True Criminals

John J. Lennon: Killer and Author, A Prison Interview

In a True Criminals exclusive first, the podcast interviews John J. Lennon, a writer and journalist currently serving a prison sentence at Sing Sing Correctional Facility following a conviction for murder. The interview, recorded inside the prison, examines Lennon’s account of his case, his life in custody, and his work as an author. Lennon is the writer of The Tragedy of True Crime, a book that explores how murder cases — including his own — are constructed, reported and consumed, and the consequences those narratives have for victims, offenders and the justice system. The conversation is conducted by Sky News Crime Correspondent Martin Brunt and journalist Helen Fospero, who question Lennon on the circumstances surrounding his conviction, the challenges of writing from prison, and the broader issues raised by the true crime genre. The episode focuses on established facts, Lennon’s published work, and the realities of producing journalism while incarcerated. …………………………. Artwork photography credit: Luke Piotrowski Support the Show Listen ad free and access our full catalogue, including a True Criminals coffee mug, on Patreon at ⁠www.patreon.com/truecriminals⁠.  As an independent podcast, we rely on listener support. You can also donate via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=YQVFJR5766BJE Follow True Criminals Follow us on Instagram at ⁠@true.criminals⁠ and subscribe to our YouTube channel at ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@True-Criminals⁠. Connect with Martin Brunt Follow Martin on Twitter at ⁠@skymartinbrunt⁠. Discover more about his career and the cases he’s covered by reading his book, No One Got Cracked Over the Head for No Reason: Dispatches from a Crime Reporter, available here: ⁠https://amzn.eu/d/g1WisSY⁠. Connect with Helen Fospero Follow Helen on Instagram at ⁠@helenfospero⁠ and check out her podcast, The Convex Conversation, here: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-convex-conversation/id1510209575⁠. Credits True Criminals is produced by Audio Bleach Global.  Visit ⁠www.audiobleachglobal.com/truecriminals⁠ for more information.  Executive Producer: Lee Mann.  Producer: Russell Barnes.  Audio Production: Andrew Chappell.  Music Composition: Chap Mannequin.  Artwork: Bleached Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Still Standing: Stabbed 24 Times While Pregnant | Natalie Queiroz | Part 3

He stabbed her 24 times and nearly killed her and her unborn baby now the system is preparing to let him walk free. In the final part of this harrowing series, Natalie Queiroz reveals the devastating twist she never expected. Nearly a decade after surviving a brutal attempted murder, Natalie discovers that quiet policy changes could allow her attacker to move to an open prison years early, giving him day release and freedom of movement without her knowledge. Natalie speaks with raw honesty about the fear and trauma this decision reignites for her and her children, and why she believes the criminal justice system continues to fail victims of domestic abuse and stalking. She explains how learning of his Cat D eligibility shattered her sense of safety and forced her back into survival mode. But this is also a story of extraordinary resilience. Natalie shares how she transformed her pain into purpose, working inside prisons with violent offenders, campaigning against knife crime, supporting young people at risk, and becoming a victims advocate holding police and government to account. Her work earned her an MBE, but the fight is far from over. Presented by journalists Helen Fospero and Martin Brunt, this episode explores the uncomfortable reality of offender rehabilitation, early release, prison overcrowding and the lifelong sentence carried by victims. It asks urgent questions about public safety, victims rights, and whether the balance has tipped too far away from those who survive extreme violence. This episode contains distressing discussions of violence, trauma and ongoing fear. Listener discretion is advised. .................................. Support the Show Listen ad free and access our full catalogue, including a True Criminals coffee mug, on Patreon at ⁠www.patreon.com/truecriminals⁠.  As an independent podcast, we rely on listener support. You can also donate via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=YQVFJR5766BJE Follow True Criminals Follow us on Instagram at ⁠@true.criminals⁠ and subscribe to our YouTube channel at ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@True-Criminals⁠. Connect with Martin Brunt Follow Martin on Twitter at ⁠@skymartinbrunt⁠. Discover more about his career and the cases he’s covered by reading his book, No One Got Cracked Over the Head for No Reason: Dispatches from a Crime Reporter, available here: ⁠https://amzn.eu/d/g1WisSY⁠. Connect with Helen Fospero Follow Helen on Instagram at ⁠@helenfospero⁠ and check out her podcast, The Convex Conversation, here: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-convex-conversation/id1510209575⁠. Credits True Criminals is produced by Audio Bleach Global.  Visit ⁠www.audiobleachglobal.com/truecriminals⁠ for more information.  Executive Producer: Lee Mann.  Producer: Russell Barnes.  Audio Production: Andrew Chappell.  Music Composition: Chap Mannequin.  Artwork: Bleached Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Still Standing: Stabbed 24 Times While Pregnant | Natalie Queiroz | Part 2

