Britain's 'most dangerous' prisoner's nephew spots startling 'change' in killer
Robert Maudsley's nephew has opened up about his serial killer uncle, revealing he is "not in a great place" following his transfer from 'Monster Mansion' prison.
The notorious British prisoner, who holds the record for the longest incarceration in the UK, was moved from HMP Wakefield on April 8 to Whitemoor prison, some 125 miles away in Cambridgeshire, UK. He had spent a whopping 40 years straight inside Wakefield. According to Gavin, who shares a close relationship with Maudsley, the relocation hasn't sat well with him.
Gavin detailed to Behind Bars TV: "In Whitemoor, to the best of our knowledge, he hasn't got his stuff. His regime is an hour out of his cell each day, and that is not an hour in the yard, within this hour you have to get your shower and all that. Any time you take a shower, that comes off your yard time.
"He is not in a great place right now. I am still trying to confirm and verify if he has a TV or if he has his books and stuff – but I can't imagine how it will be for him if he hasn't."
Maudsley's family, from Merseyside, are eagerly wanting to visit him – Gavin last met his uncle just weeks before the sudden prison change.
Previously labelled as Britain's most dangerous prisoner, Maudsley had killed two inmates while inside Wakefield, adding to his grim record that began with the killing of John Farrell in 1974 and included the death of another at Broadmoor Hospital before his spree continued behind bars.
He was infamously dubbed Hannibal the Cannibal after rumours spread that he had consumed the brains of one of his victims, and even though this was later debunked, the moniker persisted.
Speaking about his notorious uncle Maudsley, Gavin told ex-con Ricky Killeen: "You will be hard pushed to find someone who can't empathise with what he has been through. I always say, nobody is born a serial killer, there is certain things to happen in one's life for it to end up in that place."
After a spat with staff at Wakefield over "privileges", Maudsley reportedly went on a hunger strike lasting as long as five weeks, before his eventual transfer to a specialist unit in Whitemoor jail, Cambridgeshire.
Now 71 and having spent the majority of his life in relative isolation following his spree of vigilante justice, Maudsley is said to be challenging his recent prison move.
Gavin revealed that his uncle had settled into a "relatively comfortable" routine in Wakefield, noting that he had long come to terms with his whole life sentence and never sought to challenge it.
Delving into the dynamics behind bars, Gavin shared: "Most of them (prison guards) respected him and would play chess with him, they would have conversations with him, and eventually he found himself in a position where he had a TV in his cell.
"He had a PlayStation in his cell, he had his music system, his CDs, he had his books, he would get an hour in the gym, he would get an hour in the yard, and he would get an hour in the kitchen.
"And for him, he said, 'All I ever wanted was my own space, Gavin, I've got it now.' Unfortunately it is in the underbelly of Wakefield, but he has got his own space."
Gavin stated: "He had a phone in his cell in Wakefield, he doesn't now in Whitemoor. He had a phone and he could phone family and stuff like that.
"He had his canteen money, he was only ever on basic because he wouldn't go into psychology programs. He was only on basic but he had what he needed. He was comfortable."
Furthermore, Gavin voiced concerns about his uncle's well-being and mentioned how he's been informed that getting transferred back to Wakefield would be a "difficult" challenge.
The Prison Service declined to comment on individual prisoners.
However, a source told The Mirror that prisoners in Whitemoor prison receive at least one hour out of their cell per day. They also stressed that Maudsley has access to the exercise yard and that he does have his belongings along with a telephone in his cell.
