Our true crime obsession is here to stay. From puzzling cold cases to thrilling heists, there are countless real-life investigations to dive into. Whether you like being kept on your toes by shocking twists or just enjoy playing armchair detective, these are some of the best true crime documentaries to add to your watchlist.
The Man with 1,000 Kids
This “disturbing” three-part documentary tells the story of a man who tricked hundreds of women into using him as a sperm donor, said Neil Armstrong in The i Paper. All the women we meet live in the Netherlands, found Jonathan Jacob Meijer on a website and became pregnant with his child. Some were provided with a semen sample, while others “took up his generous offer to ‘conceive the natural way’”; “all were ecstatic” to have conceived. But it soon transpired Meijer had been a donor far more often than the five times he claimed. In fact, he had been using a “variety of aliases” to father as many children as he could. As well as betraying women’s trust, he had broken the law: sperm donors in the Netherlands aren’t allowed to father more than 25 children to “reduce the risk of unwitting half-siblings meeting and having children together”. The producers chose the “nice round figure of ‘1,000’ for the title” but the worrying truth is, “no one really knows” how many children he has.
Netflix
Murder Case: The Hunt for Arlene Fraser’s Killer
When the police were called to Arlene Fraser’s house in the Scottish town of Elgin, Moray, in April 1998, they “found a place where time had stopped suddenly”, said Jack Seale in The Guardian. The 33-year-old had “vanished” after waving her children off to school that morning, leaving “washing on the line” and a “vacuum cleaner plugged into a socket in the hall”. At once a “sobering reflection on violence against women” and a “gripping whodunnit”, this two-part documentary examines what happened to her, laying out the “twists and surprises” of the case. The filmmakers “sensitively” handle the material, and we meet Arlene’s sister, Carol: “a picture of determined articulacy” who has campaigned tirelessly for a new law to make it harder for murderers to be released on parole if they don’t reveal where their victim’s body is buried. This is a “sad, enraging” and “frustrating” documentary – and a “compelling” watch.
BBC iPlayer
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Spy High
This “gripping” four-part show is a must watch, said Andrea Park in Marie Claire. Blake Robbins comes across as an “obnoxious suburbanite cliché" in the opening scenes. But when the then-student is accused by his high school of selling drugs, based on images covertly captured in his home on his school-issued laptop, we begin to “empathise” with his story. The series soon unfurls into a fascinating examination of the surveillance state and digital privacy, complete with a “wild cast of characters”.
Amazon Prime
Mr and Mrs Murder
The lives of two “devout Christian couples” are “shattered” when one of the men vanishes during a hunting trip and is “feared eaten by alligators”, said Hunter Ingram in Variety. “But that isn’t the crazy part.” His wife soon “shacks up with his best friend” and seeks out his sizable life insurance policy – shady behaviour that eventually leads the “odd woman out” to take her concerns to the authorities. What follows is a thrilling investigation that gradually unveils a disturbing web of lies dating back decades. “Calling this a wild ride would be an understatement”.
Disney+
The Black Swan
The “heart-stopping” Danish case of a “mob lawyer turned whistleblower” is crammed with dramatic revelations, said Hannah J. Davies in The Guardian. It’s little wonder the four-part series “absolutely rocked Denmark” on its release in 2024. The documentary follows the lawyer Amira Smajic – a “once in a lifetime” source for journalists who spent decades representing dangerous criminal gangs. Now, she is exposing their illegal activities with hidden mics and camera, as part of a “nail-biting exposé” for the state-owned broadcaster TV 2. “More dramatic than Scandi-noir”, the series lays bare not just Denmark’s dark criminal underworld but also the “seemingly respectable businesspeople” propping it up. The show triggered a “string of police investigations” when it first aired, along with a tightening of laws around money laundering and fraud. It’s a must-watch.
BBC i Player
The Perfect Neighbour
This “compelling” documentary examines the “tragic murder of a young mother” in Florida, said Kevin Maher in The Times. Ajike Owens was fatally shot by her “erratic and unstable” neighbour, Susan Lorincz, when she knocked on her door in 2023, following a lengthy feud over “noise nuisances”. Weaved together from police bodycam footage, Geeta Gandbhir’s film is “by turns enraging, incendiary, profoundly moving and unusually propulsive”. There are “inevitably ethical issues” about stitching “raw reality” into “structured ‘scenes’”, and I’m not entirely sure we have the “moral right” to watch Owens’ devastated children learning of her death. “Still, it’s an outstanding, provocative film that is bound to inspire debate. Watch it and discuss.” Netflix
The Push: Murder on the Cliff
Edinburgh's Arthur’s Seat takes on a “harrowing” role in this two-part documentary, said Gerard Gilbert in The i Paper. Back in 2021, Kashif Anwar pushed his pregnant wife to her death from a rocky outcrop at the beauty spot. He said she “slipped” but, as she lay dying, she was able to make a “last-gasp accusation” to a passer-by: “Don’t let my husband near me. He pushed me.” Unlike so many true crime shows, there’s nothing remotely “trashy” about “The Push”. Instead, interviews with family and courtroom scenes are carefully weaved together to sketch a picture of a “much-loved young woman who had made one bad decision”: marrying Anwar.
Channel 4
Cold Case: The Tylenol Murders
By the end of the first episode of this three-part docuseries, “you will be gripped”, said Michelle Curran in the Daily Mail. The show delves into the shocking events of 1982 when seven people in the Chicago metropolitan area died after taking pills of the over-the-counter painkiller Tylenol that had been laced with cyanide. During the series, we meet “prime suspect” James Lewis, who was convicted of extortion after sending Tylenol’s then owner Johnson & Johnson a ransom note demanding $1 million to prevent more deaths. Despite denying that he actually tampered with the tablets, it’s disturbing to watch him speak about his actions with “no remorse”. The series “will leave you with more questions than it answers” but that doesn’t stop it being an utterly “compelling” watch.
Netflix
Bad Vegan: Fame. Fraud. Fugitives
This “tantalising” four-part Netflix docuseries explores how a “rising star” in New York’s “raw-vegan food scene” was swindled out of $2 million by her con man lover, said Vanity Fair. Director Chris Smith (known for “Fyre: the Greatest Party that Never Happened”) turns Sarma Melngailis’ ordeal into an exhilarating show that involves “canine immortality, alleged brainwashing and – ironically – a Domino’s pizza order gone very wrong”.
Netflix