The best podcasts for Investigative true crime podcasts in the UK

Impact podcasts create narrative investigative podcasts that shine a light on major crimes or scandals in communities covered by DC Thomson brands such as The Courier and The Press and Journal. Impact’s first season, Hunting Mr X, centred on the story of former North Sea oil diver Julian Chisholm who orchestrated a £100m cocaine deal with the Cali cartel. It was shortlisted for best podcast at the UK Society of Editors’ Media Freedom Awards in 2023. Season two - ’Vanished: The Arlene Fraser Murder’ - is also now available. Follow investigative journalist Dale Haslam as he uncovers what really happened in Scotland’s biggest ever missing persons case. In 1998, 33-year-old mum of two Arlene Fraser was at her home one minute - and gone the next. The team involved in Impact includes reporters Dale Haslam and Brendan Duggan, Senior Audio Producer Morven McIntyre, and Special Projects Editor Cheryl Livingstone. Check out more investigations from the Impact team here: https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/category/pj-investigations/ and https://www.thecourier.co.uk/category/courier-investigations/

Brave whistleblowers. A trail of data. A secret system for dealing with allegations of child abuse. Follow the Telegraph's Investigations team on their year-long hunt into the Jehovah's Witnesses.

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Introducing... Who Trolled Amber?

What comes to mind when you think of Amber Heard? Liar? Survivor? Narcissist? Millions of us watched the celebrity trial of the century, Depp v Heard, in 2022. Amber Heard lost and Johnny Depp was vindicated. But what if Amber was actually the victim of an organised trolling campaign? What if the online hate against her was manufactured?

Alexi Mostrous, the reporter who brought you Sweet Bobby and Hoaxed, investigates what happened to Amber and who might have been responsible. It’s a story about how our own thoughts and opinions can be moulded without us even realising.

All six episodes of Who Trolled Amber are now available to binge-listen.

Who Trolled Amber is the latest series in Tortoise Investigates, the home of Tortoise's award-winning investigative series.

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Reporter and host: Alexi Mostrous

Producer: Xavier Greenwood

Editor: David Taylor

Narrative editor: Gary Marshall

Additional reporting: Katie Riley

Sound design: Karla Patella

Artwork: Jon Hill & Oscar Ingham

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Introducing... Hoaxed, the new series from Alexi Mostrous and Tortoise, who brought you Sweet Bobby.

In 2014, two children told police a shocking story: that they were being abused by a Satanic cult; a cult headed by their father and by parents and teachers at their school in the wealthy London suburb of Hampstead. The story was a lie. But on the internet, that didn't matter.

Hoaxed is an investigation into one of Britain's most serious-ever conspiracy theories. A story about a modern-day Satanic panic; about the victims whose lives were destroyed and about the conspiracists who spread the lie around the world. Oh, and it's about our hunt for the perpetrators - the people who forced the kids to lie - the ones who started it all.

All 6 episodes are available now to listen for free. You can listen to the full series ad-free and get access to exclusive bonus content by downloading the Tortoise audio app or subscribing to Tortoise+ on Apple podcasts. Or join Tortoise as a member, where you can access more of our reporting, live events and support our work. Just visit the Tortoise website and use the code Alexi50 for half price membership.

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The phone hacking scandal that closed News of the World was big, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. At the bottom of that iceberg of 'dark arts' - hacking, burglary, bugging, and bribing bent cops - is the body of Daniel Morgan. It’s been described by an Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police as “one of the most disgraceful episodes in the entire history of the Metropolitan Police Service.” Over the three decades since Daniel was killed, five failed police investigations and an ongoing panel inquiry, his has become the most investigated murder in British history. The story moves from back streets of London, through the highest echelons of Scotland Yard, to the offices of Rupert Murdoch's best selling newspapers, to the doors of Number Ten Downing Street. If you haven't heard this story, ask yourself, why?

Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/untoldmurder.

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