UK UK - Jill Dando, 37, Fulham, London, 26 Apr 1999

[TheRockingRev]

She was "close" to her next door neighbour wasn't she? That's not me revealing some unknown rumour as it was revealed in court her DNA was on Richard Hughes's bedsheets was it not? Or maybe I'm over exaggerating an innocent coffee meet up!

I assume she wasn't doing any of this when she was with Alan Farthing but there was certainly a significant period between her splitting up with Bob Wheaton (and it seemed that relationship had already fizzled out in 1996) and then meeting Farthing in late 1997.

So potentially lots of male suitors she met on top of the rumours from fronting the Holiday programme.

So in terms of motive of attack you can split this case into three scenarios. First is she was incredibly unlucky to get out of her car as a random/stalker walked towards here with a gun (BG/unknown). I always think to that day would she have been killed if she was with someone else? No idea how often Alan Farthing came back with her to Gowan Avenue but he must've done on occasions and can't believe the killer knew his work rota.

Or the two other scenarios is someone was triggered by her wedding and being unavailable so decided to stop that event happening. Or someone with Serbian connections decided she was easy target after Kosovo appeal three weeks before her death.

Beyond that what else is there to consider?

JMO the idea she had stumbled onto something bigger, regarding C.A shouldn't be ruled out IMO. She worked at the BBC, look at the floodgates that opened afterwards. If you think that this is far-fetched, listen to the excellent 'In Dark Corners' BBC (ironically) Podcast - series 2. If you see how far-rooted organised abuse is you'll see how far it reaches up. Look at the case of Sir Peter Hayman and how Margaret Thatcher had the certain things shut down by special branch etc. This isn't/wasn't a couple of weirdos hanging around the park - this was very, very influential people who had a lot to lose.

 

[Inspector Evans]

TBF - he was generally odd. The other thing is he was an attention seeker - the whole alibi thing could easily be him trying to make himself out to be more important and relevant than he was. And yes, I know it seems strange with a murder but a). he had a history of drawing attention to himself and b). this kind of behaviour is not unusual, dozens of people try and admit to crimes they haven't done for a bit of attention - knowing that 99% of the time nothing will happen other than a slap on the wrist for wasting police time as they're innocent.

Barry George is a very dangerous man, especially to females.

We will see what the latest court outing brings but previously he's been arrested on the grounds of Buckingham Palace trying to attack Diana, stalked women on streets and now in court for a long standing rape accusation.

Could he have killed Jill Dando? Absolutely but I'm less convinced he was there in the actual circumstances. Could he really have just faded into the background in the minutes after without people walking past him on streets noting he was very close to her house at that time? Or be hanging around on the street corner for hours? Especially with his image in all the media outlets when he was arrested in May 2000?

I think given he seems someone who gets quite agitated in public spaces someone would've spotted him in Gowan Avenue after 11am that morning. In the first Crimewatch appeal there was someone driving past who saw a male standing on the corner of the road at 11.29am so that has to be the killer surely as he was 50 yards from her house.

This is different to say a hitman being deployed and they are never located so there is no real image and so memories fade on what people see on the day over time.

Also he did go somewhere else that day, HAFAD. Just saw a reddit forum and they're convinced on there he was at the centre by 12pm which would've made it near impossible if he'd just gone back home to have a change of clothes.

However I don't think the timings were ever proved conclusively in the July 2001 trial as the clock had stopped or something so timings weren't recorded when he turned up. If it was after 1pm then his alibi is less secure and then he went to a taxi firm and caused a scene unnecessarily.

If his alibi was rock solid that day and it was proved by HAFAD staff he was at the centre at midday I don't think it would pass CPS threshold for a trial in the first place.

 

[Inspector Evans]

JMO the idea she had stumbled onto something bigger, regarding C.A shouldn't be ruled out IMO. She worked at the BBC, look at the floodgates that opened afterwards. If you think that this is far-fetched, listen to the excellent 'In Dark Corners' BBC (ironically) Podcast - series 2. If you see how far-rooted organised abuse is you'll see how far it reaches up. Look at the case of Sir Peter Hayman and how Margaret Thatcher had the certain things shut down by special branch etc. This isn't/wasn't a couple of weirdos hanging around the park - this was very, very influential people who had a lot to lose.

