Either way, he turned away. Access was blocked for the fire engine called to deal with the fire Ryan had started in his own home and which had already spread to three neighbouring properties. He explained who he was and his experience, and offered sympathy. Ryan hadnt stopped there, though. Seventy-eight bullet holes were found. It was his gun cupboard. '", Chief Inspector Laurie Fray and PC Colin Lilley hold Ryan's murder weapons. Having murdered Mrs Godfrey, Ryan headed back to Hungerford in his Vauxhall Astra GTE, stopping at Froxfield filling station. Wearing camouflage outfits, he enjoyed sneaking up on picnickers and watching them without their knowledge, before disappearing again. "It's difficult to ascertain exactly how much he planned it, but I think it was well in advance and right down to minor details," says Dr Yardley. Ian Playle, the last victim to be fatally shot, had in fact been warned of the danger in South View by police. Dr Yardley says Ryan would have learned how to treat women from how his father treated his mother. Ambulances lined the main street. It was being chased up the road by Michael Ryan. Later that day, his parents were driving up from their home in Kent to visit him. Then he tore his heartfelt letter up. At around 4 pm, the Royal Air Force hospital in nearby Wroughton contacted the Princess Margaret Hospital to inform them that they could take the next two serious and six minor casualties. Now, as his colleague, quantity surveyor George White, drove him home to check on his wife, they came across Ryan. Having chased the spaniel away, Ryan returned. He is still haunted, he says, by the photograph of his father dead in his car. Mrs Jackson had known Ryan all of his life. He spied on them as they ate their picnic lunch, before playing a while. The manager later reported that Ryan spent a lot of time at the club and that he was a very good shot, showing consistent accuracy over large distances. Its inhabitants refer to the shooting as "The Tragedy", almost as if it were a natural disaster. Over 20 mass shootings have occurred in the US since the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. Saturday marks 30 years since Michael Ryan killed 16 people in Hungerford. ", PC Roger Brereton's funeral was held near Newbury. The police were not certain if Ryan had shot himself or just fired off a round. One man was injured. The Hungerford Report led to the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988, which banned the ownership of semi-automatic centre-fire rifles and restricted the use of shotguns with a magazine capacity of more than two rounds. One of the boys she was with went to fetch his mother, Sylvia Pascoe, a qualified first-aider who lived at No 14. Even now Mr Jackson has not been back to South View. He told people he had served in the Second Parachute Regiment of the British armed forces, that he was getting married, and that he owned a gun shop. Here he found Susan Godfrey, 33, an attractive, auburn-haired mother, with her children, Hannah, 4, and James, 2. Dean reported later that when she looked Ryan in the face, it seemed as if he was not even aware of her and was looking right through her. Ryan has also been documented on internet sites devoted to mass murder. 20th August 1987. The Hungerford Massacre on August 19, 1987, saw 16 people killed in a. Why are you doing this?. It was about 10 minutes since Mrs Jackson had asked her husband to return home and the two men had no idea of the danger into which they were heading. Whenever they asked me where it all happened I'd say it was down the A4. Some more minor details of that fateful day in 1987 vary in the different accounts but all agree that it will remain in memory as one of the worst gun crimes in British history.Sir Charles Pollard, Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police from 1991 2001, commented, The realisation that this could happen in fun-loving England, where we dont have guns and the police arent armed it changed policing and it changed society forever.. Ryan had killed 16 people, including his mother, and wounded 15 others. The couple have been married for 60 years and celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary in January. The town had long been a tourist destination. Whilst people did recognise that she was a victim, Canon John Reynolds, who conducted the service, selected not to mention her son and only made a brief reference to the Hungerford massacre. An only child, Michael Robert Ryan was born on 18 May 1960 in the Savernake hospital, Hungerford. The open-air service outside the town hall was attended by over 60 percent of the population of Hungerford and the principal sermon preached by Right Honourable Robert Runcie, Archbishop of Canterbury.Apart from the numerous local and international newspaper articles written about the Hungerford Massacre and Michael Ryan, there were also several books. A few moths before the massacre, Ryan joined the Tunnel Rifle and Pistol Club, in Wiltshire. February 27, 2023 equitable estoppel california No Comments . The woman did not believe them at first but agreed to help them find her. Four houses, including Ryan's home at the far right, were later demolished. The John O'Gaunt School where shooter Michael Robert Ryan killed himself. People were sheltering in doorways and I pulled up and asked what was going on. Plot summary Add synopsis Genres Documentary He says he was helped by a discovery made at the post-mortem examination - that his father had developed lung cancer. Then Ryan had shot and killed Abdul Khan, a hard-of-hearing 84-year-old who was gardening. Michael Ryan : The Hungerford Massacre. In the