The Unrecorded: True Crime

On the 18th of January 1981, fourteen young Black people were killed in a fire at a birthday party in New Cross, South London. They were between the ages of 14 and 22. Most of them had grown up on the same streets. They knew each other. What followed was one of the most significant, and most ignored, moments in Black British history. The press barely covered it. The government said nothing. And so...

Bibaa Henry was forty-six years old. A social worker who spent her life advocating for vulnerable children and families. A sister. Nicola Smallman was twenty-seven. A freelance photographer . A close friend said when she walked into a room she was like a nightlight - subtle, protective, warm. On the evening of the 5th of June 2020, they were celebrating Bibba's birthday in Fryent Country Park...

Edna Mmbali Ombakho was a thirty-one years old. She came from Kitale, Kenya to study for her Masters degree in London. She called her family every week without fail. On the 1st of February 2026, she went for a walk near her home in Wraysbury, Berkshire. She did not come back. For five weeks, her family flew from Kenya to sit in a police station in Berkshire. Her community organised, prayed, and ap...