising her and treating her as a slave.

Forensic psychiatrist, Dr Sohom Das joins Dermot Murnaghan to discuss how these kind of group dynamics can develop and the psychology behind it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Since the early 2020’s fatal dog attacks have been covered in the media time and time again and half of these stories involved a single breed – the now infamous American XL Bully. The incident that really put XL Bullies onto the front pages of the newspapers was the tragic death of 10-year-old Jack Lis in Caerphilly, Wales. It was Jack’s death – and the campaign work of his Mum – Emma that fuelled the conversation around dangerous dogs.

Dermot Murnaghan is joined by criminologist and author Dr Simon Harding to discuss where the blame lies in these cases and if the ban has actually helped.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In June 2020, just as the UK was coming out of COVID lockdown restrictions a rapid and ferocious attack took place in Forbury Gardens, Reading. The offender inflicted multiple fatal stab wounds and despite the best efforts of members of the public and first responders, three victims, James, Joe and David died almost immediately. Shockingly, it became clear that the attacker was in fact very well known to the authorities and had been flagged as a serious risk many times before, leading many people to question whether this terrorist attack could have been prevented.

Nikki Mitchell, BBC South Home Affair Correspondent, joins Dermot to discuss what went wrong.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On Christmas Eve in 2022, 26-year-old beautician Elle Edwards was shot while outside her local pub on the Wirral in Liverpool. A lone gunman, targeting someone standing near to Elle opened fire and she was caught in the crossfire. 

Many described this murder as senseless and it caused great upset within the community, leaving many asking questions surrounding gun violence and what can be done to stop it. Jonathan Humphries, a journalist for the BBC and former Crime Correspondent for the Liverpool Echo, joins Dermot to discuss why there has been a surge in gun and gang violence and how it can be tackled.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Broadcaster Dermot Murnaghan is joined by a team of experts and witnesses to examine cases that gripped the nation to explore how they shaped public conversation. Told by family, friends and the community at the heart of the crimes, the series analyses the events that led to such atrocities before examining the devastating effects that they have left in their wake. Police evidence, eye-witness accounts and archive news pieces help to unpack the cases and put viewers at the forefront of the investigations. Crimes featured in this series include – the Christmas Eve shooting of innocent bystander Elle Edwards in Merseyside, the Forbury Gardens terrorist attack in Reading, the fatal XL Bully dog attacks across the UK, the abuse and killing of Shakira Spencer during the Covid lockdown, the murder of trans teenager Brianna Ghey, the murder of Lee Pomeroy on a commuter train in London, the double murder of Cathy Burke and Iuliana Tudos in north London and the murder of Sophie Lancaster in Bacup.

And join journalist Dermot Murnaghan in Crimes That Shook Britain: A Closer Look as he and his guests dive deeper into the shocking cases featured in the Crimes That Shook Britain TV series. We’re taking a closer look behind the headlines of crimes that gripped the nation and discuss some of the wider issues that surround it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.