LONDON: The ashes of notorious British child serial killer Ian Brady have been scattered at sea after he was cremated without ceremony last week, court documents revealed Friday.
The remains of Brady, who died aged 79 in May, were placed in a weighted urn and buried off the coast of Liverpool, north west England, in the early hours of October 26.
Brady and his girlfriend Myra Hindley tortured and murdered five children between July 1963 and October 1965.
The victims, many of whom were sexually assaulted, were buried on Saddleworth Moor, in a national park near Manchester, although the body of 12-year-old Keith Bennett has never been found.
Relatives of the victims feared that Brady would have his ashes spread over the moor, but a court ruled out the possibility earlier this month.
“The deceased’s wishes are relevant, but they do not outweigh the need to avoid justified public indignation and actual unrest,” said Chancellor of the High Court Geoffrey Vos.
Vos also ruled that there be “no music and no ceremony.”
Brady’s lawyer Robin Makin said his client had asked for the fifth movement of Hector Berlioz’s hallucinatory Symphonie Fantastique, “Dream of the Night of the Sabbath,” to be played.
The brutality of their crimes and the role of Hindley in luring innocent young children to their deaths, have made it one of Britain’s most infamous cases.
Brady and Hindley were jailed in 1966 for the murders of John Kilbride, 12, Lesley Ann Downey, 10, and Edward Evans, 17.
Years later, the pair confessed to Bennett’s murder and that of 16-year-old Pauline Reade.
Brady never expressed remorse for the killings, and the judge in his trial said both he and Hindley were “evil beyond belief.” Hindley died in prison in 2002.
Ashes of UK child killer Brady buried at sea
Ashes of UK child killer Brady buried at sea
First lady Melania Trump to preview new film at private White House screening
- Film offers rare behind-the-scenes access to Melania Trump
- First lady to ring NYSE opening bell to promote film
WASHINGTON: First lady Melania Trump will host a private White House screening on Saturday of a new film documenting her life in the 20 days leading up to President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, an adviser said.
The movie, “Melania,” is set for a global release on January 30. Saturday’s showing will be the first time the president, her family and close friends see the film in full, said Marc Beckman, the first lady’s outside adviser and agent.
The film offers rare behind-the-scenes access to the first lady, who has kept a low public profile during her husband’s second term. The trailer opens on Inauguration Day in January 2025, showing her donning a navy wide-brimmed hat for the ceremony at the US Capitol. It also depicts her role as an adviser to the president, including a moment in which she encourages him to emphasize “peacemaker and unifier” in his inaugural address.
Beckman, who produced the film, oversaw the $40 million movie deal with Amazon’s MGM Studios, plus a follow-up documentary series set for release later this year focusing on some of Melania Trump’s priorities, including children in foster care.
“This is not a political film at all,” Beckman said in an interview, adding that the first lady spearheaded the film’s creative direction.
The movie highlights her fashion choices, diplomatic engagements and the operations surrounding her Secret Service protection. Beckman said viewers also will see moments that capture the president’s sense of humor.
Ahead of the public theatrical release of the film next week, the president and first lady will attend a premiere on Thursday at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, renamed the Trump-Kennedy Center by the Trump-appointed board of directors.
The first lady is also scheduled to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday to promote the film, Beckman added.
