Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling

Iain tells the chilling story of Belle Gunness – a prolific American serial killer whose own death is surrounded in mystery. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

A ransom note has arrived at the Murder They Wrote HQ. Plus, DB Cooper theories – and a very upright dog. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

Barbara Mackle was your average university student. Until she was snatched in the middle of the night and forced, by her kidnappers, to hide out in the most terrifying place imaginable. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

Listener Julie has sent in a famous Coventry case involving a very unhappy marriage and a chilling murder. Plus, Iain explains the legend of Lady Godiva. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

Iain dives into the life and crimes of Soapy Smith, a 19th-century con artist who earned his nickname by mastering the art of ‘The Soap Game’. Hear about how Soapy went from a small-time crook to the leader of a major criminal empire in America’s Wild West. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. E...

Laura heads to the Isle of Man to investigate a 159-year-old unexplained murder involving a horse-drawn cart. And Iain tells a story about a famous Manx witch… with an unexpected ending. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an episode. Email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

Three friends are exploring an abandoned mineshaft in Wales when they stumble upon a human skull. As the police arrive to search the area, they continue to make a number of gruesome discoveries. And they find something else: a diamond engagement ring. Did these three young men just accidentally crack a 42-year-old cold case? Laura and Iain dig into the eerie 1919 disappearance of Mamie Stuart. Mur...

From jam-filled Yorkshire puddings to famous dogs and unexpected trouser mishaps, the Murder You Wrote Mailbag delivers again. Plus, Laura and Iain need your help cooking up the ultimate true crime-themed dinner party. Got a pun-filled course idea? If you want a chance to be featured in our next mailbag episode, email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

When a prison riot breaks out inside Scotland’s Peterhead Prison, two officers are taken hostage and the SAS are secretly called in. But the truth of what happened wouldn’t come out for years... This is the story of a brutal prison, a high-stakes rescue mission, and the man who survived it all. For pictures of the destruction of D Block, see here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-41397881 Mu...

Listener Cat sends Iain a case involving her husband’s distant family, taking him to Southampton 1924 when a 15-year-old family secret involving a hidden sea chest comes to light and shocks the authorities. And Laura tells Iain a story about a cockerel and ‘torture’. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an...

A late-night fire tears through Room 66 at a hotel in Margate. One guest runs for help, another is pulled from the smoke, but it’s already too late. As investigators begin to piece together what happened that night, a different kind of story starts to emerge. Laura and Iain dive into a case that rocked 1920s Britain, where the truth may have been lost in the flames. Murder They Wrote with Laura Wh...

Laura heads to York to unravel Craig Townend's £1m art gallery heist leads to even more bizarre thefts in England's most haunted city. Plus, Iain shares York's weirdest theft stories: a replica skull stolen from the city's most haunted pub on New Year's Eve, and the tale of a German student who "liberated" an organ pipe from York Minster in 1969. Murder You Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirl...

In 1889, Edwin Rose vanished on a hike up Goatfell. His body is later found hidden under a pile of rocks. Was it a tragic fall, or something more sinister? All eyes turn to John Annandale, the man who last saw Edwin alive. But when John suddenly vanishes and reappears under a different name, the case takes a bizarre turn. Iain takes us to the Isle of Arran to retrace the steps of this Victorian my...

Guinea pigs, mistaken towns, and a 100-year-old rabbit! Laura & Iain open the inbox for wonderful tales (and tails) from our Living Legends. Plus! There’s a pun so good it had to be written in and listener corrections that keep us on our toes (as always!) If you want a chance to be featured in our next mailbag episode, email us at lauraandiain@bbc.co.uk .

A love triangle erupts into a gunfight at Denver’s Brown Palace Hotel, exposing a scandalous affair that ends in a double murder Iain unpacks the heated rivalry between Frank Henwood and Tony von Thul, two men competing for the affections of socialite Isabel Springer. When flirtations turn to threats and threats escalate to gunfire, the fallout sends shockwaves through Colorado high society, leavi...

Iain transports us to 1858 Bradford – then the world's wool capital, where confectioner William Hardaker ("Humbug Billy") unknowingly sold arsenic-contaminated sweets that resulted in one of Britain's most devastating mass poisonings. Plus your emails feature a burglar delivered to police by Batman, a theory about D.B. Cooper, and the street poet who challenged developers with a can of spray paint...

Iain takes us back to the swinging 60s to revisit the theft of a portrait that had been hanging in London’s National Gallery for just 19 days before it vanished. At first, no one believes it’s been stolen – but when a handwritten ransom note arrives, detectives are forced to take the case seriously. Iain uncovers how this case baffled police for years and eventually ended up inspiring a film starr...

Laura takes us to the hauntingly beautiful Lake District and uncovers three chilling murders. Meanwhile Iain digs up tales of thieving pensioners, bad parking and a Viking church mistaken for a public toilet. The Lake District might be stunning, but it hides more than just hills and hikes. Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe no...

Laura retraces the twists of one of Britain's most debated unsolved cases. In 1919, a farmer found the body of a young woman on the side of a quiet country road, lying next to her bicycle. While first deemed an accident, it soon becomes clear she’s been shot. A witness recalls a man on a striking green bicycle seen with her just hours earlier, but when police search for the rider, the truth become...

Laura and Iain dive into the inbox and face a full on tribunal from Living Legends across the UK. Is it “Mull-guy”? What about "Gotham"? And how do you say “tortoise”? Iain’s mum, Allison, might just have the final word. Plus! Mystery bananas left on a Nottingham street, fake olives in Italy, and the world’s oddest dental appointment... If you want a chance to be featured in our next mailbag episo...

Iain takes us to the 1930s to uncover the twisting tale of Pretty Boy Floyd, a young outlaw that escapes a prison train and vanishes into the hills. Follow this smooth-talking fugitive who charmed the public and was named Public Enemy No.1 by the FBI. When a mysterious ambush leaves multiple people dead, the hunt intensifies. With law enforcement closing in, Floyd’s story becomes a legend of escap...

Listener Simon sends Laura to Croydon for a trio of tales: unsolved family poisonings, a 1930s airport gold heist, and a fly‑tipper with a skip-load of nerve. Plus, cardboard box–loving cats, a recovering Jack Russell-Corgi cross and an avocado bathroom renovation? Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twice a week on BBC Sounds. Subscribe now so you never miss an ep...

Laura revisits the shocking case of The Cameo Cinema Murders, a deadly robbery that shook Liverpool in 1949. When a cinema manager and his assistant are shot dead, police rely on the testimony of questionable witnesses to build their case. But with strong alibis, conflicting accounts, and physical evidence that doesn’t quite fit, doubts begin to mount. What follows is one of the most controversial...

Iain dives into the wild story of Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, a tale packed with betrayal, dramatic beheadings, and the mystery of his missing remains. Meanwhile, Laura explores the curious world of Loch Ness Monster insurance. Plus, listeners from Inverness send in their own local stories (and plenty of pet pics, of course!). Murder They Wrote with Laura Whitmore and Iain Stirling is available twic...

Laura takes us to 1993, when a routine breakfast in a New York diner spirals into a nightmare for tuxedo tycoon Harvey Weinstein. Snatched in broad daylight, he vanishes without a trace. With only cryptic ransom demands, unsettling polaroids, and a chilling tape to go on, detectives launch a desperate race against time to bring him home. But nothing about this case is straightforward, and the cloc...