This episode travels to Edinburgh to look at the fascinating story behind one of Scotland’s longest-running investigations, the World’s End murders, a double murder from 1977.\n\nBack then, forensic science was still in its infancy, and a lack of evidence meant that for nearly 40 years the killer went free - until a modern day expert witness unlocked clues hidden in some soil samples and helped convict the murderer.\n\nOur second investigation starts on Scammonden moor, near Huddersfield, and looks at the science behind the capture of the killer of Christopher Pratt.\n \nOf all the evidence gathered at the scene of a crime, perhaps some of the most surprising is the tiny creatures who act as silent witnesses to the events that unfolded. Insect life can help prove a timeline right at the beginning of an investigation when clues are thin on the ground, and this case shows just how crucial this evidence can be.
Source: BBC 1
Series 1: 15. 60s Dna And Fibres Around The World
A 50-year-old cold case murder is solved by DNA and the tenacity of an expert witness, and a murder investigation is solved by tracking unusual blue fibres around the world.
13-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 12. Pollen, Chalk And Dna
How expert analysis of nettles and soil helped catch the killer of the Soham schoolgirls Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, and how advances in DNA techniques finally solved the m ...
12-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 11. Text Messages And Dna
Analysis of text messages reveal a husband’s plot to cover up his wife’s murder, and traces of DNA on decades-old evidence help bring justice to the family of a murd ...
11-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 9. Cerium And Cctv
We reveal how the power of forensic science not only found a killer, but also freed an innocent man. Forensic evidence is a powerful tool. So powerful, that if it’s misint ...
10-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 5. Pollen In A Field And Fibres In A Car Crash
When smouldering human remains are found in a field in Hertfordshire, a policeman’s hunch and a diligent expert witness help catch the killers. \n\nNot every expert witne ...
09-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 6. Dna, Fibres And Bones
In this episode, we reveal how the tenacity of a team of forensic scientists helped finally catch the killer of two children in Brighton. Also, when bones were discovered on moo ...
06-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 8. Soil On A Spade And Stones In A Shoe
Soil on a spade helps catch the killer of a young woman from Swindon, who for years evaded justice and a stone stuck in the sole of a shoe helps solve a murder in Manchester.
05-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 3. Forensic Imaging And Msn Chat
This episode uncovers the forensic imaging expertise behind the eventual capture of Michael Hardacre, the 'Rochdale ripper'.\n\nIn the summer of 2000, a series of attacks in Roc ...
04-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 2. Blood Under Paint And Gait
A skilled expert witness does more than just analyse existing evidence. They guide detectives towards new clues that can turn a case. That is what happened in the case of Lynett ...
03-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 1. Soil And Insects
This episode travels to Edinburgh to look at the fascinating story behind one of Scotland’s longest-running investigations, the World’s End murders, a double murder ...
02-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 3: 2. A Watery Grave And The Dangerous Date
When the body of a farmer is found in a lake, a bioarchaeologist helps police reveal how he got there. Meanwhile, when a man is accused of intentionally spreading the HIV virus, ...
27-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 4: 9. Lured To The Woods
We explore a case that encompassed the biggest fingertip search in British history and required the help of a digital forensics expert to apprehend the suspect. But it would tak ...
07-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 3. Forensic Imaging And Msn Chat
This episode uncovers the forensic imaging expertise behind the eventual capture of Michael Hardacre, the 'Rochdale ripper'.\n\nIn the summer of 2000, a series of attacks in Roc ...
04-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1 (extended Versions): 4. Blood Under Paint And Gait - Fibres
Blood traces hidden under paint help an expert witness overturn a miscarriage of justice, an unusual gait identifies a killer and the science of fibre evidence is explored.\n
08-12-2022
BBC 1
Series 1: 6. Dna, Fibres And Bones
In this episode, we reveal how the tenacity of a team of forensic scientists helped finally catch the killer of two children in Brighton. Also, when bones were discovered on moo ...
06-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 4: 11. Blood On The Carpet
In 1976, Renee MacRae and her infant son Andrew are reported missing. The car they were travelling in is found on fire in a lay-by near Inverness. Neither will ever be seen agai ...
12-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 4: 14. Blood On His Hands
When a disabled woman is found brutally murdered in her home, her neighbour is the prime suspect. Rhona Heywood was found dead next to her unconscious neighbour in 2008 after sp ...
15-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 4: 8. Beneath The Ashes
When fire crews attended a blaze at a hostel in West Sussex, they quickly discovered a burned body on a bedroom floor. It belonged to 37-year-old mother of five Melanie Grey and ...
06-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 1: 5. Pollen In A Field And Fibres In A Car Crash
When smouldering human remains are found in a field in Hertfordshire, a policeman’s hunch and a diligent expert witness help catch the killers. \n\nNot every expert witne ...
09-06-2025
BBC 1
Series 1 (extended Versions): 7. Suspicious Texts, Dna And Soil Secrets
Text message analysis reveals a shocking crime, and DNA on old evidence catches a killer. Soil science and the first murder case solved using DNA evidence are also explored.
13-12-2022
BBC 1