On June 4, the three-part true crime drama The Witness arrives to Netflix, along with the accompanying documentary, The Murder of Rachel Nickell.
As one of the streamer's most highly anticipated series, The Witness delves into the horrifying murder of young mum Rachel Nickell, who was killed in front of her two-year-old son Alex on Wimbledon common in 1992.
The public have an enduring interest in the shocking case that saw 23-year-old Rachel stabbed multiple times, with police later wrongfully arresting an innocent man for the crime, and taking many years to find the real culprit.
Heartbreakingly, at the centre of the dramatisation is Alex, the only witness to his mother's death who was forced to live with the trauma of watching her die and relive the horror of it.
As the series and documentary airs, we look at what happened to Rachel, and where Alex Hanscombe is now.
What happened to Rachel Nickell?
Rachel Nickell was sexually assaulted and stabbed 49 times in the neck and torso, while walking on Wimbledon Common. The attack took place on July 15, 1992.
Rachel had been out walking with her two-year-old son Alexander, and their rescue dog Molly, when approached by the assailant. The 23-year-old immediately died at the scene from her injuries.
At the time of her death, Rachel lived in Balham with Alex's dad André, and Alex was just three weeks away from his third birthday.
Rachel had been working as a lifeguard at a swimming pool when she met André at the age of 19, and was studying English literature at university.
When she fell pregnant with Alex, Rachel left university to live with André, and they hoped to leave the UK and live somewhere rural.
However, the couple and their young child didn't get to realise their dream, as Rachel's life ended with her son clinging to his mother's body, trying to wake her up until realising she had passed away.
Rachel and Alex, like many others, were frequent dog walkers on Wimbledon Common, and the murderer struck when they passed through a secluded area of the space.
The initial police investigation faced intense pressure to name a suspect, in light of the huge press coverage and massive public outcry in the aftermath of the murder.
A man named Colin Stagg was eventually arrested for the crime, despite no forensic evidence linking him to the scene. He was held in custody for 13 months, but his case collapsed in 1994 when the judge found police "honey trap" operations used to arrest him were inadmissible.
Following Colin's acquittal, it was later found that the real killer was a man named Robert Napper, who was a diagnosed schizophrenic. He was already incarcerated at Broadmoor hospital when he was charged with Rachel's manslaughter in November 2007.
He had been detained at the hospital since 1995, following the manslaughter of Samantha Bisset and her daughter, Jazmine in 1993. He was found guilty of manslaughter instead of murder in Rachel's case due to diminished responsibility, in 2008 - Rachel's family were finally able to get justice.
Napper remains detained at Broadmoor indefinitely, while Colin Stagg received a £706,000 compensation payout from the police for his wrongful prosecution.
Where is Alex Hanscombe now?
Alex Hanscombe currently lives in Barcelona. Seven months after Rachel's death, Alex and his father moved to France. Rachel's killer was yet to be found, and André’ feared for Alex's life as witness to her murder, and he also wanted to create the rural life for Alex that Rachel had dreamed of.
In conversation with The Times, André says, "Alex and I built an environment Rachel would have loved — nature, big skies, sunsets, chickens roaming — and we had some golden years," although he recalls Alex's teenage years being challenging.
Alex left school at 16 to become a car mechanic, although he later moved back to the UK to train to be a session musician. As well as being a musician, Alex is a certified hypnotherapist and has studied graphology, or handwriting analysis.
He has travelled extensively and studied yoga in India. Now residing in Barcelona, he continues to travel and has worked with his father on a collection of children's stories.
Also speaking to The Times, Alex says, "In the days following my mother’s death, my father contemplated ending both our lives. He felt my bond with my mother was so strong, I wouldn’t want to go on without her."
He adds, "But when I responded the other way, he adapted very quickly. There has always been my father and the love he had for me, and evil in the space between us. I’ve been aware of both, always."
Speaking of the trauma he endured after Rachel's murder, he continues, "I was not always protected. I was able to provide a picture-perfect description of the assailant, the weapon, his movements, so there was little more I could offer the police but I was asked to constantly relive my worst day and there was a cost."
"There was something demonic in taking a child back to it again and again. If my father hadn’t taken me away, there’s no telling what my life would have become."
Alex does feel constant uncertainty in life, but does try to find joyful moments in every day. He says, "Along with the hard times, there has been joy. We both, as my mother did, find the joy in small things, in sunsets and sunrises, in cooking together and food."
The Witness and accompanying documentary The Murder of Rachel Nickell are available on Netflix from June 4.
