In July 1978, the city of Aberdeen was rocked when Dr Brenda Page was found bludgeoned to death in her West End home. Initial police forensic work undertaken by Eric Jenson uncovered unusual paint flecks at the crime scene. These were later linked to Brenda’s abusive ex-husband Kit Harrisson, but charges could not be brought, and the case went cold. \n\nIn the early 2000s, forensic biologist Chris Gannicliffe is asked to re-examine the evidence for a cold-case review. Chris undertook a full re-examination of hundreds of original exhibits from the crime scene. Utilising cutting-edge analytic techniques on a stained bedsheet led to the discovery of new DNA evidence. Chris’s work would provide a solid link to the original suspect Kit Harrisson and result in Harrisson being found guilty of Brenda’s murder 45 years after her death. \n\nIn North Yorkshire, a woman is found dead in the home she shared with her husband above a post office. Her husband claimed that she had been held hostage for a certain amount of time, but that really didn’t fit the timeframe of events. Police ask expert witness, blood pattern analyst Jo Millington, for help. She proved that the direction of blood at the crime scene meant there may never have been a break-in, and the victim’s husband was convicted of her murder.
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 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: 10. Pollen, Bones And Dna
Some cases are open and shut. Others present as a complete mystery, and it takes an Expert Witness to uncover the first clues. That’s what happened when human remains were ...
12-08-2022
BBC 1
Series 1 (extended Versions): 1. Soil And Insects - Hair
A serial killer is caught by using soil analysis, insects hold the clues to finding a murderer and the forensic sciences of hair evidence and entomology are put under the micros ...
06-12-2022
BBC 1
Series 2 (reversions): 7. Body In The Snow / From The Ashes
This episode takes us to Bristol, where police launch a major missing persons enquiry following the disappearance of 25-year-old Jo Yeates. Days later, the body of the young wom ...
04-12-2024
BBC 1
Series 2 (reversions): 8. Late Night Murder / Hounded To Death
Our first case tells the story of a 24-year-old Irish nurse studying in Glasgow, who disappears after a night out with friends. Police focus on the last man she had been seen ch ...
05-12-2024
BBC 1
Series 4: 5. Catching A Cold Case Killer
Now more than ever, forensic science is opening up the possibility of catching criminals for crimes that have remained unsolved for years. In this episode, a case that had lain ...
29-04-2025
BBC 1
Series 3: 8. Patterns Of Behaviour And Time Flies
A blood residue specialist leads police to the killers of an East Sussex waiter, brutally bludgeoned in his flat. And a forensic entomologist uncovers a case of extreme neglect ...
05-02-2025
BBC 1
Series 4: 12. The Rachel Nickell Murder: Justice At Last
On 15 July 1992, while walking with her two-year-old son on Wimbledon Common, Rachel Nickell was brutally murdered, with the little boy left clinging to her body. The police lau ...
13-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 3: 4. Corrosive Truth And A Field Of Evidence
When a woman is the victim of an acid attack in Brighton, an expert pieces together hours of CCTV footage to identify the suspect. And through pollen analysis, an expert witness ...
29-05-2025
BBC 1
Series 2: 15. Killer On The Run And Murder In The Valleys
When a man kills four people and goes on the run, a handwriting analyst is brought in, and after a body is found, an expert in pollen links the suspects to the scene of the crime.
02-12-2022
BBC 1