In 2012 the decomposed remains of a girl thought to be between 15-17 were found in black bin bags behind a church in Houston. Despite a few identifiable features, Smurfette Jane Doe, named after the t-shirt she was wearing, is yet to be identified. 

In 1928, May Donoghue headed to a cafe in Paisley, Glasgow to catch up with a friend. They ordered a ginger float for May to enjoy, but after enjoying most of her drink she poured out the remains of a decomposing snail. After weeks of illness, she decided to fight her case - someone was responsible for the snail being in that bottle and she was going to make them (literally) pay. In a world with no laws protecting the consumer, she would make a change that all of us experience the effects of today.

On my platforms our interest in a case doesn't just end when the episode ends, I always keep one eye on cases I've covered in the past so I can keep you all up to date on the latest going ons and steps forward. Today we have some big updates in the cases of Opelika Baby Jane Doe, the Boy in the Box, Renee and Andrew McRae, Madeleine McCann and more!

On 1st July 2000, 8 year old Sarah Payne was playing in a corn field with her siblings when she fell over and hurt her knee. She decides to run back to her grandparents house for comfort, her older brother 13 seconds behind her. She disappears around a hedge... and then she's never seen again. 

In 2002, a group of children playing in Carryduff, Northern Ireland, came across the body of a newborn baby girl in a bin bag. Investigation quickly discovered that she had been murdered, naming her Baby Carrie. Despite extensive investigation over the years, the mother and/or the murderer have never been discovered.

In 1968, 18 year old Sheila Jean Collins put her details up on a ride share board at the ISU student union hoping that someone would be able to give her a lift home so she could see her boyfriend for the weekend. A man called offering her a ride, and she headed off to the intersection to meet him - two days later, her body would be found by the side of a remote gravel road near Nevada, Iowa.

In 1971, a man came across the body of a man on private property in Winshill, Burton upon Trent. Investigators were sure the murder would be quickly solved once they were able to find the identity of the man... only 52 years on, we still don't have his name.

The Fernald School is a dark stain on the history of Massachusetts, a school originally intended to teach physically and intellectually disabled children real-life skills that eventually turned into an experiment in eugenics. Many people speculate as to what exactly happened within those walls, but what we do know is that throughout the mid 20th century, radiation was tested on children.

Between 1976 and 1986, three Native American women would be found murdered around the name neighbourhood in Oklahoma City. To this day, there have been so viable suspects. 

9 year old Anthonette Cayedito went missing in 1986 after a knock on her door in the middle of the night. A year later a phone call came in to her local police department from a girl claiming to be Anthonette Cayedito... and her mother agreed it was her. Where is she? Can she still be found today?

In April 1974, cousins Raelene Eaton and Yvonne Waters headed to a local tavern to watch a band play, and whilst there started chatting to some men. They were last seen with these men in the car park; one minute they were there, the next they were gone. And they've never been seen again. What happened to the teenage girls? Who were these men?

In 1958, teenage lovers Pinky Redman and Mike Griffin set off on a road trip to Las Vegas to possibly elope, but they were never seen again. And they weren't the only ones to go missing. Six months later the boy of a teenage girl was found in the Arizona desert. Was this Pinky? Was this someone else entirely? What was happening in Arizona?

There aren't many silver linings when it comes to true crime, but one of the only good things we get are case updates: new suspects, identifications, steps forward in the investigations. Today we're going to be taking a look at updates in the Boy in the Box, the Somerton Man, Madeleine McCann, Tara Calico and more.

In April 1981, 14 year old Sheila Sharp headed home after a sleepover at a neighbours house to discover that the majority of her family had been brutally murdered in the night - a murder that 41 years later still remains unsolved. Despite many suspects over the years, and a recent rejuvenation in the investigation, we're still waiting for answers. Could 2023 be the year we get them?

March 18th 1937 was meant to be a normal day at New London School in East Texas, and just after 3pm children were buzzing to go home - but then disaster struck when an unknown gas leak caused an explosion that lead to the deaths of nearly 300 children and teachers. What lessons have we learned from this to ensure it never happens again? 

In July 1980, the bodies of two women would be found miles apart and neither would be identified for a long time. In the noughties, steps would be made to finally connect the Does to the same killer and one was eventually identified... but the identity of the Ventura County Jane Doe remains elusive.

