The Mysterious Case of Fred the Head
They say that in the case of a mysterious death the first 48 hours are critical. If investigators don't get a lead in this time - the chances of solving the crime are greatly diminished. But what if you don't get a lead in in the first 48 hours, or 48 days. What if you don't get a lead in 48 years? Welcome to the mysterious case of Fred the Head - One of the UK's most curious, baffling and unsolved crimes.
Episodes
The Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder | Episode 5 | Two Years Earlier
DCS Bob Stewart, in charge of the Tina Sellars murder investigation had history. He had been the lead detective a famous case two years earlier and had secured life sentences for those involved. It was lauded as a great success.
So he was the perfect man to lead this investigation. Or was he....
Facebook Group | https://www.facebook.com/groups/4464604230427918/
Email | blackpoolstreetmurderpodcast
The Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder | Episode 4 | Maybes and Certainties
The jury was certain. Francis Clarke had murdered Tina Sellars. But as we discovered in the last episode, there are serious doubts as to whether the time required to commit the crime tallied with the window of opportunity that Clarke had to commit it.
As as we find out in this episode, there are other reasons to suspect there was a potentially entirely different explanation for the crime.
But what
The Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder | Episode 3 | Reasonable Doubt
Francis Clarke has been convicted of the murder of Tina Sellars and starts to serve his life sentence. But something's not quite right about this case.
For more details
Facebook Group | https://www.facebook.com/groups/4464604230427918/
Email | blackpoolstreetmurderpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies | ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
The Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder is a copyrighted GSE Media
The Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder | Episode 2 | The Clearest of Evidence
For DCS Bob Stewart the pressure to solve the Blackpool Street murder was intensifying, The violent nature of the killing suggest they were dealing with a man who had the potential to murder again. He needed to break the case and he needed to do it fast.
For more details
Facebook Group | https://www.facebook.com/groups/4464604230427918/
Email | blackpoolstreetmurderpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies | k
The Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder | Episode 1 | The Last Bus Home
The night of the 15th June 1980 was drizzly and unseasonal. In the Midlands town of Burton upon Trent, an 18 year old student steps off the bus and walks back to her grandparents house.
An hour later she was found murdered and mutilated, but what exactly happened in that next hour? Welcome to the Mysterious Case of the Blackpool Street Murder.
For more details
Facebook Group | https://www.facebook
Episode 64 | Tracking Hardy
In Part 2 of our deep dive into Anthony Hardy, we're able to establish his exact whereabouts, we speak to those who knew him as a youngster and just maybe there's another Burton murder we need to concern ourselves with.
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 63 | Much More Than Anyone Imagines
In November 1972 a young women is murdered in a bedsit flat in Maida Vale, London. That murder is still unsolved. But how on earth could this be connected to our search for Fred?
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 62 | Progress & Frustrations
As our research continues along the points we determined where key to moving the case forward, we're met with frustrating responses, but we're making progress in other key areas.
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 61 | Rings within Rings
Fred was found with a plain 9ct ring on his right wedding ring finger. Surely we've found all of the information we possible could about that - Well, maybe not.
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 60 | Analytical Clues
As we finish 2025. there's a lot going on with Fred and maybe we've just taken some more steps forward, but with an unexpected plot twist.
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 59 | Close to the Edge
There's a name that keeps appearing in this investigation - Brian Edge - and he's important, because in the early years of the investigation, he's the prime candidate to be Fred.
And, because we keep discovering more information, we've again narrowed the time window even more - and he's right in it.
To contact me: fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
or through the Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com
Episode 58 | The Pathologist's Notes
Sometimes, when you least expect it, something happens quite of the blue, that changes everything.....
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 57 | Our Man from Stapenhill
The plot thickens - Why does a seemingly impossible thesis - keep surprising us. Suggesting there might be more to this case than meets the eye.
Links:
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Podcast Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Ken Davies
ken.davies@gsemedialtd.com
Episode 56 | The River Garden Mystery
The research team have been hard at work for a few months now, and we've got a lot to report on.
But in the course of that research, something caught our eye - An unusual story that developed in Burton exactly a year before Fred was found....
Episode 55 | Face to Face
Ever heard of super-recognisers - Well, it's a thing - people with exceptional ability to recognise people in a crowd - they are used by police and security services the world over - but what's that got to do with Fred?
Links:
Abigail's 2025 London Marathon
https://2025tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/abigail-davies
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Webs
The Mysterious Case of Michael Benedict | Episode 2 | Water is Thicker than Blood
So, we have the perfect crime. The finance scandal of London in 1967, a faked death, a trusted accomplice leading police astray, a beauty queen, all culminating in a successful getaway.