After surviving a frenzied knife attack that nearly killed her and her unborn child, Natalie Queiroz is forced to confront an even more devastating reality: the man who tried to murder her was her fiancé, a partner she had trusted for decades, and the father of her baby. In this second episode, Natalie takes listeners inside the aftermath of the attack, the physical pain, the psychological trauma, and the slow unravelling of the truth about the man she thought she knew. As she pieces her life back together with a newborn baby and catastrophic injuries, Natalie reveals the hidden coercive control, lies and manipulation that only became clear once his carefully constructed façade collapsed. Natalie also recounts the criminal justice process in harrowing detail: the court hearings, the defence arguments, the judge’s damning assessment of a cold, premeditated plot, and the shock of what she believes was a lenient sentence. For the first time, she describes coming face to face with her attacker in prison, confronting him eye-to-eye in a tense restorative justice meeting that leaves her with few answers, but a renewed sense of power. Presented by journalists Helen Fospero and Martin Brunt, True Criminals continues its forensic examination of a case that raises urgent questions about coercive control, honour-based abuse, sentencing, and how victims survive — and live — after unimaginable violence. This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence, trauma and psychological distress. Listener discretion is advised. …………………………… Support the Show Listen ad free and access our full catalogue, including a True Criminals coffee mug, on Patreon at ⁠www.patreon.com/truecriminals⁠.  As an independent podcast, we rely on listener support. You can also donate via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=YQVFJR5766BJE Follow True Criminals Follow us on Instagram at ⁠@true.criminals⁠ and subscribe to our YouTube channel at ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@True-Criminals⁠. Connect with Martin Brunt Follow Martin on Twitter at ⁠@skymartinbrunt⁠. Discover more about his career and the cases he’s covered by reading his book, No One Got Cracked Over the Head for No Reason: Dispatches from a Crime Reporter, available here: ⁠https://amzn.eu/d/g1WisSY⁠. Connect with Helen Fospero Follow Helen on Instagram at ⁠@helenfospero⁠ and check out her podcast, The Convex Conversation, here: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-convex-conversation/id1510209575⁠. Credits True Criminals is produced by Audio Bleach Global.  Visit ⁠www.audiobleachglobal.com/truecriminals⁠ for more information.  Executive Producer: Lee Mann.  Producer: Russell Barnes.  Audio Production: Andrew Chappell.  Music Composition: Chap Mannequin.  Artwork: Bleached Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Still Standing: Stabbed 24 Times While Pregnant | Natalie Queiroz | Part 1

