
Where Is Rose West Now? Here's Whether The Serial Killer Is Still In Prison
Netflix's Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story
Fred and Rose West are known as two of the most notorious serial killers in UK history. The story of their victims and the horrific crimes they committed are the focus of Netflix's new docuseries, Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story. As you're watching, you might be wondering where Rose West is now, whether she's still in prison, and if she's in contact with her kids.
Rosemary West was 15 years old and working at a bakery when she first met Fred. She encountered the 27-year-old at a bus stop and eventually left her job to move in as a full-time nanny for Fred's two children. Fred had previously been married to Catherine "Rena" Costello, with whom he had two daughters, Charmaine and Anne Marie.
Rose gave birth to their first child, Heather, in 1970. She and Fred married in January 1972 and went on to have eight children, many of whom they physically and sexually abused. The couple eventually moved into a house at 25 Cromwell Street in Gloucester, England. According to the West children, their mother was engaged in sex work, although police stated she was 'not known to [them]
The couple's eldest surviving daughter, Mae West, wrote about her parents' obsession with sex in her 2020 memoir, Love as Always, Mum xxx. She recalled sex toys and hardcore porn videos, many filmed by Fred and featuring Rose and others, scattered around the home.
At the same time, Mae also recalled seemingly normal family moments, like the iced cakes Rose baked for their birthdays or the Christmas presents bought from the Argos catalogue. The family also went on camping holidays, during which Mae and her sisters were spared from their father's abuse.
On January 12, 1973, the couple were convicted of kidnapping and abusing Caroline Owens, a girl who had been their nanny for a short period in late 1972. (Owens later testified in Rose's trial that she was kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and held against her will by both Rose and Fred.)
Anne Marie, who was sexually abused by her father, wrote that the children were isolated from the outside world. "We lived in a vacuum at Cromwell Street. No-one was allowed in without Dad's or Rose's permission, not even our playmates from school," she said, per ABC AU.
Netflix's Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story
Fred and Rose West were accused of raping, torturing, and killing at least 12 people over more than 20 years. Rose was convicted of participating in 10 of the murders. Their victims included their daughter Heather, Fred's ex-wife Rena, Fred and Rena's daughter Charmaine, as well as lodgers, nannies, hitchhikers, and other vulnerable women in the area. Some victims were mutilated, and many were decapitated.
Anne Marie, who had run away from home, alerted authorities about the physical abuse she both saw and experienced in the house. She also expressed concern about her missing sister, Heather. What seemed to be silly rumor about Heather being buried in the outside patio made its way to social workers, who notified police and executed a search of the property.
Police discovered nine sets of human remains throughout the property – dubbed the 'House of Horrors' – including in the cellar, beneath the patio, and near the bathroom and kitchen window. Additional remains were found in nearby fields in Kempley.
One of Fred's first victims was Ann McFall, a woman who lived with Fred in his caravan and was pregnant with his first child. He also killed his former wife Rena, who left him in 1969 amid reports of violence and sexual abuse, according to the BBC.
With Rose's help, Fred went on to kill 10 more women. Some victims, like Carole Ann Cooper and Lucy Partington, were picked up while hitchhiking or waiting at bus stops, while others were lodgers staying in their home.
Perhaps the most horrific of the couple's crimes was the murder of their first-born daughter Heather. Her body was the first discovered when police searched 25 Cromwell Street, and she's believed to be the final victim in their killing spree.
Fred West's biographer Geoffrey Wansall told the BBC that Heather was 'rebellious, difficult, and refused to collaborate with her father's plans.' While Heather and her sister tried to protect each other from their father, Wansall said he believed she threatened to go to the police to tell them about his crimes.
Netflix's Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story
Fred eventually admitted to murdering the women, but claimed he acted alone. He committed suicide on January 1, 1995, at the age of 53, in his cell at Birmingham Prison, while Rose continued to profess her innocence.
Rose pleaded not guilty to ten counts of murder. The trial lasted more than a month, and she was found guilty of ten murders. She was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, becoming the only the second woman in the UK's modern history to be given that sentence, per ABC AU.
Rose West is still in prison and serving out her life sentence at HM Prison New Hall.
Shortly after being found guilty, she attempted to appeal her convictions, but her application for appeal was refused, according to Netflix's Tudum.
Rose's daughter Mae wrote in her book that when she visited her mom in prison, she believed she was telling the truth. 'I kept loyal to Mum. She claimed that Dad influenced and controlled her and that she'd made a pact to stay with him as long as he didn't harm us kids,' she said, according to Daily Mail.
Eventually, Mae realized her 'coercive" and 'controlling' mom was guilty of the crimes she denied.