They'd done it, Disappeared, never to be seen again.
Or so they thought......
In our concluding episode, we try to track them down.
Links:
Narrated, written and produced by Ken Davies, Managing Director, GSE Med
The Mysterious Case of Michael Benedict | Episode 1 | Death of a Red Shirt
Sunday, 16th July 1967 was destined to be the warmest day of the year in the South of England. But in the English Channel, there was a fog.
A small dinghy pushed off the coast near Selsey on the Sussex coast, and set in motion a mystery that until this moment has never been solved.
Involving missing cash, Miss World contestants and suspicious deaths, it was the scandal of the summer that has remai
Teaser - Spin Off Podcast | The Mysterious Case of Michael Benedict | Friday 18th April 2025
From our Fred of Head investigation, we stumble upon a new case - full of intrigue, danger and glamour in London at the height of the swinging sixties.
But after 60 years, impossible to solve surely.........
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mysterious-case-of-michael-benedict/id1808672668
Episode 54 | The Missing and The Lost
Our investigation gets into full swing, yielding its first results. We find a new report about the inquest, which unearths some new facts and we have p[progress on John Gick, and there's a very interesting side story developing.
Links:
Abigail's 2025 London Marathon
https://2025tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/abigail-davies
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Episode 53 | The Hive Mind
2025 has started with bang, as we undertake our biggest research campaign to identify potential victims. I also have an opportunity to discuss the lifestyle of the person that Fred might have been with a key expert.
Episode 52 - The Vanished Men
Episode 51 ~ A Quick Catch Up
It's about time I gave you an update on plans for Fred in 2025 - Well here goes....
Episode 50 | The Dossier
I receive a detailed theory from the ex police colleague of the original investigating officer, Peter Hough - and it seems a good place to pause and reflect as we reach the 50th episode and map out the way forward.
Links:
The Mysterious Case of the Gentleman of Heligoland
https://open.spotify.com/show/5ZdZyq4kWHyRDzdMQ3DZYZ?si=82fe5dce6630471c
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/group
Episode 49 - Scouting for Boys
We take a closer look into the discovery story and particularly the claim that Garth Hamp-Gopsill was at the Grammar School instructing shooting. We also meet a man who the police believed may have been connected to John Gick's disappearance and learn some things that might prove useful.
Links
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Website
www.fredthehead.info
Email
Episode 48 - The Discovery: Revisited
It's time to revisit the original discovery story and go over it with a fine-toothed comb. A process that yields some interesting inconsistencies. And there's some unexpected developments from the Isle of Man.
Links
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Website
www.fredthehead.info
Email
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Episode 47 - Man to Man
I travel to the Isle of Man in search of more information about John Gick and return to speak to someone connected with the case who has a very clear idea of what may have happened to Fred. Oh,.... and by the way, there's something quite important I've been meaning to tell you!
Links
New Facebook Page
https://www.facebook.com/groups/fredtheheadpodcast/
Website
www.fredthehead.info
Email
fredtheh
Episode 46 - Close to Home
There's a number of interesting conversations that reveal some new ideas, an eagle eared listener spots a very strange coincidence and there's news of our new website.
Show Notes for Episode 46
www.fredthehead.info
contact@fredthehead.info
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Steve the Transit Camper YouTube Episode
https://youtu.be/MsrB6gQ13Dk?si=yfM6l7grACDteUo1
Episode 45 - The Connection
What would you do in John Gick's shoes? - Our investigation in to that thought yields an astonishing potential connection - One, absolutely nobody, saw coming!
Want to contact us? - email us at:
fredtheheadpodcast@gmail.com
Episode 44 - Back to Work
Summer's over, so its back to work on the investigation. There's a few interesting developments to update you on on John Gick, on the Kun family emigration and the first Fred the Head meet up which was such a great success.
Episode 43 - The Scout’s Story
John Gick disappears without trace on Saturday 1st February 1969, leaving the scout group he had brought with him from the Isle of Man without its leader. In this episode we track down the second in command on that trip and explore what he remembers about that fateful journey and what he remembers about John Gick and the clues that emerged from the investigation that followed his disappearance.
Episode 42 - Digging Deeper
Episode 42 - Digging Deeper - We take our investigations into the missing scoutmaster to the next level, as we try to establish how the unsolved disappearance of a man in February 1969 could be related to our case.
Episode 41 - The Man who Stepped into Nowhere
Our routine investigations pay dividends - When a man emerges from the archives who seems to match Fred - and the more we dig, the more and more intriguing it becomes.
Episode 40 - The Witness
In a long interview, we meet with the man who claims to have been an accessory to Fred's murder, who tells a remarkable tale in his own words.
