Radio Times: Review by:; Jack Seale

Alan Dein’s curiosity focuses on a Yorkshire estate where five dogs from the same street have been killed. A canicidal maniac scattering tainted chops isn’t so much the start of a detective story as the thread that Dein pulls to reveal another bleak pocket of society.

Theories about the killings include burglars removing security measures to steal boilers for scrap metal, or someone driven to distraction by the barking of neglected animals. For a mother of two teens, the death of her dogs was yet another thing she couldn’t control: “I’ve tried to be strict. They all had rules. But my kids don’t listen to me... the dogs did.”

About this programme

Alan Dein investigates the deaths by poisoning of five dogs in Knottingley, West Yorkshire. He finds a once close-knit community is now afflicted by fear and mistrust, and discovers the police are unable to find the culprit or even a motive for the crimes. While the programme was being recorded the killer struck again, and the reaction to the latest attack is explored.