True crime is inherently a depressing topic, but occasionally some good news comes out when a perpetrator gets apprehended, someone gets identified or even new evidence is found and released - today we're going to discuss all of those latest updates!

In 1910, 25 year old Dorothy Arnold went out to shop for a dress for her sister's debutante ball. And then she disappeared into thin air. 112 years on, and there has never been so much as a single clue as to what happened to Dorothy. Did she run away to start a new life? Did she die in a botched abortion? Was she abducted off the street? Maybe one day we'll find an answer. 

In September 2001, a man walking across Tower Bridge in London spotted a human body floating in the Thames, something investigators would soon discover to be just the torso of a young boy who seemingly had been victim of a ritualistic murder. Despite many leads and close calls over the years, 21 years on and Adam still doesn't have an identity, and police don't have their perpetrator.

In 1944 a fire at the Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey circus in Hartford, Connecticut led to the deaths of 168 people, of which 5/6 people still remain unidentified. As well as finding these identities, investigators have battled for decades to find the true cause of the fire - was it a carelessly discarded cigarette or something more nefarious?

In 1988 in New Bedford, Massachusetts 11 women went missing over the course of just 6 months and over the coming year, 9 of their bodies would be found alongside major roads leading out of the city. Despite a number of good suspects in this case, investigators were slow to realise something was going on under their noses and therefore the case remains unsolved to this day.

In 2014 the Broaddus family bought their dream home in Westfield, New Jersey. All the preparations were made to begin some serious renovation work before they moved in when an anonymous letter arrived from someone who referred to themselves as 'The Watcher'. Thinly veiled threats were made to the family's children and this person professed to be part of a long line of people watching the house, generation after generation. Who were they and what was their motivation?

Today we're talking a look at the Hays Code, a list of 36 'don'ts and be carefuls' for movie studios starting back in 1934 that changed the face of Hollywood forever. Ever wondered why Golden Age Hollywood films are so PG? Why even now queer people characters are hard to come by in films? Here's your answer!

On 19th September 1990, the body of a teenage girl/young woman was found by workers on the side of the I-40 in Hillsborough, North Carolina. She had been there for less than a week, and despite a couple of witnesses coming forwards enabling police to piece together her final hours, she's never been identified. Who is New Hope Jane Doe and who is responsible for her murder?

In the 1960s, a serial killer roamed the streets of West London, hunting for poor sex workers to be his next victim. Each woman would be found nude or partially nude with teeth missing and covered in paint splatters. But despite extensive investigation and many suspects over the years, the killer nicknamed Jack the Stripper has never been apprehended. 

65 years ago, the body of a young boy was found on Susquehanna Road in Philadelphia. Despite one one the biggest searches in state history, and becoming one of the most infamous Doe cases of all time, the boy has never been reunited with his identity, nor given justice for his murder. Genetic genealogy might mean we're close to answers in this case, but spreading the word is always helpful.

Police insist that in August 2014, 22 year old Jake Latiolais ended his own life by jumping over the edge of the Horace Wilkinson bridge in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, however there has never been any solid evidence to support this theory - and no proper investigation was ever conducted. I've worked closely with Jake's mum, Tina, to bring his story to you today and try to spread the word.

In June 1934 the dismembered torso of a woman was found at Brighton train station before her legs were found the following day at Kings Cross. To this day she remains unidentified, but her discovery led to the uncovering of the similar but apparently unrelated murder of Violette Kaye.

In October 1972, a rugby team were catching a flight from Uruguay to Chile for a match but after a pilot error, they ended up crashing in the middle of the Andes. For 72 days, 16 men managed to survive against all odds before a remarkable feat of bravery led to their rescues. 

29 years before Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay summited Everest, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine attempted the same. They made one last attempt but tragedy struck and they never made it back down the mountain - for many years neither of their bodies were found and when one was, it only provided more questions than answers. Did they make it?

Joseph Merrick was sadly born in a time before modern medicine, born into a world where people with deformities were forced to either live life in the shadows or put themselves on display as a novelty, as freaks. Joseph chose the latter. He never received a proper diagnosis for his illness, that caused him to form growths and tumours all over his body, and still to this day scientists can't answer the question fro certain. What was it that the Elephant Man suffered with?