Episode 39 - A Glimpse behind the Curtain
There's one final question I need to ask Zoe, I spend far more time than I should digging through the archives with interesting results and we receive an offer of some very useful help
Episode 38 - No Stone Unturned
Jo has been busy uncovering more about Matthew James Jackson, I'm able to speak to someone who knew Frank Kun very well and there are some intriguing questions raised by listeners.
Episode 37 - Another Year
In our end of year review, we try and marshall all of the salient points we have discovered so far, map out the work ahead of us and, in the process, uncover some new and potential important information about Matthew James Jackson.
Episode 36 - The Missing Years
1969 - The Cold War is at its height. The clandestine battle of secrets, spies and espionage is raging on both sides of the Iron Curtain. It sounds glamorous, but in reality espionage was a dirty, sordid, small time business. Was Fred's death related to these activities.
Episode 35 - Down To Us
My request to the senior levels of the Police service about Isotopic Analysis yields results of an unexpected kind and I get to speak with someone who's been working on the Fred case for far longer than me.
Episode 34 - The Confession?
We hear about something that may change everything. A possible link between the body and the killer.
Episode 33 - Dental Fundamentals
We've got work to do in our continuing investigation into whether there was any connection between Bible John and Fred. That starts with a deep dive into the dentistry and that process generates a new idea that I need to get to the bottom of.
Episode 32 - The Worry List
We've been systematically combing through marriages in an ever-widening circle from Burton as part of an ongoing process to capture marriages in around 1969. Those few who we can't trace afterwards populate the worry list. In the meantime Iain has been on the trail of Anthony Hardy in a process that yields unexpected results, bring a completely fascinating new possibility into our thinking.
Episode 31 - Picking Up the Pieces
Welcome to Season 2 - Where we learn more about Fred's dentistry. plan our campaign for the new season and investigate two incidents from the time of the murder that might have a bearing on the case.
Episode 30 – The Hypothesis
I need to understand more about how Czechoslovak refugees found their way to the UK in 1968 and fortunately I find someone who could help me with this, and I get to learn a great deal that could prove very useful in the fullness of time.
In the second half of the podcast, I try to construct a hypothesis of what might have happened. By taking a step back and selecting the key findings over the last
Episode 29 - 1968
I receive an offer of help on analysing Fred’s dentistry, the results of which open up a new avenue of investigation. One that links our victim to the broader political upheavals that were happening around the world in in the late 1960s. And a conversation with Zoe Kun adds more intrigue to that possibility. There’s also some interesting news I wanted to share with you.
Episode 28 - A Very Dark Character
I’m following the trail to discover more about Mr A, the man at the centre of the story in Episode 23. I manage to find and speak with someone who knew him really, really well. So here was my chance to test the accuracy of the account.
That call proved very interesting, but not only in the way I had imagined. I also learned something else that cast a new light on the case. One that linked to ear
Episode 27 - The Real George Robinson
Trying to trace George Robinson, who died in his shack in Stapenhill is proving difficult, very difficult, but we’ve simply got to find him. But in the process of trying to find him, I discover another witness. Someone who can tell me much, much more about one of the other main characters in the story. Mr A – the man at the centre of the murder.
Episode 26 - Looking for George
I’m trying to find the identity of the man in the shack, to understand who he was and whether he was involved in the case in any way. That investigation leads us down another fascinating avenue.
Episode 25 – The Man in the Shack
I needed to dig deeper and deeper into the story that we had been told, and that involved another conversation with the person who told me the story. That conversation revealed something I hadn’t quite understood…. Exactly when he was told about the murder, and if thats true, it could have major repercussions for the investigation.
Episode 24 - The Story, Deconstructed
We’d heard a compelling account of what had happened – but was it true? - I needed to take a deep dive to investigate the truthfulness of the account. However during that investigation I'd learn something new that cast a completely different light on the case.
Episode 23 - The Man from the North
When I receive a message from someone who claims to have told the police the real story of what had happened to Fred over 12 months ago, and now wants to tell me, I’m interested. This episode is his story, and it’s fascinating.
Episode 22 - An Unexpected Discovery
Trying to find the identity of the man at the bar, I stumble upon something unforeseen that casts a new light on the early stages of the police investigation that may have fascinating implications.
Episode 21 - The Man at the Bar
I finally get to speak to someone I’d been trying to speak to for a few months – and something they say stops me in my tracks. Something that links a living person in 1969 with the body found in 1971.
