The Moors Murders: A Brief History

Abstract

This chapter provides a brief history and a timeline of the Moors Murders case, and introduces the key themes of the work.

In 1966, Brady and Hindley were convicted of the abduction, sexual assault and murder of Lesley Ann Downey (10), John Kilbride (12) and Edwards Evans (17). Lesley Ann Downey’s and John Kilbride’s bodies were buried on Saddleworth Moor outside of Manchester. The Moors Murders, as the case came to be known, is the most high profile murder case in Britain in the twentieth century. Two other children, Pauline Reade (16) and Keith Bennett (12), had gone missing in Manchester in the period when Hindley and Brady had committed these murders. It was always felt Pauline Reade and Keith Bennett had been victims of the Moors Murderers but despite a huge search, their bodies were not found in the initial investigation of the case. In 1985, Brady and Hindley eventually confessed to the murders of Pauline Reade and Keith Bennett.