Ian Brady: 50 Years Behind Bars

This documentary revisits Ian Brady's half century behind bars, tracing his life in custody since his 1965 arrest. Through interviews with prison officers, detectives, relatives of the victims, a long term pen pal, and inmates who served time with him, the film pieces together how Brady lived and behaved while incarcerated. The narrator guides viewers through archival material and personal recollections that highlight his detachment and refusal to pursue parole. The film doesn't offer new revelations about the crimes themselves, but it does chart the routine and the relationships that shaped Brady's decades in prison.

Directed by Helen Hill and released in 2016, the film features Holly Aird as narrator and uses interviews and archival recordings to mark fifty years since Brady's sentencing.

The documentary had a limited release, with festival and specialist screenings rather than a wide commercial run, so it didn't register on mainstream box office charts.

Brady remains a notorious figure in British criminal history, and this film contributes to ongoing public interest. Scenes drawn from letters, prison recollections, and media archives have fed discussions about how notorious criminals are portrayed and remembered, and the documentary has been cited in some media coverage about the Moors murders anniversary.

Critics gave mixed responses, noting the film's steady assembly of sources even while questioning how much new insight it adds. Main themes include institutional life, the perspectives of those who lived alongside a notorious inmate, and the ways memory and media shape a criminal legacy. The tone is restrained, aiming to document rather than sensationalize, and it foregrounds testimony from people who had direct contact with Brady rather than rehashing lurid details.