WARNING: This article contains spoilers from the ITV drama The Pembrokeshire Murders.
The Pembrokeshire Murders delves into the narrative of a Detective Superintendent who reopens two unresolved double murder cases and hunts down a notorious serial killer.
In 2021, The Pembrokeshire Murders, featuring Welsh actors Luke Evans and Keith Allen, premiered on ITV with the stars taking on the roles of DS Steve Wilkins and John Cooper respectively.
The three-part series explores four murders committed in the 1980s that remained unsolved by the Dyfed Powys police force. However, these cases were reopened by Wilkins in 2006 following his promotion.
With the aid of advanced forensic technology now available, the force identifies a DNA match with an individual about to be released from prison for a series of burglaries.
Is The Pembrokeshire Murders a true story?
‘s recent offering, The Pembrokeshire Murders, is a true crime drama, hence it is based on actual events.
Welsh serial killer John Cooper was responsible for the murders of siblings Richard and Helen Thomas in 1985, as well as Peter and Gwenda Dixon in 1989.
Is The Pembrokeshire Murders a ‘true’ story? (Image: ITV)
Real-life serial killer John Cooper is played by actor Keith Allen in The Pembrokeshire Murders (Image: ITV)
He was only identified as the murderer when Wilkins discovered he was a DNA match for prints found at the scene, having already served years in prison for burglaries.
Actor Luke Evans stated at the time that a significant reason for his involvement in the show was its grounding in reality.
He shared his fascination with the gripping narrative: “The story just hooked me immediately, also I’m a sucker for a ‘true’ story. This isn’t just a ‘true’ story it’s a shocking ‘true’ story about the worst serial killer Wales has ever seen.
“It also drew my attention to the work the police force do behind the scenes, at the human impact of what people go through when something like this happens in their community.
“Often these stories do feel like they can’t be real but this one has so many twists and turns and many, many times during the story it feels like it’s going to go cold once again, the case will go cold because the forensic evidence was minimal and the budgets were running out – people were losing faith.
“So it is a real story of a team of people who absolutely wanted to find the truth and get the man who committed these crimes.
“The unbelievable twists that this story takes during the investigation which are just mind boggling and literally when I read it… I remember I started googling it.
“Somehow, I think I might have been too young for it to have made an impact on me when it actually did happen and I wasn’t living in Wales at the time, but when I read the story, I realised there were no fictional embellishments in this story.
“It’s as ‘true’ to the facts as it possibly can be and it really is a rollercoaster ride as you watch it.”
The series draws from the book Catching the Bullseye Killer, penned by Wilkins and ITV news journalist Jonathan Hill, released in 2012.
The title of the book alludes to Cooper’s appearance on the popular game show Bullseye in 1989 with clips from this episode used to draw comparisons with sketches of a suspect in the Dixons’ murder case.
Cooper was eventually apprehended for the crime in 2009 and received a life sentence in 2011.
The Pembrokeshire Murders is available to watch on .