ambulance on the way to hospital in Swindon, Ivor Jackson's heart had twice stopped beating. Mrs Jackson noticed he was holding a gun in each hand. Two days later, Mr Playle died from his injuries. Ryan picked up the picnic groundsheet and ordered Susan to walk with him into the woods. Typically, by the time people got through to the 999 system, Ryan had gone elsewhere. Prof Craig Jackson, a psychologist who specialises in spree killers, thinks there was also a sexual motive. The Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, who was on holiday in Cornwall at the time, was notified of the events and kept informed via a special phone line from Downing Street. "It hasn't got any easier. Thomas Hamilton murdered 17 people in Dunblane in 1996. After the murders, the Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 was passed following a report commissioned by then-Home Secretary Douglas Hurd. Former mummy blogger Clemmie Hooper is facing a midwifery misconduct hearing - three years after she confessed to trolling other influencers on a gossip forum. Write by: . Ryan's mother Dorothy was shot not far from her home in South View as she pleaded with her son to stop the shooting. Mrs Jackson can remember Mrs Ryan telling her about a mysterious "friend" Michael had made. They lived a few doors from each other and their families were friends. "I just broke down in tears," Mr Wainwright says. But how did the town heal its wounds? There he announced that he had commissioned a report on the massacre from the Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police, Colin Smith. I could see her hip bone.". Popular cab driver, Marcus Bernard, 30, was en route to visit his wife and newborn son in the local hospital. It also transpired that there were several unfortunate incidents encumbering the response by the police and other emergency services to the events on 19 August 1987. Ryan looked at her with extremely vacant eyes and a strange grin, before moving off eastwards along a footpath leading to Hungerford Common. Dorothy Ryan, Michaels mother, was a lunchtime supervisor at the primary school where Mrs Jackson worked. Mildenhall survived the shooting.Kenneth Clements was walking along the footpath with his family, towards South View, when Ryan appeared and shot him once, killing him instantly. Ryan was 25 when his father died of cancer in 1985. Not able to stand by and idly watch people suffer, he had repeatedly risked his life to help a number of victims, giving first aid where he could and solace to those having lost loved ones. What happened in the woods is the clue to why the shootings happened, Prof Jackson believes. Despite his elaborate fantasies, however, Ryan was not mentally ill. Medical reports show he had no history of mental illness - in fact, his doctor had countersigned Ryan's gun applications. 3 - Kenneth Clements "I didnt know the Masons at No. ', "She told me to get my arse straight down there. Her training with St John Ambulance had led her to believe she could not have been shot, as bullets typically leave a large exit wound. The local Hungerford police station was in the process of being renovated and had only two telephone lines working on that day. "He was trapped and didn't have a viable way out of his situation.". It was on August 19 1987 that loner and gun fanatic Michael Ryan went on a shooting rampage in Hungerford, a market town in Berkshire. She recognised him as a regular customer at the petrol station, but not a chatty or friendly one. Prof Craig Jackson believes Ryan had a sexual motive. He took aim and killed her with a single bullet to the chest. Dr Yardley thinks he planned them well in advance. One of the Tactical Firearms Unit climbed onto the school roof and with a mirror on a long pole, managed to see into the classroom at last. Mark Howe murdered his mother Katrina Wardle in a brutal knife attack. Moving up Fairview Road, Ryan found neighbour, Abdul Khan, 84, a retired restaurateur, mowing the lawn in his back garden. I happened to mention that a chap that worked with my wife was injured during the shootings, to which he suggested that it was a good job that the SAS finished him off when they did. The sense of disbelief and shock still reverberate across the nation, 25 years later, Looking back at the two most shocking gun massacres in British history. After some time, young Hannah unbuckled their seatbelts, so they could go in search of their mother. Then he shot at Mrs Dean and sped back to South View where he set fire to his home and shot dead his dog, Blackie. Kahn died later of his wounds. Ryan shot at her, making a hole in the side window. "Dorothy came past me, and she looked into the car and I remember it as clear as day. "And then I remembered the name. He later died of shock and haemorrhage from the bullet wound to his neck. Mr Lepetit said: "I gave him a hand one week, and the next he shot me and set fire to my house.". Police in action during a Gun siege in Hungerford, Berkshire. Linda was hit in the shoulder and Alison in the right thigh. Terrified, crying and huddled against the wall, she begged him not to kill her. On 19 August 1987, the 27-year-old loner was in licensed possession of two shotguns, three pistols and two semi-automatic rifles. The Hungerford massacre was a spree shooting in Hungerford, England, United Kingdom, on 19 August 1987, when 27-year-old Michael Ryan shot dead sixteen people, including an unarmed police officer and his own mother, before shooting himself. The dust was flying up from the ground around my feet as the bullets hit. ]]> Ryan's mother consistently pandered to her husband and son so Michael saw her as someone