This week's case is about how sometimes, the most chilling part of true crime isn’t just the crime itself… but the injustice that follows. Imagine two nine-year-old girls, Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway, vanishing into a Brighton, England, woodland one October evening in 1986. Hours later, frantic searchers discover their bodies — sexually assaulted, strangled, and abandoned side by side. The man responsible? A local petty criminal who would evade justice for decades and eventually attack 7-year-old Rachel Watts. Listen to this week's episode to hear the story of Russell Bishop — the Babes in the Wood killer.
Sources:
‘Babes in the wood’ killer Russell Bishop dies of cancer – The Guardian (2022)
How billion-to-one DNA match led to Russell Bishop’s murder conviction – Sky News (2018)
Babes in the Wood murders (Brighton) – Wikipedia
Ex-partner of Brighton ‘babes in the wood’ killer jailed for perjury – The Guardian (2021)
Police apologise for Babes in the Wood failings after double child killer escaped justice for 30 years – The Sun (2024)
Babes in the Wood killer strangled me aged 7 and left me for dead – The Sun / Sky documentary (2025)
Who were Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway, and what happened in the Babes in the Wood murders? – The Sun (recap)