In March 2016, Natalie Queiroz was eight months pregnant, walking through a busy town centre in broad daylight, when a hooded man jumped onto her back and stabbed her 24 times with a 12-inch kitchen knife. Her lung collapsed. Her uterus was slashed. The blade missed her unborn baby by just two millimetres. Against all odds, both Natalie and her daughter survived. In this first episode, Natalie recounts — in her own words — the nine-minute frenzied attack, the strangers who risked their lives to save her, and the fight to stay conscious as she bled out on the pavement. As the full horror unfolds, listeners learn the devastating truth: the attacker was not a stranger, but her partner and the father of her unborn child. Presented by journalists Helen Fospero and Martin Brunt, True Criminals examines the story behind the headlines — with compassion, clarity and forensic insight. This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and is deeply distressing. Listener discretion is advised. …………………………… Support the Show Listen ad free and access our full catalogue, including a True Criminals coffee mug, on Patreon at ⁠www.patreon.com/truecriminals⁠.  As an independent podcast, we rely on listener support. You can also donate via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=YQVFJR5766BJE Follow True Criminals Follow us on Instagram at ⁠@true.criminals⁠ and subscribe to our YouTube channel at ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@True-Criminals⁠. Connect with Martin Brunt Follow Martin on Twitter at ⁠@skymartinbrunt⁠. Discover more about his career and the cases he’s covered by reading his book, No One Got Cracked Over the Head for No Reason: Dispatches from a Crime Reporter, available here: ⁠https://amzn.eu/d/g1WisSY⁠. Connect with Helen Fospero Follow Helen on Instagram at ⁠@helenfospero⁠ and check out her podcast, The Convex Conversation, here: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-convex-conversation/id1510209575⁠. Credits True Criminals is produced by Audio Bleach Global.  Visit ⁠www.audiobleachglobal.com/truecriminals⁠ for more information.  Executive Producer: Lee Mann.  Producer: Russell Barnes.  Audio Production: Andrew Chappell.  Music Composition: Chap Mannequin.  Artwork: Bleached Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A Life of Crime: Martin Brunt | True Criminals Briefing

In this special True Criminals Briefings episode, Sky News crime correspondent Martin Brunt and journalist Helen Fospero reflect on a remarkable year in crime reporting — and a defining moment in Martin’s four-decade career. From the early days of Sky News in 1989 to some of the most notorious criminal cases of recent times, Martin looks back on the stories that shaped him: covering wars before choosing “a life of crime,” confronting fugitives in courtrooms, receiving letters and postcards from Charles Bronson, and reporting on cases that continue to haunt Britain. The episode dives into major crime stories that dominated 2025, including: The release of Christian Brückner, the prime suspect in the Madeleine McCann case Fresh hopes for a new search in the Muriel McKay murder investigation The Manchester synagogue attack A shocking train stabbing in Huntingdon Inside accounts of high-security prisons, parole hearings, and life in solitary confinement Alongside the hard-hitting journalism, there are lighter — and surprising — moments, including Martin’s unforgettable confession to once taking a goldfish for a walk in the early days of 24-hour news. As Martin steps back into semi-retirement from Sky News, this candid conversation explores the personal cost of crime reporting, the evolution of true crime journalism, and what lies ahead for True Criminals in 2026. Insightful, reflective, and deeply human — this is essential listening for anyone fascinated by true crime, criminal investigations, and the people who dedicate their lives to reporting them. …………………………… Shop Air Up here: Treat yourself or someone special to a refreshing twist with Air Up!  Enjoy 10% off your order using the code TRUECRIMINALS at airup.link/truecriminals. Explore all their delicious flavours today. Support the Show Listen ad free and access our full catalogue, including a True Criminals coffee mug, on Patreon at ⁠www.patreon.com/truecriminals⁠.  As an independent podcast, we rely on listener support. You can also donate via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=YQVFJR5766BJE Follow True Criminals Follow us on Instagram at ⁠@true.criminals⁠ and subscribe to our YouTube channel at ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@True-Criminals⁠. Connect with Martin Brunt Follow Martin on Twitter at ⁠@skymartinbrunt⁠. Discover more about his career and the cases he’s covered by reading his book, No One Got Cracked Over the Head for No Reason: Dispatches from a Crime Reporter, available here: ⁠https://amzn.eu/d/g1WisSY⁠. Connect with Helen Fospero Follow Helen on Instagram at ⁠@helenfospero⁠ and check out her podcast, The Convex Conversation, here: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-convex-conversation/id1510209575⁠. Credits True Criminals is produced by Audio Bleach Global.  Visit ⁠www.audiobleachglobal.com/truecriminals⁠ for more information.  Executive Producer: Lee Mann.  Producer: Russell Barnes.  Audio Production: Andrew Chappell.  Music Composition: Chap Mannequin.  Artwork: Bleached Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices