Episodes
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Faye Dunn was a professional footballer who played for the England women's team. In 2020, police discovered she had another career in organised crime.
Amber Haque tells the story of how Faye and her father were rumbled in the biggest organised crime bust in British history. Dr Julia Shaw delves into the research on double lives and going into crime with a family member.
Producers: Maggie Latham, Lorna Reader and Fiona WoodsProduction Apprentice: Danita McIntyreExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioner: Izzy Lee-Poulton
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The story of how teenager Michelle Carter's text messages to suicidal boyfriend Conrad Roy resulted in death for him and a charge of manslaughter for her.
Hosts Amber Haque and Dr Julia Shaw discuss whether it should be a crime to encourage someone to take their own life?
Producers: Lorna Reader and Rachel Oakes.Executive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Sherri Lynn Lamarche was the unassuming bookkeeper in a family real estate business in Nova Scotia. She was trusted so much that she managed to steal millions before anyone noticed.
Hosts Amber Haque and Dr Julia Shaw discuss how criminal psychology's model of the "fraud triangle" perfectly fits this ultimate office drama. It's a classic fraud story of opportunity, incentive and rationalisation.
Producers: Ciaran Tracey with help from Lorna Reader, Rhiannon Cobb and Shabnam GrewalExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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In February 2024, mother-of-six, beloved parenting guru and social media star Ruby Franke, was convicted and jailed for child abuse.
The case struck at the heart of what it means to be a good carer in today’s society, and how even the most loving parent can end up committing unimaginable cruelty.
Join criminal psychologist, Dr Julia Shaw and true crime documentary maker Amber Haque as they discuss this truly heartbreaking and mind-boggling case – as well as exploring how what and who we choose to follow and interact with on social media can raise serious moral questions too.
Producers: Maggie Latham and Rachel OakesExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Rebecca Coriam, a 24-year-old from Chester, was working on a cruise ship off the Pacific coast of Mexico when she disappeared in 2011. The story of how the police and the cruise line dealt with her disappearance shines a light on the difficulties of getting a thorough investigation when someone goes missing at sea.
Hosts Amber Haque and Dr Julia Shaw discuss this story and find out more about crime on cruise ships.
Producers: Maggie Latham and Rachel OakesExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Showtrial series 2 is a gripping BBC screen drama about climate activism, civil disobedience and police corruption. Screenwriter Ben Richards joins Julia and Amber to talk about the bad things his characters do and why.
In this podcast we state incorrectly that the setting for the courtroom drama was London. We should have said the setting was a Brighton courtroom. We apologise.
Producer: Lorna ReaderExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Magdalena Cruz did not know who her father was. But she knew he was a rapist. An ancestry DNA test led her to her likely family. When she looked at their profiles on social media she came across the photograph of a man with a striking family resemblance.
Journalist Amber Haque and criminal psychologist Dr Julia Shaw delve into the story.
Producers: Ciaran Tracey and James ShieldExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Three boys from the same Sunderland school were found dead within a few months of each other in the early 1990s. Their deaths were initially blamed on sniffing glue to get high. But the boys' families thought they had been murdered. And they were right. Two years later, Steven Grieveson was convicted of serial murder. But the investigation wasn't over.
Presenters: Criminal psychologist Dr Julia Shaw and journalist and true crime documentary maker Amber Haque.
Producers: Maggie Latham and Rachel OakesExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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"Pretendians" are people who falsely claim a native American or indigenous Canadian identity.
In 2024, a 59 year old woman who falsely claimed her daughters were adopted Inuit girls was sentenced to three years in a Canadian prison. Karima Manji lied about her daughters' heritage to claim $150,000 from funds reserved for Inuit people. The judge sentenced her to more than the two years recommended by the prosecution, stating that Manji had "victimized the Inuit of Nunavut by stealing their identity."
Should crimes involving cultural appropriation attract a heavier sentence?
Hosts: Dr Julia Shaw and Amber Haque.
Producer: Shabnam GrewalAssistant Producer: Rachel OakesExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Baby girl Delimar Vera is declared dead in a house fire. Years later, the bereaved mother thinks she recognises her at a party. The girl she thinks is her daughter is called Aaliyah. The woman who has brought her up claims to be Aaliyah’s birth mother.
Hosts Amber Haque and Dr Julia Shaw discuss the truth about Delimar Vera’s real fate – and how the research on phantom pregnancy and child abduction help us understand what happened and why.
Producers: Maggie Latham and Rachel OakesExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottRecording Studio: 88HertzCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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A law abiding businessman turns criminal after medical treatment. Are hormones to blame?
