No More Murder

An invitation to discuss future articles. Are there other types of crime that interest you?

Long-time readers will know that I sit at the very end of the squeamish side of true crime reporting. Although I find murder compelling, it being by common agreement the very worst of crimes, it is rarely carried out with the clinical precision of an Agatha Christie poisoning. Can we please have more murders without bloodshed?

One reason I am drawn to the disappearances of Suzy Lamplugh and Claudia Lawrence is the lack of gore. Although most people will consider both of them dead, most likely murdered, neither victim has ever been found. It is therefore possible to conduct a murder investigation without the appalling details found in autopsy reports. If there is one thing more clinical than a poisoning, it’s a murder with no body.

And this got me thinking: why is true crime always about murder?

So here is your chance to shape the future. You might be here because you also sit on the squeamish side of the scales. If so, perhaps you want more about the big burglaries of the twentieth century. Does anyone remember the Great Train Robbery? What about Brinks Mat, the largest robbery ever in 1983? What about the thieves who tried to rob the Millennium Dome of its diamond display?

I am researching old-time organised crime and wondered what you thought about doing more along those lines? Pros and cons? Too dull? Too technical? Let me know! You can reply in the comments or email me separately.