Q&A: Farage vs Essex Police, the Mushroom Murderer's appeal & London Falling

Q&A: Farage vs Essex Police, the Mushroom Murderer's appeal & London Falling

August 20, 2026 · 26 min · Episode 77

About this episode

The episode discusses political interference in policing, a murder appeal, and the impact of technology on crime-solving.

Nigel Farage says Essex Police warned him to stay away from the Clacton by-election count. Essex Police say that never happened. So who's lying? And why are politicians increasingly dragging the police into their political battles? In this week's Q&A, Andy and Neil tackle Farage's claim head-on and ask what it means for public trust when policing becomes a prop in politicians' narratives. They also discuss the Mushroom Murderer's appeal. Erin Patterson was convicted of poisoning her former in-laws with a death cap mushroom lunch, and from the moment she appeared on camera claiming to be "devastated," most people felt she was guilty. But how often do detectives get an instinctive feeling that someone did it? And can that gut instinct help or hinder an investigation? Plus: has CCTV revolutionised crime-solving in the same way DNA once did? And do the benefits of Ring doorbells on every street outweigh 'Big Brother' concerns? Andy and Neil also dig into the unsolved death of Zac Brettler, the case at the heart of Patrick Radden Keefe's London Falling , and whether the Met's investigation was as flawed as the reporting suggests. Have a question for a future Q&A? Send it via…

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