Ann Ming is sitting on stage at a private cinema in Soho; her fingers are interlocked with the hand of an emotional Sheridan Smith, the actor portraying the grieving mother in the upcoming ITV drama, I Fought The Law.
Around 100 people are packed into the venue for an early viewing, which explains how the Teesside working-class mother managed to abolish an 800-year-old law to get justice for her murdered daughter, Julie Hogg.
After the harrowing first episode, Ann confidently tells the crowd how grateful she is that the story is being told, then heads to a conference room, where she is a little more subdued. Taking in the gravitas of the day, Ann is proud — but she would give anything not to be here.
‘There’s nothing pleasant about the whole scenario, to be quite honest, because Julie’s never coming back,’ she tells Metro. ‘I’m glad I changed the law, but there’s always that immovable downside.’
A devastating discovery
Ann’s life changed forever on the morning of November 16 1989, when Julie didn’t pick up the phone. Mother’s instinct told her instantly that something wasn’t right. Her daughter had been due in court to seek a legal separation from her husband, Andrew, which made the silence even more concerning.
‘We spoke every day. They even called me Buzby at work because she was always ringing up,’ the former nurse explains, referring to the phone call-loving cartoon bird that was BT’s mascot at the time.
Trying to understand what was going on, Ann visited Julie’s home on Grange Avenue in Billingham, County Durham. There was no answer, and so, with the help of her son, Gary, she broke in. Her daughter was nowhere to be seen. Becoming seriously worried, Ann contacted the police, who suggested Julie, 22, had left of her own accord.
‘They kept saying she just took off to London, and I started to get a bit angry. I knew she wouldn’t have left her son Kevin,’ Ann recalls, frustration seeping into her voice. A five-day forensic search of the house seemingly confirmed their theory as nothing was found, and the keys were handed to Andrew, who moved in with Kevin, then three.
The pain of not knowing what had happened was awful for the loving mother, so she did what she could to find answers, including handing out missing person flyers, continually asking the police for updates and doing TV interviews.
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On February 1, 1990, three months after Julie had disappeared, Ann popped round to see if she could help Andrew with a horrible bathroom stench that was worsening every day. As she tentatively pushed a loose bath panel, Ann discovered her daughter’s decaying body, wrapped in a blanket.
She tells Metro that the recreation of this moment for TV is the hardest scene to watch.
‘Sheridan got it exactly right, so when I’m watching it, I relive it. I was hysterical, screaming, “She’s under the bath, she’s under the bath!”’ explains Ann, clasping her hands together in front of her face.
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Police Investigations led the authorities to labourer William ‘Billy’ Dunlop, who had been living just two streets away from Grange Avenue. The former boxer had a history of violence and previously had a brief relationship with Julie. When detectives searched his home, they discovered her house key under the floorboards.
The police had been less than two feet away from Julie’s body when they searched her home months before, so after the traumatic discovery, Ann asked to meet with the officers. ‘I wanted to sit them around the table and ask, “What the hell did you do in the house for five days?” It was a three-bedroom, semi-detached house, and she was there all the time.
‘None of them were sacked; instead, the inspector became commander. It was horrible to hear about the promotion. I never even got an apology. I did successfully sue the police, but it wasn’t about the money, it was about being proved right.’
Although Dunlop was charged with Julie’s murder on February 13, 1990, the jury was unable to reach a verdict in both the trial and a re-trial, and he remained a free man.
Fighting for change
After years of escaping justice, Dunlop was finally thrown behind bars in 1997 for attacking his pregnant girlfriend with a toasting fork. While serving his seven-year sentence, Dunlop admitted to killing Julie. In a recorded police interview, he told officers: ‘She just started taking the mickey out of me and ridiculing me because I had a black eye and my eye was split open. I just lost it and got up and strangled her.’
However, the double jeopardy law meant a person couldn’t be tried again once a jury had acquitted them, so Dunlop could only be charged with perjury. ‘He got six years for lying in the trials, and that made me incensed,’ Ann remembers. ‘I thought, “Well, I’m going to have to do something to put this right”.
