Four Lives fearlessly and methodically unpicks the countless police failures and the pain family and friends were put through as they were forced to become investigators.
Over sixteen months during 2014 and 2015, Stephen Port murdered four gay and bisexual young men: Anthony Walgate, Gabriel Kovari, Daniel Whitworth, and Jack Taylor. These vibrant, energetic and loving young men were connected by their use of gay dating apps and by the nature of their death and discovery. However, despite the clear links between each murder and ongoing interest in Port, justice and safety were denied by an incompetent, lacklustre and institutionally homophobic investigation by Barking and Dagenham Police. Police failures almost certainly led to the deaths of three of the young men following the discovery of Port’s first victim, Anthony.
Four Lives fearlessly and methodically unpicks the countless police failures and the pain family and friends were put through as they were forced to become investigators. But even more importantly, Four Lives focuses on the lives of Port’s young victims and the fight of their family and friends to uncover the truth about their murders. The result is an emotional, heart-wrenching and urgent drama that places the horror of institutional homophobia under the spotlight for all to see.
I, for one, would love to say things have changed since the Port investigation, and in some ways, they have; the majority of our Police are decent, hard-working and community-minded, placing themselves in harm’s way daily to protect us. But recent scandals involving the Metropolitan Police and the behaviour and actions of some of its officers indicate there is still a journey to be taken in breaking down cultures built on silence, hyper-masculinity and accepted discriminatory banter.
Watch Four Lives now on BBC iPlayer.
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