Episode 20 - The End of the Beginning
We receive a second anonymous letter, but are things exactly what they appear to be? We dig deeper into who was living on the Level and at Frank Kun’s old addresses which yields another mystery, and I have a fascinating conversation with someone who worked on Bass’s Meadow in the 1960s, which makes me think more about what might have been going on there.
Episode 19 - On the Level
I try and retrace the car journey to identify exactly where the young man was dropped off. We discover the final pieces of the Mr Czenner story and uncover another address I really need to investigate
Episode 18 - The Unexpected Passenger
In a longer than usual episode, I’m on the track of Matthew James Jackson and with the help of some great detective work from a listener, we are able to inch closer to the truth. And having spoken to one of Zoe’s old school friends, another long conversation with Zoe really intrigues me.
Episode 17 - Unusual Dentistry and Interesting Memories
I uncover the reason why the police believed the dentistry to be unusual, and what that tells us about the police investigation and the victim. Developing other lines of enquiry leads me back to Zoe in Australia, who shares even more intriguing memories.
Episode 16 - The Policeman and the Postman
I manage to find the Scenes of Crimes Officer from the time of the discovery of the body, the man who dug the body out of the ground and the first person to see the body since the murderer, and I learn some fascinating new facts. Then, things take an unexpected and intriguing turn.
Episode 15 - The Other Missing Man
A new discovery takes me on an unexpected detour, and takes me on the trail of another missing man
Episode 14 - The Archive in the Attic
I needed to find the exact date of a story that appeared in the Burton Mail, as it could provide vital information. But how was I going to find three consecutive years of newspapers from 50 years ago - and what would they reveal?
Episode 13 - The Vanishing Man
I'm on the hunt for a man who vanished from Burton in 1971. But how do you find someone from 50 years ago who no one has been able to track down since?
Episode 12 - Conversations
A very good question leads to the next stage of the investigation, leading to a series of conversations which open up more and more lines of enquiry.
Episode 11 - Connections
My most promising lead has disappeared at a critical point of the investigation and that means that my quest to find the identity of the body is at risk.
Episode10 - The Mysterious Mr Czenner
I'm on the trail of Jozsef Czenner, the man who seems to be associated with a series of strange coincidences. How exactly does he fit into the investigation?
Episode 9 - Whatever happened to Joszi?
Following the leads from the last episode, I get to work on trying to identify Joszi, the man someone had been looking for in early 1969. But then a discovery deep in the archives raises some further questions about what could have possibly happened to Joszi, and just maybe, an identity.
Episode 8 - The Hungarian Connection
Sometimes, you've just got to follow the evidence wherever it leads you, and this time it led us to somebody with an amazing story to tell.
And one that brings us within touching distance of identifying the victim.
Episode 7 - Two Victims and a Perpetrator
Over the years a number of missing people have emerged as potentially being the victim, and more recently a potential perpetrator has also emerged. We take a deep dive in to these claims and provide an update on the current investigation.
Episode 6 - The Skull Reveals Some Secrets
I discover that in 2013, the University of Derby was involved in work to recreate the skull in 3D form, at the same time they ran some tests that gave clear indications on possible nationality of the skull. I interview the project leader, it leads to an idea that, if true, might just bring us very close indeed to exactly who Fred the Head really is.
Episode 5 - Beyond the Grave
When we are trying to solve a 50-year-old cold case and I read in the local paper the headline "Man claims to speak to Fred the Head from beyond the grave", that's just too good an opportunity to miss. We interview him and this is that interview. Interesting......
Episode 4 - Occam's Razor
From what we have already discovered, I try and piece together the simplest explanation to the five most basic questions: When?, How?, Who?, Why? and Where?
I'm joined in the process by Andy Hough, former Head of Serious Crimes, and together we take a deep dive into the options.
The process certainly moves things forward in my mind, and just maybe, we make a minor discovery about the date the mur
Episode 3 - The Investigation Begins
As news of the discovery of a dead body spreads through Burton like wildfire, the police start their investigations. Some unique aspects of the body give cause for optimism that the identity will soon be solved.
Episode 2 - The Discovery
Fifty years ago, on March 26th 1971, the body of a young man was found in a secluded spot, an
island in the River Trent with extremely limited access. He was buried in a kneeling position, naked, except for socks and a wedding ring. His hands and ankles had been bound.
In Episode2, we examine the circumstances of how the body was found by talking to the man who made the gruesome discovery all thos
Episode 1 - River Island
They say that in the case of a mysterious death, the first 48 hours are critical. If investigators don't make a breakthrough in that time, the chances of it being solved are greatly diminished.
But what if they don't get a breakthrough in the first 48 hours, or the first 48 days. What if they don't get a breakthrough in 48 years?
On March 26th 1971, the body of a young man was found in a secluded
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