Richard Davis was a 42 year old asexual with a highly successful business and no criminal record. Then he experienced a sudden change of personality. He became sex-obsessed - buying pornography and hiring escorts. Within two years of this personality change, he had convictions for assault and dishonesty and was banned from being a company director.
Journalist Amber Haque digs into the newspaper and court archives to tell this extraordinary story. Criminal psychologist Dr Julia Shaw explains why, in this case, the defence "My hormones made me do it," might be more than a lame excuse.
Producer: Maggie Latham with help from Shabnam Grewal and James ShieldResearcher: Rhiannon CobbExecutive Producer: Innes BowenProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyMix Engineer: John ScottRecording Studio: 88HertzCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton and Sarah Green
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Presenters Dr Julia Shaw and Amber Haque meet the world's most famous victim of romance fraud: Cecilie Fjellhoy. After exposing the so-called Tindler Swindler in a Netflix hit, Cecilie confronted him in person and set up a campaign to help other victims.
Cecilie's life changed radically after she swiped right on the Tinder profile of Simon Leviev.
He took her on a private jet on their first date, told her he was the son of a billionaire diamond dealer and seemed to live a jet set life. But though he dressed in designer clothes from head to toe, drove expensive cars and had an entourage that included a chauffeur and a bodyguard, the handsome Israeli was actually a convicted fraudster whose real name was Shimon Hayut.
Once he knew Cecilie had fallen in love with him, he told her his life was in danger and that he needed to stay alive. He maxed out her credit card immediately and then begged her to get more money. She managed to borrow nearly $200,000 which he promised to pay back but he never did. She ended up bankrupt and depressed while he moved on to defrauding other women.
She tells Julia and Amber about life after Netflix - and discusses the psychological tricks that romance fraudsters play.
Presenters: Dr Julia Shaw and Amber HaqueProducer: Shabnam GrewalExecutive Producer: Innes BowenUnit Manager: Lucy BannisterProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyResearcher: Rhiannon CobbMix Engineer: John ScottRecording Studio: 88HertzCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Izzy Lee-Poulton, Adam Eland and Sarah Green
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In TV dramas, criminal profilers solve crimes that the police cannot. Presenters Dr Julia Shaw and Amber Haque look at a real life case. An anonymous blackmailer threatens acid attacks unless his demands for pornographic photos of female airline staff at Gatwick are met. The police are stumped. So, they call in a professor of criminal psychology. What he says astounds them. Further information: Julia refers in this episode to the following study: Analysing criminal profiling validity: Underlying problems and future directions. Rita Alexandra Brilha Ribeiro, Cristina Branca Bento de Matos Soeiro. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry Volume 74, January–February 2021, 101670 Cracker is a 1990s ITV drama series about a fictional criminal profiler. The series was produced by Granada Television, written by Jimmy McGovern and starred Robbie Coltraine. In August 2024, the series was available on ITVX. Jimmy McGovern appears in this June 2021 episode of Bad People, talking about another one of his crime dramas: Time. The Real Cracker was a documentary series produced by Oxford Films. It was inspired by the TV drama Cracker. A book based on the series was published in 2002 by Channel 4 Books: The Real Cracker: Investigating the Criminal Mind by Stephen Cook. Producer: Innes BowenEditor: Philip SellarsUnit Manager: Lucy BannisterProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyResearcher: Rhiannon CobbMix Engineer: John ScottRecording Studio: 88HertzCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Adam Eland and Sarah Green
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Bad People is back!
Criminal psychologist, Dr Julia Shaw, is joined by a new co-host: journalist and documentary maker Amber Haque.
The new season starts with a true crime story that went viral during lockdown.
Penny Jackson looked as if she was living the middle class retirement dream. Holidays and a retirement home by the sea.
But cooped up with her husband during lockdown, her anger got out of control. After a petty row about food she stabbed her husband to death. When police arrested for murder, she said, "Oh good." Video footage of her being taken into custody in her M&S pyjamas went viral.
Amber looks into the couple's lives for clues about what led to their fatal row. Julia and Amber discuss coercive control, toxic relationships and complex grief.
Presenters: Dr Julia Shaw and Amber HaqueProducers: Ciaran Tracey and James ShieldExecutive Producer: Innes BowenUnit Manager: Lucy BannisterProduction Coordinator: Juliette HarveyResearcher: Rhiannon CobbMix Engineer: John ScottRecording Studio: 88HertzCommissioning Editor: Dylan HaskinsAssistant Commissioners: Adam Eland, Sarah Green and Izzy Lee-Poulton
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Bad People is back! Criminal psychologist Dr Julia Shaw makes a return to the series with a new co-host: journalist Amber Haque. Each episode tells the story of a true crime and explains why people do bad things. Murder, blackmail, fraud and much more.
