The Trial of Richard Satchwell documentary to air on Virgin Media

Ellen O'Donoghue

Virgin Media Television has announced it will air a new documentary on the trial of Richard Satchwell.

The documentary will air on Monday, September 29th.

It is produced by Virgin Media News, and courts correspondent Deborah Naylor takes an in-depth look at one of the most high-profile murder trials in recent Irish history.

The programme follows the case from Tina Satchwell's disappearance in 2017, through a cold-case breakthrough six years later, to the trial that ultimately brought her husband, Richard Satchwell, to justice.

Featuring exclusive interviews with Tina's family and drawing on Richard Satchwell's many media appearances, the documentary examines the evidence that secured a conviction, and reveals how, in trying to shape the narrative, it was his own words that helped seal his fate.

The programme features retired detective inspector Pat Murray, who says that he feels the murder investigation fell short "because the initial search that was conducted wasn't intrusive".

"They should have had a cadaver dog in there, and that was a huge miss.”

Tina's niece, Sarah Howard, shares her early suspicions, as "nothing was adding up," while Lorraine Howard, Tina Satchwell's half sister, speaks of the emotional toll of the investigations.

"When I heard all the gory details of what went on and what he did to her... I was having nightmares for weeks after that. Everything I thought I knew about him, I didn't," Lorraine says.

The Trial of Richard Satchwell airs on Virgin Media One on Monday, September 29th, and will also be available to stream on Virgin Media Player.