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Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Family fulfil Ian Bailey's last wish to have his ashes spread in west Cork
The memorial was led today by Mr Bailey's sister, Kay Reynolds, who said her brother adored the area above all others and his family felt it was appropriate that his final resting place should be by Roaringwater Bay. "We wanted to do right by Ian," she explained. "He absolutely loved west Cork with a passion. There was the (European Arrest) warrant which meant he could not leave the country but he said he would not want to be anywhere else. "It was very appropriate that this is where we spread his ashes. It is something he wanted. It came up in conversation with him." His family said he spent the bulk of his adult life in the area around Schull and it had inspired much of his prose and poetry. Mr Bailey collapsed and died from a heart attack while out walking in Bantry on January 21, 2024. The Manchester-born journalist and poet was the chief suspect in the Sophie Toscan du Plantier (39) murder investigation. Ms du Plantier, a French film executive, had tried to flee from an intruder at her home but was caught and savagely beaten to death on December 22/23, 1996. Mr Bailey had reported on the killing for Irish, British and French newspapers before becoming a Garda suspect. Ms Reynolds said she believes the stress her brother was under from being wrongly associated with the crime for almost 30 years took a toll on his health. "Without question - I don't think there would be any doubt about that,' she said. "He had been quite fit until the last couple of years. It finally got to him. He was not taking care of himself but it was all to do with the pressure. It had been relentless for almost 30 years. It took its toll on him. "There were times he did not help himself. I think if he had kept quiet it would have been better but that was not Ian's style. "He had nothing to hide and he would not hide. He confronted his challengers face on." Ms Reynolds said her brother was a hugely talented journalist - and regularly obtained details on stories that other journalists did not. She said she believes his abilities as an investigative journalist most likely brought him to Garda notice because of the information he obtained about the case. "Garda felt there were things that only somebody involved in the crime would have known. I don't think that helped,' she said. "But as a family we never thought that he had done this. That was Ian's style of journalism - in Gloucester he did stuff about GCHQ that other journalists didn't. He thought outside the box. "I think that was what happened there and became his downfall. That is how he became a suspect. "From the moment he told us - he phoned us to let us know we would start to see things in the paper about him - we never doubted him that he had been involved in this." Ms Reynolds stressed that her family have enormous sympathy for the du Plantier family and what they have gone through over the past 29 years. "This is not to forget that a very young mother was brutally murdered. I feel so sorry for the family because of the misguided belief that Ian committed the murder they have just had so many years of torture,' she said. "I just wish them peace around this. Hopefully the cold case will throw up something that will be of help to them.' The ceremony was attended by around 40 people including members of the legal profession who had worked with Mr Bailey, journalists and local friends. Mr Bailey, a freelance journalist, 'New Age' gardener and wood turner, collapsed and died while out walking on Barrack Street in Bantry. He was pronounced dead before he could be transferred to Bantry General Hospital with his collapse coming just weeks after he had suffered a series of heart attacks. Mr Bailey died just one week before his 67th birthday, having been warned before Christmas that he needed to get stronger before doctors would proceed with planned bypass and stent surgery. His remains were cremated in a private ceremony at the Island Crematorium in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork, with the arrangements handled by an undertaker from outside west Cork. Ms Reynolds is Mr Bailey's next of kin and gave evidence in 2015 during his High Court action for wrongful arrest against the State as to the impact on her brother of the French arrest warrant and his inability to leave Ireland even to visit his dying mother. Mr Bailey's long-time solicitor, Frank Buttimer, who attended the memorial service, said he remained convinced that Mr Bailey "had nothing whatsoever to do with this crime". He also said he was convinced that being wrongly associated with the crime for so many years "was a major factor in his ill health'. Award-winning Irish film director Jim Sheridan (74) produced a Sky TV documentary, 'Murder at the Cottage,' on the Toormore killing. He got to know Mr Bailey during the years of its production. The documentary series was launched in 2021, the same year as a major Netflix series on the murder. Mr Sheridan has previously insisted that all his research led him to believe that Sophie was killed by someone she knew. "I genuinely believe the answer to the murder will be found in France,' he said. "My conclusion is that in many ways Ian Bailey has been punished for this crime. He has been marked down as a killer for over 25 years and found guilty in a French courtroom, so he has suffered, even if he never faced a jury in a criminal case." Mr Bailey was arrested twice by gardaí in 1997 and 1998 for questioning in respect of Sophie's murder. He was released without charge on both occasions and has vehemently protested his innocence for the past 27 years. No one has ever been charged in relation to Sophie's death in Ireland. Mr Bailey sued eight Irish and British newspapers for libel in 2003 after claiming he was branded as the murderer. He also took an action - which he lost - against the State for wrongful arrest in 2014/15. After an eight year French investigation, he was prosecuted for Sophie's murder at a Paris trial in May 2019 and convicted of her murder. