British Serial Killers

As humans, we always do our best to see the best in other people. We look to see the human behind the opinion and try to rationalise even the worst actions of fellow members of our species. Some people, though, are simply beyond understanding. Several groups of people in our society are so dangerous and so deranged, that understanding their methods and motivations can seem almost impossible.

That is doubly the case for serial killers: murderers who kill multiple people over some time. These people can be driven by all manner of reasons and purposes, reasons that normal people would find hard to understand. In Britain, the serial killer has been a serious issue more than once. The good people of Britain have been terrorised by a large number of successful serial killers time and time again.

Let’s take a look at some of the most infamous British serial killers. These are people who made their name synonymous with the devilry and evil that comes from murdering someone in cold blood.

British Serial Killers: The Worst Of The Worst

To call this list the ‘best’ British serial killers would be insulting to their poor victims. This list covers some of the most serious and deranged of all British serial killers who have emerged over the years, so you can try to understand the damage and pain that they caused throughout their respective reigns of terror.

Peter Sutcliffe

The first British serial killer we wish to start with is Peter Sutcliffe. Sutcliffe was a murderer who was confirmed to have killed 22 people, and attempted to kill at least seven other people. Clearly inspired by Jack The Ripper, Sutcliffe made his infamy by becoming one of the only serial killers in British history to kill 20 or more people.

Sutcliffe was known as the Yorkshire Ripper, in some ways inspired by his ‘hero’, and was eventually caught and sentenced to 20 life sentences in UK prison. He died in prison in 2020. Sutcliffe was a prolific murderer with a focus specifically on women, many of whom worked within areas where women solicited their services as prostitutes. He claimed to be on a mission from the heavens to wipe out prostitutes.

Without doubt, Sutcliffe is one of the most terrifying serial killers in British history.

Mary Ann Cotton

Another brutal serial killer in British history, Mary Ann Cotton made her infamy through executing people using poison. She was convicted for the murder and poisoning of her stepson, but it is believed that she killed many more people. Indeed, given that she had 13 children, it is believed that she murdered 11 of them in total – she also killed three of her husbands, allegedly, to claim their life insurance policies.

By poisoning people with arsenic, she avoided the usually bloody nature that serial killers tend to stick to. Her murders often involved her husbands including William Mowbray, George Ward, James Robinson, and Frederick Cotton. She tried to send Frederick’s son, Edward, to a workhouse. Shortly after this plan fell through, she announced that Edward had died. The body was found to contain high arsenic levels.

She was then convicted of the murder, with other murders then likely carried out by her discovered in due time. Cotton eventually died on the gallows, via strangulation, aged 40 on the 24^th March, 1873.

John Christie

Known as Reg by many, John Christie was a serial killer who murdered a minimum of eight people, with others suspected to be his victims. He murdered his wife, too, strangling her to death. He would lure people back to his flat and then strangle them to die. He often stored his victims in  his Rillington Place property, with several of the bodies found after he had moved out from the property.

His wife was found in the floorboards, while others were found buried in the garden. He was eventually found guilty of the murder of his wife and others, and was hanged in July 1953. He primarily murdered women, including Beryl Evans, as well as her young daughter, Geraldine. Her husband, Timothy, was initially found guilty for the murders and hanged in 1953, giving Christie more time to carry out his deeds.

Fred & Rose West

Arguably the most prolific and evil pair of killers that were in a relationship, Fred and Rose West committed several heinous acts. Fred was the instigator, committing twelve murders over a 20-year spell which also makes he and his wife, Rose, one of the longest-running serial killers in terms of duration from first kill to last. Each victim was a young women, and several murders involved obscene acts involved.

This would involve torture and mutilation as well as horrendous sexual abuse, with most victims dismembered and buried in their cellar or garden. Fred killed at least two people on his own before he and Rose engaged in their actions together. The couple were eventually arrested in 1994, and Fred committed suicide in prison in January 1995. At least 12 murders are attributed to this evil duo.

However, Fred did claim that at least 20 victims existed – he intended to reveal one of the murders per year to investigators before he killed himself. Given his nomadic nature, West hinted that he had buried bodies across England and Scotland, meaning it is tragically unlikely that each victim will ever be found.

Amelia Sach & Annie Walters

Another vicious duo are the duo of Amelia Sach & Annie Walters. Together, these two women committed a series of brutal murders. Known as the Finchley Baby Farmers, they operated a reign of terror together until they were brought to an end in February 1903. Precious little is known about the duo, but it is known that they ran a “baby farm” that would take in children in exchange for money.

Brutally, Walters would collect the children and then murder them shortly after collection using poison. Sach operated the home, using her comparative youth to Walters to encourage people that she could be trusted. The full number of babies murdered by the duo is unknown, but most estimates suggest a minimum of twelve babies were killed. The women were eventually hanged in what stands as the only double-hanging of two women in modern history.

Jonathan Balls

Jonathan Balls is one of the most notorious and prolific serial killers in British history. Born in 1769, he carried out his reign of terror until he eventually died in 1846, killing himself by using poison. Ironically, this was the method he used to kill the 22+ people that he killed – most of the confirmed kills were family members. Living in the small village of Happisburgh, Balls carried out his murders for many years.

Though Balls was never tried for his crimes as they were only discovered posthumously, his name has been reviled in history ever since. He committed murder by using extensive amounts of arsenic on his victims, under the cover that his home was filled with rats and he needed the poison for the vermin. However, deaths in the family soon started, ranging from his daughter Maria to a toddler in the family.

He murdered people of all ages, from 18-month-year old Maria Green to 13-month-old Martha Green and 3-year-old William Green. Many family members of the Green and Balls families died suspiciously, usually shortly after moving to the village to live with Balls. Neighbours wanted to know why so many people in the family were dying, but investigations were ignored until after Balls died.

Harold Shipman

By far and away the most vicious serial killer in British history, Harold Shipman used his position as a doctor to carry out more than 200 murders. He was proven to have killed 218 people, but many believe that his possible victim count could reach over the 250 mark. Shipman operated from 1975 until 1998.

Shipman killed patients who he was supposed to be looking after, and is thankfully the only doctor in British medical history to have been accused and convicted of such charges. Though Shipman was charged with the death of 15 murders, he was held responsible for 218 deaths in total. Shipman eventually died himself, committing suicide in prison in 2004. He is regarded as the worst of all British serial killers due to the sheer volume of people that he killed.

Amelia Dyer

While Amelia Dyer can “only” be proven to have killed six victims, it is believed that her number of possible victims make her the most prolific serial killer in British history. From 1869 until 1897, she ran a long-term ‘baby farm’ in Reading. From that farm, she ran a thirty-year reign of terror that seen her kill many people during the era.

Her role as a baby farmer would see her adopt children in exchange for money, caring for the children as well as her own two children she had with her husband before being widowed in 1869. However, several died in her care, and she eventually was convicted for neglect. After a period of hard labour, she returned to the practice of running a baby farm, primarily using strangling as her method of murder.

She was eventually discovered after a dead child was found bagged, with evidence bringing the law enforcement to her doorstep. She was arrested and found guilty, eventually being executed in the June of 1896. Her numbers of victims make her not only one of Britain’s most prolific killers, but one of the most prolific murderers in human history.