Listen every Thursday. Bad People is a BBC Studios Audio production for BBC Sounds.
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It’s the Bad People finale. In this last ever episode, Julia and Sofie dig into the ethics of the media covering criminal cases.
After a press “campaign of vilification”, all charges against Christopher Jefferies were dismissed. The tabloids had incorrectly painted him as Joanna Yeates’ killer. Mr Jefferies took the newspapers responsible to court - and won. He then gave evidence during the Leveson Inquiry, the UK’s landmark investigation into wrongdoing and alleged corruption within the media.
In this episode of Bad People, criminal psychologist Dr Julia Shaw and comedian Sofie Hagen discuss why many of us think the media is biased against our own views because of “the hostile media effect”. They talk about the Leveson inquiry and what makes media coverage of crimes bad -- or good.
At the end, they summarise what they learned from working on Bad People for the past three and a half years.
CREDITS
Presenters: Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen Producers: Laura Northedge and Lauren Armstrong-Carter Assistant Producer: Hannah Ward Editors: Anna Lacey and Richard Collings Music: Matt Chandler Commissioning Executive: Dylan Haskins Commissioning Assistant Producer: Adam Eland Production Coordinator: Jonathan Harris
#BadPeople_BBC
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In December 2010, the UK media became fixated with the disappearance of 25 year-old Joanna Yeates. When her body was discovered, many tabloid newspapers felt certain they knew the identity of her murderer. Christopher Jefferies had been Joanna’s landlord and was considered by some to be “strange”. The claims against Christopher were unfounded. Being hounded by the press left lasting reputational and psychological scars.
In this episode of Bad People, Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen ask: is it possible to have a fair trial when the tabloids have decided you are guilty? They explore research on prejudicial pre-trial publicity as well as “media shock” effects after police issue warnings about a killer on the loose.
CREDITS
Presenters: Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen Producers: Laura Northedge and Lauren Armstrong-Carter Assistant Producer: Hannah Ward Editors: Anna Lacey and Richard Collings Music: Matt ChandlerProduction Coordinator: Jonathan Harris
Commissioning Executive: Dylan Haskins Commissioning Assistant Producer: Adam Eland
#BadPeople_BBC
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Daniella Isaacs, the creator of the new BBC Sounds audio drama, People Who Knew Me, joins Dr Julia Shaw in a conversation about faking one’s own death and using the terrorist attacks in America on September 11th 2001 to do so.
We ask, who fakes their own death and why? And how easy is it to pull it off?
Warning: This episode contains references to the 9/11 attacks and also suicide and drowning.
CREDITS
Presenter: Dr Julia Shaw Producer: Simona Rata Assistant Producer: Hannah Ward Editors: Anna Lacey and Richard Collings Music: Matt Chandler Production Coordinator: Jonathan Harris
Commissioning Executive: Dylan Haskins Commissioning Assistant Producer: Adam Eland
#BadPeople_BBC
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Convicted child sex offender Mark Sutherland has arranged to meet a 13 year-old boy at a bus station, but when he arrives a team of adult “paedophile hunters” greet him with a video camera.
In this episode of Bad People, hosts Julia Shaw and Sofie Hagen explore vigilante justice. What right, if any, do these “hunters” have to track down sex offenders? When text messaging, do people have a right to privacy? And do sex offender registries make us safer or just more scared?
CREDITSPresenters: Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie HagenProducer: Laura NorthedgeAssistant Producer: Hannah WardEditors: Anna Lacey and Richard CollingsMusic: Matt ChandlerProduction Coordinator: Jonathan Harris
Commissioning Executive: Dylan HaskinsCommissioning Assistant Producer: Adam Eland
#BadPeople_BBC
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In 2010 Pramila Krishnan, a journalist for the Deccan Chronicle, filed a story about a little-known practice called Thalaikoothal. The story was huge in India and lead to the filming of the 2020 Tamil-language film Baaram, which translates as The Burden.
In this episode of Bad People, Sofie Hagen and Dr Julia Shaw discuss senicide, the killing of older adults. At what point is someone “old” and how does frailty fit into it? At what age, if any, should we want to die? And how prevalent is elder abuse?
The audio in this episode is from the film Baaram, directed by Priya Krishnaswamy, a Reckless Roses production. Some audio is also from Satyameva Jayate, produced by Aamir Khan Productions.
CREDITSPresenters: Dr Julia Shaw and Sofie HagenProducer: Simona RataAssistant Producer: Hannah WardEditors: Anna Lacey and Richard CollingsMusic: Matt ChandlerProduction Coordinator:
Commissioning Executive: Dylan HaskinsCommissioning Assistant Producer: Adam Eland
#BadPeople_BBC
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