From a woman whose body was found so badly beaten she has never been identified to the case of a young mum who vanished on her way home, their cases remain unsolved.
Spanning from 1970 to the early 2000s, the perpetrators of the murders have yet to be brought to justice despite extensive police investigations.
In some cases the bodies of the women were never found, but the circumstances of their disappearances have led to their cases being treated as murder.
Friday (25 November) marks the start of 16 days of activism aimed at ending violence against women, starting with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and White Ribbon Day.
We take a look at 20 female murder victims of all different ages and walks of life from across the UK whose cases have tragically remained unsolved.
In some cases the bodies of the women were never found, but the circumstances of their disappearances have led to their cases being treated as murder.
5. Nicola Payne
Nicola Payne, 18, was last seen walking to her parents’ home across waste ground in the Wood End area of Coventry on 14 December,1991. She had a seven month old son and was walking from her boyfriend’s house to her parents home went she went missing. She never made it home and it is believed she was abducted, killed and her body dumped. Witnesses had described seeing two men acting suspiciously in the area. killed and her body dumped. The investigation has been one of the biggest in West Midland’s Police’s history. During the investigation there have been arrests and a court case, though noone has ever been convicted of her murder and her body has never been found. Last year on the 30th anniversary of her disappearance a vigil on the path where she would have walked to get home, was held. A documentary called The Never Ending Murder, looking at Nicola’s case is set to be released next year.
6. Wendy Gallagher
Wendy Gallagher was 24 years old when she was strangled with an electrical cord in her home. She lived alone at her home in Princess Street, Barnsley, Yorkshire. Wendy was last seen in the town centre on Friday 18 January 1991. Her body was discovered the following Monday - 21 January, after concerns were raised that nobody had seen her. Last year on the 30th anniversary of her murder, police made a fresh appeal for information. Detectives were also using advances in scientific technology to re-examine forensic evidence seized at the time of the murder in the hope that previously undetected traces of DNA could be identified. Photo: SYP
7. Body found in Bedgebury Forest
On 23 October, 1979 a woman’s body was found in Bedgebury Forest, Kent. The body had been battered, mutilated, murdered and dumped, and a bloodstained wooden stake was found nearby. It’s believed she was killed up to five days before she was found. There were no identifying items with her and the severity of her injuries prevented identification. She was aged between 30 and 35, and 5 ft 1 in with a thin build. She was wearing black shoes, a distinctive floral dress, a black polo neck jumper and a yellow blouse. It was discovered she had an ectopic pregnancy which had been present for 4–6 weeks and bleeding for 2–3 weeks. The woman was of no fixed address and was a regular hitchhiker along the M1 and M6 motorways. In 1999 a retired lorry driver was charged with her murder. He was cleared when a jury found him not guilty in 2000 after a trial.
8. Julie Finley
Julie Finley, 23, disappeared from Liverpool city centre on 5 August in 1994. She was last seen alive at the back of the Royal Liverpool University Hospital while speaking to a man believed to be aged in his 20s or 30s. Her naked body was discovered the following day in a field close to a lay-by in Rainford, St Helens. Last year on the 27th anniversary of her murder Crimestoppers offered a £10,000 reward for information that would lead to the arrest and conviction of the person or person responsible for her death.