'I didn't realise it at the time, but Mum manipulated me. She started to hug me and hold my hand when I visited her. She'd never shown me any affection before. She signed all her letters 'Love as always, Mum', yet she'd never told me she loved me before,' she wrote.
Mae also called Rose a 'hypocrite,' especially for acting 'high and mighty' in prison – intervening in her children's lives and claiming that her sister Louise wouldn't be a good parent, while ignoring the fact that she and Fred had violently and sexually abused them.
She revealed that she eventually stopped visiting her mother, and Rose has stopped writing to her.
'Her death will be the next thing," Mae said of her then-70-year-old mother. "I suppose she might make a deathbed confession. I just wish she'd tell the truth to the authorities, then we'd all know, wouldn't we?"
As for the rest of the West children, Mae said they are still close. 'They say that families are broken up by these things, but we've stuck together. Actually, we're very lucky."
Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story is streaming on Netflix. Watch the official trailer below.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CNET
5 hours ago
- CNET
This Hilarious Prime Video Caper Flips the Script on British Crime Drama
You can't move for hit British crime shows right now. Whether it's Dept. Q or Adolescence on Netflix; MobLand on Paramount Plus; or Slow Horses on Apple TV Plus (even if that one's technically more of a spy show), gritty and binge-worthy content is showing up on the best streaming services, all delivered in a vibrant array of British accents. Deep Cover feels like a real crowd-pleaser. Peter Mountain/Metronome Film But a shift is happening. We're about to enter cozy-crime summer, when the genre will get an injection of lighthearted comedy, largely thanks to the much-anticipated adaptation of Richard Osman's Thursday Murder Club book series, set to land on Netflix this August. In the meantime, Prime Video is getting in there first with Deep Cover -- an action-comedy that flips the British crime script from serious to silly in the best possible way. In the film, which arrives on Prime Video on June 12, an unlikely trio of improv actors, all of differing skill levels, is recruited as undercover police officers and infiltrates London's underworld, theoretically to bust a drug ring. Needless to say, am-dram chaos ensues. Bryce Dallas Howard plays a failed stand-up comic turned improv teacher who ropes her two most hapless students into the gang: a method actor with delusions of grandeur, played by Orlando Bloom, and a nervy IT office nerd, played by Nick Mohammed. Together the three, nicknaming themselves Bonnie, Roach and the Squire, fudge their way through meetings with gangland bosses, each more intimidating than the next, and somehow manage to find friendship and romance along the way. I went to the film's premiere at SXSW London last week and came away convinced that Deep Cover should be at the top of everyone's watch list this weekend. The combination of comedy and action lands it squarely in crowd-pleaser territory, somewhere between Hot Fuzz and The Fall Guy. Of Deep Cover's three stars, it's Mohammed who has the most established comedy chops and gets the biggest laughs (you'll likely know him best as Nathan Shelley in Ted Lasso -- the kit man who defects to become a rival coach). That's not to say Bloom, who steps somewhat out of his comfort zone in this role, and Howard don't also deliver. The chemistry between the three lead characters keeps you rooting for them long after their "yes, and..." improv approach to undercover work seems to be failing them. The film's director, Tom Kingsley, has also worked on the Bafta-winning TV show Stath Lets Flats (available on Max), which is simultaneously the most Greek and most British piece of television you could ever hope to watch, and which I've long been convinced is a work of significant comic genius. Deep Cover has the same echoes of awkward, almost farcical humor, but with an Amazon-size budget behind it. Still, as Kingsley explained during a Q&A following the premiere, the budget was far smaller than anyone might expect for such a production. Bringing in bona fide Hollywood stars Bloom and Johnson attracted more funding, as did Amazon hopping on board. But the film was reportedly made on something of a shoestring by Hollywood standards. Still, it's easy to see where the injection of cash ended up. Deep Cover's action scenes are sometimes outlandishly slapstick, perfectly befitting of the three clowns at their center, and at times so graphic or high octane that they don't always jell with the overall tenor of the film. It's a minor niggle in the scheme of things, and one that shouldn't deter you. For all its silliness and stunts, Deep Cover is ultimately a heartwarming tale about developing adult friendships at that stage in life when you might feel like the moments for such opportunities have passed. If you're looking for something easy and fun to watch this weekend, then look no further.


