Jill Dando
Jill Dando | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jill Wendy Dando 9 November 1961 Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England |
| Died | 26 April 1999 (aged 37) London, England |
| Cause of death | Gunshot wound (murder) |
| Resting place | Ebdon Road Cemetery |
| Alma mater | South Glamorgan Institute of Higher Education |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, television presenter and newsreader |
| Years active | 1979–1999 |
| Employer | BBC |
| Partner | Alan Farthing (engaged) |
Jill Wendy Dando (9 November 1961 – 26 April 1999) was an English television presenter and journalist who worked for the BBC. In 1999, Dando was shot and killed outside her house in London. It is still not known who murdered her.
Life
Dando's parents were Jack Dando (February 1918 – February 2009) and Winifred Mary Jean Hockey (August 1918 – January 1986). Her older brother, Nigel, worked as a journalist for BBC Radio Bristol before retiring in 2017. Before working for the BBC, he worked as a journalist in local newspapers. Jill grew up in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. She moved to London in the 1980s.
Dando worked as a journalist and newsreader. She presented the travel programme Holiday as well as Crimewatch. She was engaged to Alan Farthing for the last few months of her life.
Murder
On the morning of 26 April 1999, Dando left her partner's home in Chiswick, London. She then travelled by car to the house she owned at 29 Gowan Avenue, Fulham. As Dando got to her front door at about 11:32 BST, she was shot once in the head.[1] Her body was found about fourteen minutes later by neighbour Helen Doble.[2] Police were called at 11:47.[3] Dando was taken to the nearby Charing Cross Hospital where she was dead on arrival at 13:03.
Forensic firearm examination showed that Dando had been shot by a bullet from a 9mm Short calibre semi-automatic pistol. Police ballistics checks showed that a blank firing pistol illegally turned into a firearm was used.[4]
Trial
Barry George was convicted of her murder in 2001. He was freed in 2008 when his retrial found him not guilty.[5] Nobody else has been arrested for Dando's murder.
References
- ↑ "BBC presenter shot dead". BBC News. 26 April 1999. Archived from the original on 23 January 2010.
- ↑ Midgley, Dominic (9 February 2017). "Will Jill Dando's killer be named at last?". Express. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2017.
- ↑ Duncan Campbell (27 April 1999). "TV star Dando murdered by single shot". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
- ↑ "'Odd' gun revives stalker theory in Dando killing". The Independent. 10 December 1999.
- ↑ "George not guilty of Dando murder". BBC News. 1 August 2008. Archived from the original on 17 October 2008. Retrieved 1 August 2008.
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