Bolton, 1982 – a mummified body is discovered in the cellar of a house in the Greater Manchester town of Bolton. The dead woman is covered in a News of the World newspaper dated March 1966. She wears rosary beads and an eternity ring, but there is no other clue to her identity.
More than 40 years later, BBC Local podcast series The Forgotten Dead continues to investigate the enduring mystery in its second series.
This seven-part true crime series launches on BBC Sounds today (Tuesday May 14) and will be serialised on BBC Radio Manchester.
Presented by Jane Wilkinson from BBC Radio Manchester, the new series delves even further into the true identity of the mystery woman, who police nicknamed Mary Ellen.
In the first series Jane, who also produces the podcast, looked back over the police investigation including the pioneering science which built a reconstruction of Mary Ellen’s face.
Now, she follows up on leads from listeners from the first series, to try to piece together the woman’s real identity.
Could Mary Ellen be Eileen, a mystery Irishwoman who saved souls? Isabella, a housewife who left the family home and never came back? Brenda, a teenage girl planning to move in with her boyfriend? Or Matthew’s mum, a single parent trying to build a new life with her sons? The remarkable stories of these four women, and their connection to Mary Ellen is uncovered in the new episodes of The Forgotten Dead.
Wilkinson said: “I’ve been fascinated with Mary Ellen’s story ever since I stumbled over a picture of her face – an artist’s impression of what she might have looked like. Vulnerable and very human. So, when I first started searching my main aim was to discover her real name.
“But the search took me in some unexpected directions. There were stories of trauma, abuse and tragedy. I met families who had been looking for their missing loved ones for years, and some who found answers during my investigation. There have been plenty of twists and turns.”
Chris Burns, controller of local audio commissioning, said: “This new series of The Forgotten Dead will have people talking. These kinds of real stories made by BBC Local for BBC Sounds are what it’s all about. Getting to the heart every story and what the truth is, really matters.”
