Fred and Rose West Reopened: when is new ITV documentary with Trevor McDonald on, and what’s it about?

The case of infamous serial killer couple Fred and Rose West is being re-examined by ITV presenter Trevor McDonald, in new documentary Fred and Rose West: Reopened, with the second part airing on 16 September.

Fred and Rose West killed at least 12 women between them, although the exact number is disputed.

While their last known murder victim - their own daughter Heather - died in 1987, it is expected that there were many others before the duo’s arrest in 1994.

So what’s the documentary about, and when is it on TV?

What is Fred and Rose West: Reopened about?

Former ITN journalist Trevor McDonald will delve into a private investigation, which was launched after the documentary team uncovered evidence that suggested there could be up to 20 more victims of Fred and Rose West.

In May this year, police dug up the cellar of the Clean Plate cafe in Gloucester, after being informed about “possible evidence” of where Mary Bastholm may be buried. She disappeared on 6 January 1968, aged 15.

Fred West, who had been a regular in the area near the cafe during the time preceding Mary’s disappearance, reportedly admitted killing the girl to his son Stephen, but not to police.

However, her body was never found and Fred never gave any further information about her death.

The dig at the cafe earlier this year found no evidence that Mary’s remains were buried there.

The filmmakers, led by former Detective Chief Inspector Colin Sutton, also look into another 96 possible locations that were identified in relation to the inquiry.

They visit the locations and use cadaver dog Bailey, as well as ground penetrating techniques, to find new evidence.

DCI Sutton fears there is too much of a gap between the victims’ murders - most were found in the cellar of 26 Cromwell Street in 1994 - for there not to be more victims.

Who are the known Fred and Rose West victims?

The 12 known victims of Fred and Rose West are:

• Anne McFall – McFall was born in Glasgow and was about 18 years old when she was murdered by Fred in 1967. She was a nanny to his children from his first marriage and was pregnant when she was killed.
• Charmaine West (nee Costello) – the step-daughter of Fred from his first marriage, she was only eight years old when she was killed by Rose and Fred West. She is believed to have been killed in 1971.
• Rena West – Rena West was Fred’s first wife and the mother of Charmaine. Only Fred was convicted of her murder.
• Lynda Gough – She worked as a seamstress and was about 20 years old when she was killed in April 1973.  Her body was later found in Cromwell Street, over two decades later.
• Carol Ann Cooper – She was living in a children’s home at the time of her disappearance and had been to visit her grandmother on the day she was last seen alive. Cooper was murdered at the age of 15.
• Lucy Partington – Believed to have been killed in 1973, aged 21. She was a student who had returned home for the holidays in 1973 when she was abducted and killed. Her body was found 20 years later in Cromwell Street.
• Therese Siegenthaler – She was also a student who had told her family she was planning to hitchhike to Ireland. She is believed to have been killed in 1974.
• Shirley Hubbard – The victim was a 15-year-old shop worker in Worcester. She is believed to also have been abducted and killed.
• Juanita Mott – She was Fred and Rose West’s lodger at Cromwell Street, having accepted a lift home from them when she was 18.
• Shirley Robinson – Robinson is believed to have been pregnant with Fred’s child when she was murdered by the pair in 1977, having engaged in an affair with Fred. She had also lived for some time at Cromwell Street.
• Alison Chambers – German-born Chambers moved to Swansea, Wales, before then living in Gloucester from the aged of 16, while training at a solicitors’ firm. She was reported missing and her body was found years later under the patio at Cromwell Road.
• Heather West – Heather was Fred and Rose’s first daughter. She was last seen alive in 1987, aged 16. Her body was found under the patio in the back garden of 25 Cromwell Road.

When is Fred and Rose West: Reopened on ITV?

Fred and Rose West: Reopened airs on 15 and 16 September at 9pm on ITV.

Both episodes will also be available on the ITV Hub and STV player in Scotland.