THE HUNT FOR BIBLE JOHN
BAFTA & RTS WINNING. BROADCAST NOMINATED
2 PART DOCUMENTARY SERIES
FIRECREST FILMS FOR BBC
The Hunt for Bible John explores Scotland's largest ever man hunt and one of the country's most notorious unsolved crimes.
PRESS
"The first big true-crime documentary of the year is one of the best I’ve seen.... In other hands, this could easily have become just another true-crime documentary, trading on nothing but cheap gratification and bloodlust. What’s so impressive here is how keenly the series wants to fit the murders into a wider societal context. A long introductory tract is dedicated to the state of Glasgow in the 60s. Grim and dark and still bomb-damaged from the war, it is a city in total collapse. Running water is scarce, open drains burble human effluent in the streets. The one escape, we are told, is dancing. This took place in venues such as Barrowland: dark, heady clubs where young men and women could meet and forget the outside world. ... With everything we have now – improved knowledge of serial killers and advances in forensic technology – surely many, if not all, of these murders could have been prevented. This is the real message of The Hunt for Bible John, and it’s chilling. Less than a week in and we already have the best true-crime documentary of the year."
The Guardian
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"Outstanding... A gripping documentary worthy of a global streaming audience"
The Courier
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"Matt Pinder's two-part film about the serial killer who haunted Glasgow in the late 1960s is a chillingly brilliant piece of film-making. Rather than wallow in the details of the crimes, Pinder focuses on the people and culture of the city. As a result, it becomes a far more fascinating and engrossing watch, showing how religion, popular culture and Glasgow's unique style of journalism shaped the reality and the myth surrounding this terrifying folk devil. Beautifully assembled, with a variety of rich subplots, this is a crime documentary par excellence and undoubtedly one of On Demand's shows of the year."
The Times
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"A meticulous, mindbending, nonstop mesmeriser of a documentary series that really pops and fizzles onscreen. The incisive editing, the Sixties soundtrack, the vintage archive footage and the impeccable sense of time and place help to add up to one impressive show."
The Express
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