Today we're going to be covering 3 Jane Doe cases, St Charles Jane Doe from Missouri and two Davidson County Jane Does from Tennessee, one from 1976 and another from 1998. More and more Doe cases are being solved every single day, but these stories need more eyes and ears on them, do you live in any of these areas?

Back in December 1981, 14 year old Dana Bradley hitchhiked on her way home from a friend's house and she was never seen again. Her body was found four days later, but 41 years on we still haven't found her killer, despite four witnesses seeing the man and car in question. 

We all know the story of how penicillin, the life-saving antibiotic, was discovered right? An Alexander Fleming accident. But what if I told you there was actually a lot more to the story and it turns out multiple people were actually involved in the creation of the antibiotic we know and love today? Crazy, right?!

Throughout the latter part of the 20th century crime rates in the USA and across the world started to grow exponentially, before reaching a peak in the early 1990s and rapidly falling from there. Plenty of theories have been put forward over the years, but what if the reason is as simple as the huge usage of lead in the aftermath of World War 2?

Back in 1887-1889, body parts started washing up along the banks of the River Thames in London, victims who for the most part still remain unidentified today as well as the perpetrator. Who was skulking in the shadows, attacking women and dismembering their bodies? Some think it may have been Jack the Ripper, using a different MO from his 1888 Whitechapel murders, but we may never have the answer.

49 years ago to this day, an arsonist set a fire at a gay bar in New Orleans, leading to the deaths of 32 people. Despite many witnesses knowing who set the fire, investigators didn't care enough about the deaths of 32 gay men to investigate properly and no justice was ever brought.

In 2002 the body of a teenage girl was discovered behind a strip mall in Tempe, Arizona after she had died following a cocaine overdose. Despite a man coming forward saying he was the last person to see her alive with a detailed description of her last moments, investigators have never been able to find the girl's identity. 

Holly Bartlett was found unconscious at the base of a bridge in 2010 after a night out with friends. The taxi driver insists he dropped her outside her apartment building the night before but somehow Holly, who was a blind woman, travelled 300m in the wrong direction and somehow became so injured her family made the decision to turn off life support the next day. How did this happen?

Today we're taking a look at some old cases I've covered and sharing some big and some small updates that have recently come out about them. We have new suspects in the Madeleine McCann and Mr Cruel cases, Jane Doe updates and one exciting identification, a new victim announced for San Francisco serial killer the Doodler and more.

This week we're going to be discussing the case of Lorraine Stahl, the alias of a woman who's body was found in Ledyard, Connecticut in 1974. Whilst we do have an alias of hers and someone was even convicted for her murder, we still don't know her real identity, her family have never been notified.

This week let's talk all about vaccines, from inoculation to the creation of the smallpox vaccine to Louis Pasteur, all the way up to the recent creation of the COVID-19 vaccines. A real one to nerd out to!

This week we're going to be talking about Jesse Pomeroy, who at 14 years old became the youngest person to ever be convicted of first degree murder in Massachusetts after killing two children, but suspicion runs deep that he may have been responsible for the deaths of many more.

This week we're going to New Hampshire to take a look into the Bear Brook murders and the web that has unravelled in the authorities attempts to find the identities of four murder victims found in barrels. Somehow, this case eventually led to them solving the identity of the Golden State Killer.

14 year old Alicia Navarro went missing from her home in Glendale, Arizona on 15th September 2019 after leaving her mum a note promising that she would be returning. She hasn't been seen since and it's thought that she was lured away from her home by a person she met online through her love of gaming.

This week we're looking at the disappearance of 6 boys from Pickering, Ontario back in 1995. After telling friends they were going to 'goof off' at the marina, they all disappeared and after an unhelpful cursory search, police immediately assumed they died in the lake. But no trace of them or the boats have ever reappeared. 

Something a bit lighter hearted this week as we explore the strange phenomenon of 'time slips', people momentarily, unintentionally travelling back in time before appearing back in the present. This seems to happen more in certain places than others, one of which being on Bold Street in Liverpool. Why?

In 2010 a body was discovered outside an old carpark by Angel's Meadow, Manchester. It was clear that she had been there undiscovered for many decades, but 12 years since her discovery and investigators are no closer to finding out her name or her killer.