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison - but had to be tried in absentia after he refused to attend the French hearing which he dismissed as "a show trial" and "a mockery of justice". Mr Bailey warned the Irish Independent in April 2019 that he was "being bonfired". The French failed on three separate occasions since 2010 to have Mr Bailey extradited to France. The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) studied the Garda case file but ruled out any charges in 2000/2001 citing lack of evidence. A Garda cold case review is currently underway and has continued despite Mr Bailey's death. The Garda investigation into Sophie's death has been open and active over the past 28 years. It is planned that a revised and updated file will be submitted to the DPP. The campaign group which secured the French prosecution of Mr Bailey for Sophie's murder vowed to continue their campaign to secure justice for the mother-of-one despite his death 18 months ago. ASSOPH, the association for the truth about the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, vowed that they will continue to campaign amid hope that "new elements" will finally reveal the precise circumstances of the death of the French film executive in the early hours of December 23, 1996. Sophie was battered to death as she apparently tried to flee from an intruder at her isolated Toormore holiday home - running over fields before her clothing snagged on barbed wire allowing the killer to catch her. ASSOPH claimed that Mr Bailey had "taunted" the police over the past three decades - and claimed that the Irish judicial authorities never wanted to extradite him to France despite three attempts to do so since 2010. "On January 21, 2024, Ian Bailey passed away, 27 years after the horrific murder committed in Ireland against Sophie Toscan du Plantier, born Bouniol," they said. "The Paris Criminal Court sentenced him in absentia on May 31, 2019, to 25 years in prison for murder. "Despite this trial and France's repeated requests for his extradition, Ian Bailey remained free, never facing charges from the Irish justice system. "With Bailey's death, Sophie's family and our association will never be able to obtain a confession from Ian Bailey. "We continue our efforts for truth and justice. 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Irish Daily Mirror
6 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Britain's 'most dangerous' prisoner's nephew spots startling 'change' in killer
Robert Maudsley's nephew has opened up about his serial killer uncle, revealing he is "not in a great place" following his transfer from 'Monster Mansion' prison. The notorious British prisoner, who holds the record for the longest incarceration in the UK, was moved from HMP Wakefield on April 8 to Whitemoor prison, some 125 miles away in Cambridgeshire, UK. He had spent a whopping 40 years straight inside Wakefield. According to Gavin, who shares a close relationship with Maudsley, the relocation hasn't sat well with him. Gavin detailed to Behind Bars TV: "In Whitemoor, to the best of our knowledge, he hasn't got his stuff. His regime is an hour out of his cell each day, and that is not an hour in the yard, within this hour you have to get your shower and all that. Any time you take a shower, that comes off your yard time. "He is not in a great place right now. I am still trying to confirm and verify if he has a TV or if he has his books and stuff – but I can't imagine how it will be for him if he hasn't." Maudsley's family, from Merseyside, are eagerly wanting to visit him – Gavin last met his uncle just weeks before the sudden prison change. Previously labelled as Britain's most dangerous prisoner, Maudsley had killed two inmates while inside Wakefield, adding to his grim record that began with the killing of John Farrell in 1974 and included the death of another at Broadmoor Hospital before his spree continued behind bars. He was infamously dubbed Hannibal the Cannibal after rumours spread that he had consumed the brains of one of his victims, and even though this was later debunked, the moniker persisted. Speaking about his notorious uncle Maudsley, Gavin told ex-con Ricky Killeen: "You will be hard pushed to find someone who can't empathise with what he has been through. I always say, nobody is born a serial killer, there is certain things to happen in one's life for it to end up in that place." After a spat with staff at Wakefield over "privileges", Maudsley reportedly went on a hunger strike lasting as long as five weeks, before his eventual transfer to a specialist unit in Whitemoor jail, Cambridgeshire. Now 71 and having spent the majority of his life in relative isolation following his spree of vigilante justice, Maudsley is said to be challenging his recent prison move. Gavin revealed that his uncle had settled into a "relatively comfortable" routine in Wakefield, noting that he had long come to terms with his whole life sentence and never sought to challenge it. Delving into the dynamics behind bars, Gavin shared: "Most of them (prison guards) respected him and would play chess with him, they would have conversations with him, and eventually he found himself in a position where he had a TV in his cell. "He had a PlayStation in his cell, he had his music system, his CDs, he had his books, he would get an hour in the gym, he would get an hour in the yard, and he would get an hour in the kitchen. "And for him, he said, 'All I ever wanted was my own space, Gavin, I've got it now.' Unfortunately it is in the underbelly of Wakefield, but he has got his own space." Gavin stated: "He had a phone in his cell in Wakefield, he doesn't now in Whitemoor. He had a phone and he could phone family and stuff like that. "He had his canteen money, he was only ever on basic because he wouldn't go into psychology programs. He was only on basic but he had what he needed. He was comfortable." Furthermore, Gavin voiced concerns about his uncle's well-being and mentioned how he's been informed that getting transferred back to Wakefield would be a "difficult" challenge. The Prison Service declined to comment on individual prisoners. However, a source told The Mirror that prisoners in Whitemoor prison receive at least one hour out of their cell per day. They also stressed that Maudsley has access to the exercise yard and that he does have his belongings along with a telephone in his cell.
The Irish Sun
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