On 29th July 1981, while the eyes of the world are on London and captivated by the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, an eight-year-old boy disappears on his way home from the celebrations. Despite a huge police search he is never seen alive again. Seven months later his partial remains are discovered in a small patch of woodland in rural Sussex, many miles from home. Forty years on, and despite the emergence of new evidence, no-one has been brought to justice for the abduction and death of Vishal Mehrotra and the police appear to have exhausted all their leads. Then one day, as the world is going into lockdown in 2020, a BBC local reporter receives a secretive message from a person who has worked within the police – they tell him they’ve seen something extraordinary that could blow the case wide open.
That call sets in motion an epic true story - an astonishing podcast investigation, three years in the making, that has consequences no-one could have imagined. As the team investigate they track down and question a convicted paedophile, a teacher who fled the UK while being questioned by police in relation to child sexual abuse in the 1990s and has been on the run across the world for over 25 years. Most shocking of all, the series discovers that a UK police force had been aware for years he’d been at the address and had decided not to try to bring him back - while telling Vishal’s family that he hadn’t been located.
The disappearance of Vishal Mehrotra is a case that haunts our age: a case that has repeatedly fallen through the cracks over 40 years – the cracks of our justice system, of our collective attention, of who we choose to listen to and who we don’t. In this extraordinary podcast series, Vishal’s 30 year old half-brother Suchin Mehrotra and investigative reporter Colin Campbell set out to gather the pieces and try to get answers. What they uncover takes them deep into the disturbing underworld of what appears to be a completely separate crime - and sends them halfway across the globe in a search for the truth. Alongside a deeply moving personal story about the toll of this tragedy on one family across generations, what also emerges is a picture of all of us and the world we live in now.
After the series launches Colin is approached by people who say they have information – things noticed decades before and never forgotten. But 40 years on can these memories push the investigation forward?
If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, help and support is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
12 Jun 2023
Episode 9: The Man in the Tower
Following Colin’s visit the police get involved – and the team receive shocking news. And, as the investigation draws to a close, a tantalising distant memory brings one more suspect into the frame...
If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, help and support is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Presented by Colin Campbell and Suchin Mehrotra
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Episode 9 producer: Jolyon Jenkins
Series audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Episode sound design and mix: Arlie Adlington
Executive producer: Alistair Jackson
Archive Producer: Helen Carr
Production Co-ordinator: Juliette Harvey
Production Manager: Elaina Boateng
Production Executive: Laura Jordan-Rowell
Creative Director: Georgia Moseley
Series Developed by Satiyesh Manoharajah and Colin Campbell
Editorial consultants: Jackie Malton and Shaun Keep
Legal Advisors: Sarah McColl and Andrew Downey
Editorial Policy Advisors: Matthew Eltringham and Kim Barrington
Archive from BBC Archive and Fremantle
Artwork: Victoria Ford
Voice actor: Paula Goldstein
Solo Violin performed by Esme Bryden
Additional research: Christian Dametto and Bushra Siddiq
A BBC Studios Production
5 Jun 2023
Episode 8: The Fourth Man
The investigation team make a shocking discovery that sends Colin halfway across the world. It’s a huge gamble for one last shot at the truth – but will he find what he’s looking for?
If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, help and support is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Presented and investigated by Colin Campbell
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Episode producer: Jolyon Jenkins
Episode sound design and mix: Arlie Adlington
Original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
29 May 2023
Episode 7: The Elephant in the Room
Why has Vishal’s case remained unsolved for so many decades? Suchin takes a step back from the investigation to look at the bigger picture. What has brought his family to this point? And what’s really going on?
If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, help and support is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Presented by Suchin Mehrotra
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive producer Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
22 May 2023
Episode 6: The Showdown
After gathering his evidence Colin goes searching – and comes face to face with a man who has a very big question to answer. And following his investigation the police visit Vishal’s family with news...
If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, help and support is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Presented and investigated by Colin Campbell
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Episode producer: Jolyon Jenkins
Episode sound design and mix: Arlie Adlington
Original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive Producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
15 May 2023
Episode 5: The School
Colin meets a witness – and a group of men bravely tell him what happened to them at school 40 years ago when they were boys, in the hope that what they know may help the investigation into Vishal’s disappearance...
If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, help and support is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline
Presented and investigated by Colin Campbell
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive Producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
8 May 2023
Episode 4: The Coincidence
Decades pass without an answer. But in 2020 lightning strikes. A BBC reporter gets a mysterious call – the man says he’s been deep within the police and he’s seen something that might blow the case wide open...
Presented by Suchin Mehrotra and Colin Campbell
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
1 May 2023
Episode 3: The Woods
Many miles from home two men make a chance discovery. Vishu gets a call at work, the media descend – and life for this family will never be the same again.
Presented by Suchin Mehrotra
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
24 Apr 2023
Episode 2: The Search
A massive search for the missing child swings into action. The police comb London, the TV news appeals for information, the public report sightings - and suspicion falls on his father...
Presented by Suchin Mehrotra
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
17 Apr 2023
Episode 1: The Royal Wedding
A young family joins the crowds to celebrate the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer in central London. But on the way home one of the children disappears and a nightmare begins.
Presented by Suchin Mehrotra
Series written and produced by Satiyesh Manoharajah
Audio production, sound design and original music: Steve Urquhart
Executive producer: Alistair Jackson
A BBC Studios Production
10 Apr 2023
Introducing Vishal
On the day Prince Charles marries Lady Diana a boy in the crowd vanishes.
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.7 / 5
190 ratings
Contact Vishal
Guest appearances
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