The Psychology of a Serial Killer: Harold Shipman

Bumptious, bucolic, much admired among the tailored lawns of Eastbourne’s elite, but who was Dr John Bodkin Adams really? Fundamentally, a religious man, devoted to his mother who he called ‘the most religious woman in Ireland’ who manged to transform himself from an out of depth medical student to the higher echelons of the seaside town’s social circle, a stratum of society he quietly envied and despised.

Despite this he charmed his way into the lives of the well-heeled locals, charming them into bequeathing him cars and riches, even clothing, persuading them to grant him a place in their wills before, it was said, quietly bumping them off and taking his share of their fortunes. He may have sounded and looked the polar opposite of Dr Harold Shipman, but his intentions were as bloody and bleak as Shipman’s, but only one of them seemed to know how to get away with murder.

Presenters: Dr Harry Brunjes & Dr Andrew Johns

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Sound Design: John Scott

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

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The spectre of Dr Harold Shipman hangs over the medical community like a black cloud on the horizon: ominous and bleak. His victims run into the hundreds, probably more than we’ll ever know. History tells us that Shipman would eventually die at his own hand, hung in his prison cell. But what of Dr John Bodkin Adams, a medical practitioner who preceded Shipman some decades before and is believed to have killed almost as many of his patients as Shipman did. So, why did Bodkin Adams walk free while Shipman died alone within the walls of Wakefield Prison?

Welcome to An Appointment With Murder, hosted by Dr Harry Brunjes and Dr Andrew Johns; two good doctors examining the lives and times of two bad doctors. Johns, a forensic psychologist who met an ageing Peter Sutcliffe in Broadmoor, and worked on the Shipman enquiry and Brunjes, a former police and hospital doctor who worked at St. Mary's Hospital in Eastbourne where Bodkin Adams would spend his last days. As well as examining the strangely intertwined lives of the two murderous doctors, we look at the four kinds of serial killers and ask are those killers mad or simply bad?

Presenters: Dr Harry Brunjes & Dr Andrew Johns

Producer: Philip Wilding

Editor: Chelsey Moore

Sound Design: John Scott

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join The Crime Desk to hear all episodes in series one straight away. Plus, you'll get exclusive weekly bonus episodes of our award-winning podcast The Trial, ad-free listening across all of our shows, and early access to brand-new series like our high-stakes investigative series, Heists, Scams & Lies.

Become a member today at thecrimedesk.com.

Go to enteromed.co.uk and use code IBS30 at checkout, for an exclusive 30% discount on Enterosgel IBS & Diarrhoea Relief.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Launching on 21st May 2025: An Appointment with Murder, a forensic examination of those who kill.

In Series 1, we turn the scalpel inward on doctors who kill: trusted professionals who betrayed their oath to save lives. From the calculated crimes of Dr Harold Shipman to the dark legacy of Dr John Bodkin-Adams, this series delves deep into the minds, methods, and motivations of medical murderers.

Hosted by Dr Harry Brunjes, physician, expert witness, and senior figure in medical ethics, and Dr Andrew Johns, a leading forensic psychiatrist who spent years inside Broadmoor Hospital with some of Britain’s most infamous killers,  An Appointment with Murder is where medicine meets malice.

Join The Crime Desk to hear all episodes in the first series as soon as it launches. Plus, you'll get exclusive weekly bonus episodes of our award-winning podcast The Trial, ad-free listening across all of our shows, and early access to brand-new series like our high-stakes investigative series, Heists, Scams & Lies. Become a member today at thecrimedesk.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Join The Crime Desk to hear all episodes in series one straight away. Plus, you'll get exclusive weekly bonus episodes of our award-winning podcast The Trial, ad-free listening across all of our shows, and early access to brand-new series like our high-stakes investigative series, Heists, Scams & Lies.

Become a member today at thecrimedesk.com.

Go to enteromed.co.uk and use code IBS30 at checkout, for an exclusive 30% discount on Enterosgel IBS & Diarrhoea Relief.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.