Who is Jeremy Bamber and what happened at White House Farm

The Bambers: Murder At The Farm will be shown on Sky Crime and NOW on at 9pm.

The documentary series is looking into Jeremy Bamber’s guilt. 

Here we look at the White House Farm murders and the new documentary. 

What is the story behind the White House Farm murders?

Nevill and June Bamber, both 61, Sheila Caffell, 26, and her six-year-old twins Daniel and Nicholas all died in the massacre at White house Farm in Tolleshunt D'Arcy in 1985.

Essex Police initially believed that Sheila, who had mental health problems, had murdered her own family before turning the gun on herself.

Sheila Caffell, 26, and her six-year-old twins Daniel and Nicholas

But Detective Sergeant Stan Jones had doubts about the murder-suicide theory, and about Sheila’s brother Jeremy Bamber, who first called the police to the farm.

Eventually it was Jeremy who was charged and convicted of the murders of his own parents, sister and nephews.

Bamber is currently serving life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

He is one of the few prisoners in the UK subject to a whole-life order. Bamber still maintains his innocence.

What does Jeremy Bamber say happened?

Jeremy claims Sheila, who had a history of mental health problems, killed the family at the farm in Tolleshunt D’Arcy before turning the gun on herself.

The prosecution case at his trial in 1986 centred on the fact Sheila could not have reached the trigger to kill herself if just one silencer was attached to the murder weapon.

Bamber has had two appeals against conviction rejected and also had a High Court challenge to the CCRC’s refusal to refer his case for another appeal rejected in 2012.

Bamber attending the funeral of his family

He also lost a bid to bring a legal challenge over a refusal by the Prison Service to downgrade him from maximum security.

Bamber's team sent new evidence to the Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) in March with him hoping the submissions will achieve a speedy referral to the Court of Appeal. 

Read more >> Supporters of killer Jeremy Bamber claim new alibi evidence could see him freed

What fresh evidence does Bamber and his supporters say they have?

In May almost 50 members of the Jeremy Bamber Innocence Campaign attended an online meeting to discuss fresh evidence relating to his case. 

During the meeting Yvonne Hartley, co-administrator of the campaign, told the dozens of supporters in attendance about Bamber’s ten alibis which were sent to the CCRC. 

She said there were multiple grounds which prove Bamber’s sister Sheila Caffell was alive in the farmhouse until the raid team entered the house. 

“Bamber was standing outside the house in the company of police officers when activity was logged as occurring within the house, therefore, he cannot have been involved,” she added. 

Bamber met the police outside the house at 3.50am on August 7 1985 having told them his father Nevill had called and said his sister had a gun. 

Ms Hartley said: "Jeremy, Sgt Bews and PC Myall did a recce of the house within minutes of arriving at the scene, and movement was seen through the main bedroom window which caused them to duck behind a hedge and then run back to the control vehicle and call for firearms assistance.

Read more >> Policeman wrongfully imprisoned aims to free convicted killer Jeremy Bamber

She added: “It means he has an alibi because he was outside with a police officer while Sheila was inside with a gun. 

“When police entered the house they found her dead from gun wounds.”

Bamber's team said the evidence was in 347,000 pages of evidence which were originally withheld from Bamber under public interest immunity laws which no longer apply after 30 years.

Bewes had later contradicted the account saying he believe the movement to have been the reflection of the moon in the window.

What do I need to know about the new documentary?

The Bambers: Murder At The Farm will be shown on Sky Crime and NOW on at 9pm.

Louis Theroux has examined the case for a new four-part documentary.

Theroux, who executive produced the documentary, said: “What really amazed me was how bizarre almost every version of the story is, and yet one of them, quite evidently, must be true.

Read more >> What we know about Louis Theroux documentary on Jeremy Bamber airing tonight

“Sheila did have a history of serious mental illness and had expressed confused ideations about possibly doing physical harm to people.

“And at the same time, to believe that she did it, you’d have to believe that in her psychosis she did an almost executioner-style job. Every one of the bullets, there were 20-something shots, hit its target.”

Theroux and his team gained access to unheard tapes for the new series which features first-hand testimony and evidential footage.

This includes recordings of Bamber speaking to a journalist while in prison.

Joined by director Lottie Gammon, who previously worked with Theroux on The Night in Question — a 2019 documentary focusing on college students accused of sexual assault, The Bambers: Murder At The Farm continues the decidedly dark theme.

“There are various strange, anomalous factors that mean there are these two camps: the people who believe passionately that he (Bamber) did it, and the people who believe passionately that he didn’t do it,” says Theroux.

“This is a really complicated four-episode story,” agrees Gammon. “Often with a series, each series has a different story and that’s kind of how all series used to be.

"Now, we’re in this world of doing single narrative, which as Louis was saying, is kind of novelistic and it takes a lot of brains to get that right.”