Wicked Beyond Belief: The True Crime Story Behind the Hit New TV Show - Softcover

Bilton, Michael

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0007450737 ISBN 13: 9780007450732

Publisher: William Collins, 2023

Synopsis

Revelatory investigation into the police handling of the Yorkshire Ripper Case which spanned over 14 years. Newly updated to include Sutcliffe’s bid for freedom in 2008, and the verdict from court in 2010.

For over twenty years, the dark secrets of the biggest criminal manhunt in British history have remained a closed book. Detectives refused all requests to tell the inside story of the Yorkshire Ripper investigation that logged over two million manhours of police work. The victims who survived maintained a wall of silence. And the detailed forensic evidence, witness statements and autopsy reports have remained locked away – until ‘Wicked Beyond Belief’ was published.

Award-winning writer Michael Bilton persuaded the key people to talk. After years of exhaustive research he has revealed the extraordinary truth behind the murder enquiry that left Peter Sutcliffe free to kill again and again.

With exclusive access to the detectives involved, to pathologist's archives and confidential police reports, the story of the hunt reads as tensely as any thriller. In this updated edition, he charts the blunders and changes in the law that enabled Sutcliffe to demand a minimum term with the possibility of parole in 2010. He also explores what has happened to the Ripper’s surviving victims, and their families, in recent years.

‘Wicked Beyond Belief’ is a shocking and important indictment of the most notorious murder hunt of the twentieth century.

About this title

Review:

‘A masterpiece that reads like a thriller.’ Time Out

‘There is unlikely to be a more cmprehensive or carefully researched account of the case. To read ‘Wicked Beyond Belief’ is to have a sense of being physically present at the day-to-day investigation, experiencing the frustrations, the stress and the public outrage at its lack of success as the years passed and murder followed.’ P.D.James, Mail on Sunday

‘Bilton knows more about the Ripper case than anyone living.’ Blake Morrison, Guardian

From the Back Cover:

For over twenty years, the dark secrets of the biggest criminal manhunt in British history have remained a closed book. Detectives refused all requests to tell the inside story of the Yorkshire Ripper investigation that logged over two million manhours of police work. The victims who survived maintained a wall of silence. And the detailed forensic evidence, witness statements and autopsy reports remained locked away.

Until now. Award-winning writer Michael Bilton has persuaded the key people to talk. After years of exhaustive research he can finally reveal the extraordinary truth behind the murder inquiry that left Peter Sutcliffe free to kill again and again.

With exclusive access to the detectives involved, to pathologists archives and confidential police reports, the story of the hunt reads as tensely as any thriller. Its measured analysis of the calamitous investigation is also a shocking and important indictment of the most notorious murder manhunt of the twentieth century.

About this edition

• Publisher: William Collins
• Publication date: 2023
• ISBN 10: 0007450737
• ISBN 13: 9780007450732
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 816