Geek Vibes Nation
9 hours ago
- Geek Vibes Nation
Cult Horror Sequel ‘Ghoulies Go To College' To Get A Vestron Video Blu-Ray Release This July
Lionsgate Home Entertainment is set to release the cult horror entry Ghoulies Go To College on Blu-Ray for the first time domestically as a part of the Vestron Video Collector's Series on July 15, 2025. The film is directed by John Carl Buechler, and stars Kevin McCarthy, Evan MacKenzie, and Griffin O'Neal. The release comes packed with special features including a commentary track, featurettes, and more. Get all the details below! Synopsis: When it comes to higher education, the Ghoulies aren't just interested ― they'll crawl out of the toilet for it! In this third installment of the campy horror franchise, on Blu-ray™ for the first time, a professor (Kevin McCarthy) who dabbles in the occult decides to sabotage Prank Week by summoning three Ghoulies trapped in the pages of a demonic comic book. Once freed, the raunchy creatures party like there's no tomorrow, trashing the campus and pulling their own elaborate ― and deadly ― pranks. But one couple decides to take on the monstrous menace, leading to an unhinged, Ghoulie-tastic climax. BLU-RAY SPECIAL FEATURES Vestron Video Collector's Series #34 Cover art by Ralf Krause, Sleeve Art by Jim Warren Special Features: • Audio Commentary with Film Historians T.J. Bowser and Paul Ashford of Project Louder • Mr. Carter Goes to College • Ghoulies 'n' Gags: Behind the Screenplay of Ghoulies Go to College • Out of the Bowl: Making the Monsters of Ghoulies Go to College • English, French, German, and Spanish Trailers • Still Gallery Before we let you go, we have officially launched our merch store! Check out all of our amazing apparel when you click here and type in GVN15 at checkout for a 15% discount! Make sure to check out our podcasts each week including Geek Vibes Live, Top 10 with Tia, Wrestling Geeks Alliance and more! For major deals and money off on Amazon, make sure to use our affiliate link!


Fox News
11 hours ago
- Fox News
Dozens injured after driver plows through crowd of Liverpool soccer fans during victory parade
Police arrested the driver of a minivan on Monday after authorities say he plowed into a crowd of Liverpool, United Kingdom, soccer fans, injuring dozens who were celebrating the city's soccer team's Premier League Championship. Police identified the driver as a 53-year-old British man from the Liverpool area. Police also said they believe this was an isolated incident, adding that they do not believe anyone else was involved. The incident is not being investigated as an act of terrorism. Dave Kitchin of North West Air Ambulance said during a press conference on Monday that 27 people were taken to the hospital, with two suffering serious injuries, and another 20 people were treated at the scene for minor injuries. At least four children were injured. One of those children sustained serious injuries. Firefighters who responded to the scene had to lift the van to free three adults and one child, who were trapped beneath it. A cyclist paramedic on the scene was also struck by the van, though authorities said he did not sustain injuries. Merseyside Police said in a post on X that it was investigating reports of a collision in Liverpool city center, after being contacted after 6 p.m. on Monday that a car had collided with multiple pedestrians on Water Street. Police added that the vehicle stopped at the scene and a man was detained. "We would ask people not to speculate on the circumstances surrounding tonight's incident on Water Street in Liverpool city centre," police said in another post. "We can confirm the man arrested is a 53-year-old white British man from the Liverpool area. Extensive [inquiries] are ongoing to establish the circumstances leading up to the collision." Police asked the public to not share "distressing content" online, but instead to send the footage or information to the Merseyside Police or to Crimestoppers. Video posted to social media prior to the police department's request to not share information online, showed a gray minivan striking at least one pedestrian before veering into a larger crowd of people, carving a path through the group and pushing bodies along the street like a plow before coming to a stop. The Associated Press spoke with Harry Rashid, who was at the Liverpool parade with his wife and two young daughters. Rashid said the car began ramming people about 10 feet away from him. "It was extremely fast," he said. "Initially, we just heard the pop, pop, pop of people just being knocked off the bonnet of a car." British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a post on X that he was being kept up to date on developments regarding the situation and asked that police be given the space needed to conduct their investigation. "The scenes in Liverpool are appalling – my thoughts are with all those injured or affected," he wrote. "I want to thank the police and emergency services for their swift and ongoing response to this shocking incident." The incident came after a large celebration in the city center, where tens of thousands of dancing, scarf-and-flag-waving fans braved wet weather to line the streets and watch Liverpool's players display the Premier League trophy from on top of two buses bearing the words, "Ours Again." Rashid told the AP that after the van struck its initial victims, it stopped and the crowd charged the vehicle, smashing its windows. "But then he put his foot down again and just plowed through the rest of them, he just kept going," Rashid said, alleging the incident appeared deliberate. "It was horrible. And you could hear the bumps as he was going over the people." "My daughter started screaming and there were people on the ground," he added. "They were just innocent people, just fans going to enjoy the parade."