Elkin & Bell / The Gosport Funeral Home Scandal
They Walk Among Us - UK True Crime
They Walk Among Us
4.5 • 6.8K Ratings
🗓️ 1 April 2026
⏱️ 45 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In England, anyone can become a funeral director. No licence, no qualifications required. This is the story of how that gap was exploited. On December 10th, 2023, bailiffs entered a repossessed funeral home in Gosport, Hampshire, and discovered something that would prompt a year-long police investigation, a landmark criminal trial, and renewed calls for long-overdue industry regulation…
*** LISTENER CAUTION IS ADVISED ***
This episode was researched and written by Eileen Macfarlane.
Script editing, additional writing, illustrations and production direction by Rosanna Fitton.
Audio editing by Joel Porter at Dot Dot Dot Productions.
Narration, additional audio editing and mixing, writing and script editing by Benjamin Fitton.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This episode contains distressing themes. This podcast is intended for a mature audience. |
| 0:18.1 | Listener caution is advised. |
| 0:28.7 | Losing someone you love is one of the most devastating things that can happen. |
| 0:34.8 | Having to navigate the cold and practical administrative side of death can be incredibly difficult while grieving. Funeral directors are trusted to assist you |
| 0:40.2 | during this time to carry some of that burden. In the UK, anyone can become a funeral director. |
| 0:48.5 | While many enter the industry to provide meaningful service to the community during their most |
| 0:53.7 | vulnerable moments. |
| 0:55.0 | Some exploit a profession that has been called an unregulated free-for-all. |
| 1:00.0 | No family should ever have to suffer the distress that has been caused, |
| 1:09.0 | let alone at a time of personal loss. |
| 1:12.6 | These were not mistakes, but monstrous, hideous, betrayals |
| 1:17.6 | inflicted on the bodies of those we loved. |
| 1:20.6 | Their actions were deliberate. They caused deep distress to dozens of families. |
| 1:28.3 | The entire unregulated funeral directing industry has been allowed to police itself and potentially operate in the shadows for far too long. |
| 1:39.9 | Welcome to Season 11, Episode 12 of They Walk Among us, a podcast dedicated to UK True Crime. |
| 1:56.5 | Gosport is a coastal town in the south of England. |
| 2:00.6 | It lies just across the harbour from Portsmouth and is known as one of the best sailing areas in the world. |
| 2:07.3 | It has a rich maritime history and 17 miles of waterfront along the peninsula. |
| 2:13.7 | But like many towns shaped by centuries of coastal industry, this description only tells part of the story. |
| 2:21.7 | The short drive inland, the marinas and harbour views give way to quieter streets and tired retail units. |
| 2:29.1 | Here the rhythm of daily life continues largely unnoticed, far from the sailing clubs and historic dockyards. |
| 2:37.5 | It was in one of these unremarkable corners of the town away from the water's edge that events would |
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