CBS Reality’s Murder by the Sea returns for a sixth series on Tuesday (7 Sept, 10pm), with further engrossing accounts of notorious cases.

I’ve been fascinated to be involved in several previous series and filmed contributions to five cases in the upcoming collection, although the research can be grim at times.

However, the cases I was invited to talk about covered an intriguing range, from 1952 up to more modern murders. They include the case of a ‘family annihilator’ in south Wales, a gang murder and the shocking case of an extremely dangerous man released from hospital on conditional discharge.

Cruel husbands

When Monster Films first asked me to be part of the series in 2018, I was bemused by premise, which seemed a little random.

Having since looked into quite a few cases for the producers, I now appreciate what a strong idea the seaside angle is. A rich variety of lifestyles and people are found in coastal communities.

People retire there, or raise families or pass through on holiday. Murder has wreaked havoc on unfortunate members of all these groups.