True Crime series The Body Next Door: Woman joked about a skeleton in her garden actually her husband

A new true crime documentary has landed on Sky. The Body Next Door is a three part series looking at Leigh Sabine and the skeleton she hid in plain sight. The series meticulously recounts this extraordinary story, offering viewers unbelievable twists and turns, and unravelling a case that sent shockwaves around the world.

Leigh Ann Sabine was a retired nurse who lived in the village of Beddau in Wales. According to neighbours, she often joked she had a medical skeleton in her flat that she kept from her nursing days. 

In 2015 Leigh died from cancer and the skeleton in her home turned out to be her murdered husband John Sabine who was last seen alive in 1998. So how did she get away with murder and keep the body in her home without anyone realising for 17 years? 

Mail Online reported that Medically trained Leigh had embalmed his body and it's believed she kept it in a divan bed in the spare room of the home they had once shared. An inquest in 2016 heard it had been preserved by 'chemical mummification'.

The new true crime documentary will feature Leigh and John’s eldest son Steven as well as locals and neighbours. Michelle James was the woman that discovered that the ‘medical skeleton’ was a real body and notified South Wales Police. 

The Body Next Door is available to watch from Sunday August 11 on Sky Documentaries or catch up now. 

Natalie Dixon is NationalWorld’s Lifestyle reporter. If you liked this article and want to read more about soaps, celebrities and lifestyle you can follow Natalie Dixon on X here. 

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