Don't really want to go down that rabbit hole, plenty of that theory on any YT of her case in the comments below.

Maybe later in Jill's career in 2000s she would've graduated to hard hitting documentary maker but she wasn't at that level yet. I put that as remote with the Crimewatch retribution theory.

Wasn't there an offbeat theory a few years back she was shot in mistaken identity as Lisa Brinksworth was working for Panorama on the BBC and exposed abuse in fashion industry in Paris.

She was female, blonde and I presume she also lived somewhere around the Fulham area so the claim was Jill Dando was shot in mistaken identity.

That Panorama episode came out in 1998 so again feasible timeline but surely you wouldn't confuse addresses if it was reasonably competent hitman assigned to the task?

 

[TheRockingRev]

Don't really want to go down that rabbit hole, plenty of that theory on any YT of her case in the comments below.

Maybe later in Jill's career in 2000s she would've graduated to hard hitting documentary maker but she wasn't at that level yet. I put that as remote with the Crimewatch retribution theory.

Wasn't there an offbeat theory a few years back she was shot in mistaken identity as Lisa Brinksworth was working for Panorama on the BBC and exposed abuse in fashion industry in Paris.

She was female, blonde and I presume she also lived somewhere around the Fulham area so the claim was Jill Dando was shot in mistaken identity.

That Panorama episode came out in 1998 so again feasible timeline but surely you wouldn't confuse addresses if it was reasonably competent hitman assigned to the task?

I think people believe she was going to produce and star in a hard-hitting documentary about it. I don't think that for a second but I do believe she may have heard /stumbled onto something that she may have wanted (or did) go to the authorities about.
Jimmy Savile got away with abuse at the BBC for years, as did others I'm sure, it was a huge open secret. It's been alleged, and is in various findings, that higher-ups laughed it off. It was a big boys-club mentality. If she had found something out then they would know that she would be taken more seriously because of who she was.
I don't think for a second that she was a Woodward or Bernstein - but if she heard or even saw something, which is logical considering she was seen as one of the upper level of presenters at the BBC, then she had the opportunity to go to the police.

 

[TheRockingRev]

Barry George is a very dangerous man, especially to females.

We will see what the latest court outing brings but previously he's been arrested on the grounds of Buckingham Palace trying to attack Diana, stalked women on streets and now in court for a long standing rape accusation.

Could he have killed Jill Dando? Absolutely but I'm less convinced he was there in the actual circumstances. Could he really have just faded into the background in the minutes after without people walking past him on streets noting he was very close to her house at that time? Or be hanging around on the street corner for hours? Especially with his image in all the media outlets when he was arrested in May 2000?

I think given he seems someone who gets quite agitated in public spaces someone would've spotted him in Gowan Avenue after 11am that morning. In the first Crimewatch appeal there was someone driving past who saw a male standing on the corner of the road at 11.29am so that has to be the killer surely as he was 50 yards from her house.

This is different to say a hitman being deployed and they are never located so there is no real image and so memories fade on what people see on the day over time.

Also he did go somewhere else that day, HAFAD. Just saw a reddit forum and they're convinced on there he was at the centre by 12pm which would've made it near impossible if he'd just gone back home to have a change of clothes.

However I don't think the timings were ever proved conclusively in the July 2001 trial as the clock had stopped or something so timings weren't recorded when he turned up. If it was after 1pm then his alibi is less secure and then he went to a taxi firm and caused a scene unnecessarily.

If his alibi was rock solid that day and it was proved by HAFAD staff he was at the centre at midday I don't think it would pass CPS threshold for a trial in the first place.

I have no doubt he was very, very dangerous as you said - but to go from physical attacks, no matter how serious, to murder is quite a leap.
We have to bear in mind - if it was him wanting to murder someone, then why Jill Dando? Although there were a few random links in the all the crap they found in his house, there is no sign that he was obsessed just with her. If he had wanted to murder her specifically, IMO, they would've found more about her.