‘I was determined to battle. I sent a letter to Jack Straw [Home Secretary at the time] — everything was handwritten because I’ve got no computer, I’ve still not got one — and that was the start of my campaign.’
Learn more about femicide
- On average, one woman a week is killed by a partner/ex-partner.
- Of the 249 female domestic homicide victims between March 2020 and March 2022, the suspect was male in a staggering 241 cases.
- Women’s Aid have found that women are over three times more likely to be killed by a partner than by not wearing a seatbelt
- A Killed Women survey found that only 4% of bereaved family members said their loved one’s killing was not preventable at all
- Nearly half (49%) of women murdered by their partner or ex-partner are killed less than a month after separation, 79% killed within six months of separation and 90% killed within a year of separation (ONS, 2017)
Ann would stay up late into the night, pressuring lawmakers by writing detailed notes, gaining traction with media interviews, and, with the help of the Home Secretary, made progress. Criminal Justice Minister Lord Falconer was also a key figure who elevated the cause.
‘He came to do a talk with families of victims, and after he came off the podium, I said, “Can you get me to the House of Lords?” I didn’t give him a choice, so I was there in a week,’ she remembers. ‘He said he’s never met such a formidable woman, but if it hadn’t been for him, I’d never have stood in front of those people. I’ve had some important things happen to me on my journey that have been lucky.’
Ann’s crusade was a success, and on April 4, 2005, the double jeopardy law ended in England and Wales as Part 10 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. The change allowed retrials where new and compelling evidence has come to light for serious offences. It meant that on September 11, 2005, Dunlop became the first killer to be convicted under the new legislation.
The killer was sentenced to 17 years behind bars; ‘a year for every year Julie’s murder had lain unavenged.’
Speaking of the day that her daughter’s murderer was finally charged, Ann remembers: ‘Dunlop was in a glass case with three wardens around him. He felt trapped because he’d trapped himself by bragging that he could get away with murder.
‘When the acquittal was squashed, I jumped up, and I grabbed the barrister, and said, “Thank you. Thank you.” She replied: “You don’t need to thank me. The whole establishment needs to thank you for what you’ve done”.’
Reliving the past
Ann, who received an MBE for services to the criminal justice system in 2007, went on to write a book about her fight to overturn the ancient ruling, which has since led to 15 convictions. When she heard that ITV wanted to turn her story into a drama with Sheridan, 44, on board, she gave them her blessing: ‘I have watched everything she’s ever been in and love her.’
In return, Sheridan embodied Ann by watching all her interviews, and was physically transformed with a wig, costume and clever makeup. ‘Sheridan became me, it’s really strange. She was getting quite emotional filming,’ remembers Ann. I said to her, “You’ve spent nine weeks with it, but for me, it’s been 35 years”.’
It’s not the cast, the execs or even the viewers’ opinion that she cares about the most, though; it’s Julie’s. Ann says she recently got a sign that Julie is pleased with her.
‘I met a healer and spiritualist at a talk I did for victim support counsellors in Darlington, who told me, “All the time you were talking, your daughter stood beside you, and she’s so proud of what you’ve done”. Julie told her to pass on that she’s got me a bunch of pink carnations. That was her favourite flower. This lady couldn’t possibly have known that.’
Despite mentioning earlier in our chat that she’s going to rest, it’s clear that Ann, who is now in her late seventies, isn’t quite ready. She wants to meet with world leaders to discuss abolishing the double jeopardy law in countries where it still exists, including Australia and America.
‘I want to change things worldwide. Some people are frightened that it could lead to sloppy policing, but a case can only be retried if there is new and compelling evidence. I can’t understand why other countries aren’t following. They need to hear my story.’
Ann says: ‘Me and Julie had such a special relationship, and I saw her every day. I could see how she was changing, becoming more outgoing and friendly as she got older before her death. It doesn’t matter what else happens or the other family I have; I can never get over the loss of a child. Nobody does.’
I Fought The Law will air on ITV and STV and will be available to stream on ITVX and STV Player this autumn, followed by I Fought The Law: The Ann Ming Story documentary, produced by MultiStory Media.
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