Episode 1079: What was Ian Bailey really like?
He was the self-professed chief suspect in the murder of Frenchwoman Sophie Toscan du Plantier and the subject of a fascinating film, Murder at the Cottage, which was directed by Jim Sheridan and produced by Donald MacIntyre before his death.
A larger than life, dramatic, and overwhelming character who courted the media and wore his role as a suspect like a badge of honour.
But what was Ian Bailey really like and did his mask fall once the cameras stopped rolling?
Nicola speaks to journalist and former colleague Donal MacIntyre, who spent countles s hours in his company and who attended a private ceremony near his home in Schull where his ashes were spread.
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Irish Times
2 days ago
- Irish Times
Suspect in Reykjavik hotel murders detained for another four weeks
A French woman suspected of murdering her husband and daughter at a Reykjavik hotel has had her period of detention extended for a further four weeks. The woman has been in Icelandic police custody since June 14th when her husband and daughter were found dead at the Reykjavik Edition hotel in the city's harbour area. The suspect had also sustained injuries. The family were French citizens but had lived in Dublin for almost 10 years before travelling to Reykjavik in early June. The daughter was about 30 years old and her father was aged 58. The suspect is 56. The three had spent a week in the country and were scheduled to leave Iceland on the day they were discovered. READ MORE The French woman will now be detained until August 27th, at which point custody arrangements will be reviewed again. Under Icelandic law, a suspect may be held for up to 12 weeks before being released or charged. The woman had initially been detained in hospital in Reykjavik as a result of her injuries, but a spokesperson for the city's police confirmed she is now being held in prison. Icelandic police have been in touch with both Irish and French police regarding the case. Police are not yet releasing the names of the individuals, as is the norm in Icelandic society. The killings have shocked both locals and visitors in a city where murders are rare – especially among tourists. Reykjavik's reputation for safety and its unique landscapes have made Iceland a hugely popular holiday destination, with 2.3 million international tourists visiting the Nordic country last year. The country prides itself on its low crime rate and regularly tops lists ranking it the safest country in the world. However, the murder rate has risen in recent years. In 2024, eight people were killed in Iceland, and this year that figure stands at six.
Irish Daily Mirror
6 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Sophie Toscan du Plantier murder is still one of the most mysterious of our time
Who killed Sophie Toscan du Plantier is one of the greatest riddles of our time. If it wasn't the so-called prime suspect Ian Bailey, then who actually did it? Here we are almost 30 years later and the Gardai seem to be no nearer to solving the case than they were all those years ago. The Garda review into the murder is now going three years. It was announced in a blaze of fanfare and publicity in June, 2022 and has not published any findings into the case so far. A parallel team of detectives are carrying out the actual murder probe but no new arrests have been made and no new leads they are following have been disclosed publicly. We do know the director and filmmaker Jim Sheridan, who made the smash hit documentary on the Sophie case, Murder At The Cottage, has passed on information about a man who was seen following the French woman in Schull, west Cork on the afternoon before she died. He has identified him and given the name to the Gardai. However we have no idea if detectives have gone to France where he lives to track him down and interview him. Ian Bailey on his deathbed always believed a Frenchman known to Sophie had something to do with her murder. Her heartbroken family, her elderly mother and son Pierre are all convinced Ian Bailey did it. Their suspicions are based on much of the evidence heard in the French murder trial which the suspect himself did not appear at. Ian Bailey. (Image: (Photo by)) Sophie Toscan du Plantier. (Image: PA) However much of this "evidence" was based on hearsay and would never have been permitted in an Irish court of law. The other big player in the whole saga is the painter Jules Thomas who lived with Ian Bailey for over 30 years until they split up three years before he died. She provided him with an alibi on the night of the murder on December 23, 1996 and is adamant her former lover did not kill Sophie. Some Gardai were hoping she might change her story after they stopped living together on the basis she was no longer under " Bailey spell" whatever that was supposed to mean. But Jules was not for turning and has stuck to her guns. I spoke to her at length only last week and she told me Bailey may have been a lot of things but he was not a killer. She said: "He couldn't kill a turkey for God's sake, never mind a human being." She is fighting a serious illness but Jules is now spending all her spare time writing a book on the case, giving her side of the story. "The whole Sophie murder ruined both of our lives and we will never get that time back," she told me. Jules is also convinced that she knows who did kill the French film producer and it was someone with huge local connections. Her account of the case and what really happened will be fascinating to read. The current Garda Commissioner Drew Harris is due to leave office in September. It would be a positive move if he released details of the review before he leaves office. It is shocking to think that if Bailey didn't do it well then the killer is still out there and that person has been getting away with murder for years. Everybody from Sophie's heartbroken family, to all the locals around Schull and west Cork, to Jules Thomas want the truth to come out once and for all. Trump runs rings around EU There is only one winner in the Tariff war between Europe and America and that is Donald Trump and the USA. European goods imported into the United States will be subject to a 15% tariff while American goods imported into Europe will be subject to zero tariffs. The EU negotiators have failed miserably to get a decent deal and don't mind all the spin that the Irish government and Brussels puts on it. The bottom line is they didn't have the courage for a trade war with Trump and he knew it. The result will give the US a staggering €90b dollars every year in tariffs, great money if you can get it. The only positive outcome for us is it brings stability so at least we know where we stand for future budgets. I can tell you one thing, Trump is no idiot and he proved it here. President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump. (Image: Getty Images) Housing crisis fix I have spent a lot of time around Ireland in the past few weeks and there is dereliction and empty spaces over shops in almost every town and village I visited. The answer to our housing crisis is there before our eyes by giving out large grants and tax breaks for people to renovate these properties and to get people living above shops again like they do all over mainland Europe. In one town Ballinrobe, Co Mayo, a beautiful place by the way, there was one small street with six derelict buildings. This is where we should be investing at a hundred miles an hour. There are currently more than 750 council homes across Ireland which have been boarded up for more than a year (Image: Getty) Plane sailing for Ryanair boss You can say what you like about Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary but at least he lives all year round in Ireland and pays his taxes here. The same can not be said about some of our so-called wealthy elite who prefer to live elsewhere because of better climate and lower taxes and fly in and out of the Emerald Isle on their private jets to their holiday homes here. Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary (Image: PA Archive/PA Images) Congrats to the Kingdom Fair play to Kerry for winning their 39th All Ireland. I predicted all last week that they would hammer Donegal and got abused and insulted for daring to have such an opinion. The fact is the wide open spaces in Croke Park do not suit the defence minded Northern teams and Donegal could not handle the all out attacking style of the lads from the Kingdom. Kerry coach Jack O'Connor deserves great credit and has now won five All Irelands as manager putting him up there with the other greats Mick O'Dwyer and Jim Galvin. For the Donegal manager Jim McGuinness, it is back to the drawing board and he took his defeat in fairness with great calm and dignity. Let's face it there is not a lot you can say when you are beaten by the better team on the day. From the get go Kerry were always in control and were never in any danger of losing the game. The new rules are fantastic and have saved the great game that we all love. Roll on next year, Louth for Sam. You read it here first. Kerry's David Clifford and son Ogie celebrate with the Sam Maguire Cup (Image: ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne) Summer means Galway Races All eyes are on the city of Galway this week for the races which are one of the sporting highlights of the summer. Every day crowds from all over the country will descend on the Ballybrit track on what is a wonderful social occasion. I have had some great times in Galway over the years and loved every minute of the atmosphere. The Galway races means we are at the height of summer time in Ireland so enjoy every second of it. Racegoers attempt to shield themselves from the rain during The Galway Races Summer Festival (Image: Niall Carson/PA Wire) Fine Gael need to wise up There is no way this Government should be helping the hospitality sector before struggling families in the October Budget. Fine Gael who are pushing this agenda need to cop themselves on. There is no doubt some pubs and restaurants need some help. But reducing the VAT rate from 13 to 9pc while doing nothing for working families who are finding it difficult to pay their bills, especially rising energy costs, is not the solution. Remember the big five star hotels that are already charging customers a fortune and will get the biggest boost from a VAT cut for this sector. There must be another way to help the bars and restaurants such as tax relief against their soaring energy costs. There must also be energy credits once again for families on low incomes. The economists and financial experts keep saying the country is booming but many people don't feel like that and have little or no spare cash. Fine Gael leader, Simon Harris. Take care of our own I see 56 illegal Irish immigrants have been kicked out of the United States. Most were arrested in the New York and Boston areas and had overstayed their 90 day visas. There are still thousands of Irish illegals in America with some there 10 to 20 years. It is a real worrying time for them. The sooner our Government tries to help them get green cards the better. Remember if you are going to the US come home before 90 days or you are looking for trouble. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), agents detain an immigrant. (Image: Getty Images) Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
The Irish Sun
27-07-2025
- The Irish Sun
‘She thinks about her every day' – Sophie Toscan du Plantier mum in fresh DNA test hope for end of 29-yr murder mystery
THE heartbroken mum of murdered Sophie Toscan du Plantier is hoping new DNA testing methods can solve the 29-year mystery. Marguerite Bouniol, who is in her 90s, is battling 5 The murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier has been a mystery for 29 years 5 Marguerite Bouniol, mother of murdered French woman Sophie Toscan du Plantier is battling Parkinson's disease Credit: PA:Press Association 5 The murder took place on December 23, 1996, at this house near Schull in Cork Credit: AFP - Getty She lost her husband Georges, 98, who passed away in Newly advanced DNA testing methods may lead to answers as to who killed A team from the They are understood to have focused tests on a bloodstained flat rock and a concrete block used in the shocking READ MORE IN IRISH NEWS Sophie's uncle Jean-Pierre Gazeau told The Irish Sun on Sunday that not a day goes by without Sophie crossing her mother's mind. Jean Pierre said: 'Sophie's mother is now very old. She has Parkinson's and is fragile, but she is good mentally and she is still fighting. She thinks about Sophie every day, all the time, you know? 'She has a very close Sophie, a mum of one, was battered and left to die at the gateway to her holiday home on December 23, 1996, near Schull in Co Most read in Irish News Although self-proclaimed suspect Ian Bailey was arrested, he was never charged and always denied any involvement. Bailey died last year. It is understood Mr Bradley's team carried out extensive new testing with members of Forensic Science Ireland after travelling from its headquarters in Their new M-Vac system works using wet vacuum principles to release and capture cells. A substance is sprayed directly onto the surface while vacuum pressure is simultaneously applied around the pattern, to collect the buffer and suspended particles in a collection bottle. Before travelling over to 'If what I believe will happen actually does, it will be massive for us in a host of ways. 'Please pray for us.' VALUE OF THE EQUIPMENT They include the killing of teenager Krystal Beslanowitch in Utah 28 years ago which was similar in detail to that of the savage and brutal Both local gardai and the cold case unit have been working on the case since 2022. 5 They are understood to have focused tests on a bloodstained flat rock and a concrete block used in the attack 5 Self-proclaimed suspect Ian Bailey died last year Credit: AFP or licensors
