Mark of a Murderer on ABC: Colleen Egan revisits a wrongful conviction – A new four-part ABC documentary follows journalist and former MP Colleen Egan as she returns to a Fremantle murder case she has investigated for 28 years. Mark of a Murderer premieres on Monday 16 November at 8.30pm on ABC TV, with all four episodes available on ABC iview.
The case begins with the separate 1994 murders of two Western Australian women. Egan’s work helped overturn one conviction; the series then follows the questions that remained after the man she fought to free left prison.
Two murders in Fremantle
Andrew Mallard and Simon Rochford were both British-born men living in Fremantle in 1994. Each was charged with murdering a local woman and sentenced to life imprisonment. Mallard received a minimum 20-year term for the murder of jeweller Pamela Lawrence. Rochford was ordered to serve 15 years for killing his girlfriend, Brigitta Dickens.
Archival footage captures Egan as a young journalist challenging Mallard’s conviction. Her investigation led to a High Court appeal, and Mallard was released in 2006. His wrongful conviction became one of Australia’s most serious miscarriages of justice.
The documentary examines evidence that later implicated Rochford in the deaths of both women. It uses Mallard’s exoneration as the starting point for Egan’s present-day search for further answers.
A trail beyond Australia
Tracing Rochford’s movements, Egan investigates a possible connection to a 1992 murder in a London hotel and three other similar deaths in his Gloucestershire hometown. Her work prompts police reviews of three cold cases. The series asks what investigators in Britain may uncover and follows those reviews to a conclusion.
The ABC has released a first look at the series:
Who made Mark of a Murderer?
Mark of a Murderer is an Artemis Media production for the ABC in association with Channel 4. The ABC and Screen Australia provided major production investment, with Screenwest and Lotterywest supporting development and production. ABC Commercial handles local distribution.
Celia Tait is executive producer. Egan presents and co-writes the series, while Claire Forster is series producer, director and co-writer. Phillipa Hutchison is story producer and post director, Alison James is drama director and Steve Peddie is post director. Stephen Oliver is the ABC commissioning editor, with Susie Jones the ABC’s head of documentary and specialist.
Mark of a Murderer premieres Monday 16 November at 8.30pm on ABC TV. All four episodes will be available to stream on ABC iview.
For more ABC stories on TV Central, head here. Viewers can also visit ABC iview for the series.