who was there to do things for him and essentially serve him - so he felt a sense of entitlement to treat her however he wanted.". He cannot even pass the end of the road. Chief Inspector Lambert had sent Sergeant Paul Brightwell and his team of eight officers from the Tactical Firearms Unit to investigate the school, unaware that this was indeed the exact location of the killer. The final shooting took place at about 13:45. Michael Ryan The Hungerford massacre was a series of random shootings in Hungerford, Berkshire, on 19 August 1987, when Michael Robert Ryan, an unemployed part-time antique dealer and handyman, fatally shot 16 people, including his own mother, before committing suicide. Whilst she waited for help to arrive, she watched Ryan jog up and down the road, shooting at anything that moved. He headed straight there and was greeted by a nurse who said Kathleen was fine and Douglas was in the operating theatre. The gunman was reloading his weapon and Mrs Wainwright thought he would shoot at her again. I believe Ryan had probably been fantasising about it on a low level, but the events that day - and his personality type - led to it. 10 - Douglas Wainwright They'll do what we did. It was the same school he had attended more than a decade before. Brereton was hit by four of the bullets and died in his car. Despite the police helicopter hovering above him and telling him to lay down his weapons, Ryan merely walked away. He died instantly from chest wounds. 14 - Myrtle Gibbs With Craig Jackson, Donal MacIntyre, Sean Preston, Michael Ryan. 33 years ago today, a sleepy Berkshire town was rocked by one of the most shocking mass shootings ever seen in the UK. If it comes up, he leaves the room or goes to sit in the greenhouse. All over Berkshire, the funerals that followed the massacre were deeply poignant. Mr Playle's blue Ford Sierra crashed after he was shot by Ryan. Ryan had holed himself up in a second-floor classroom and was shooting through the window at both police and press helicopters. Ivor Jacksons wife, Marjorie, had called him whilst Ryan was aiming a gun at her. As his wife, Mary, says: "So many of our family were shot that day. He uses it against the people he has grown up with and against the unarmed police that are called. Prof Jackson's colleague at Birmingham City University, Dr Elizabeth Yardley, has a different theory. Hungerford is a pretty canalside town famous for its antiques shops and upmarket boutiques. Back at the police station, PC Wainwright was told his mother had been taken to hospital in Swindon. "There were no big wounds at the back of Lisa's legs. By the time Dean looked back at him, he had assumed a shooting position, with the rifle aimed directly at her. "You know, it's funny. Another witness reported that Ryan warned several children to get off the street and go inside. Mr Gibbs tried to protect his wife, who was a wheelchair user. Marching her away from her two young children, he shot her 13 times in the back. At 1.30 pm specially trained officers from the Tactical Firearms Unit were brought in and local police officers assembled closer to town. Read more: Amazing archive photos show the changing face of Reading in the 1960s, Read more: Caversham Park Village from the air 50 years ago. The birds didn't sing again for five days.". Ryan was holding one of his most prized possessions - a Chinese copy of a Kalashnikov semi-automatic rifle. 13 - Victor Gibbs She was wounded but managed to call her husband, Ivor Jackson, who worked close by. "He was a good man. This seemed to fit the profile of Michael Ryan. When, in March 1996 Thomas Hamilton shot dead 16 schoolchildren and their teacher in the Stirling town of Dunblane, Trevor Wainwright decided to write to the Scottish police. "She'd just say she'd fallen over or something. Ryan shot Lepetit twice in the arm and once in the back as he fled. It is known that he made her put her son and daughter, aged two and four, in her car. The case of Michael Ryan, who went on a killing spree in the small town of Hungerford, resulting in the murder of 16 people, including his own mother. "Members of the public were in the station with the police. Having failed to kill Dean, Ryan quickly returned to his car and drove off towards Hungerford. 7 - Dorothy Ryan "I don't think he fully intended to commit a killing spree that day. Following the massacre, the British press was inundated with stories about Michael Ryan and speculation as to why he had committed so many acts of unprovoked violence. Ryan had been targeting people he happened across in streets and gardens. "I think he fully intended to fake his own death at home and disappear at that point," says Prof Jackson. "When you work for the ambulance service, you do your best to help people," Mr Whiting says. She had started the day wearing yellow trousers, borrowed from her sister. "She tried to tell Michael to stop and he shot her at close range," Mr Jackson adds. On the sunny afternoon of August 19th, 1987, it was market day in Hungerford and Ryan went to Saverneck forest - a place he would often go to shoot his gun and sneak up on unsuspecting. Michael Ryan went on the rampage through the Berkshire town of Hungerford in 1987 shooting 16 people dead and wounding 14 others. "I assumed it had been some sort of accident with glass and that Lisa had been cut," she says. Whether Mrs Ryan truly believed her son's imaginings is impossible to tell. This had been Ryans first victim. Harries later received the Queens Commendation for Brave Conduct. Their inability to defend themselves against their bullies means that shame, guilt, anger, hate and the need for revenge builds inside them. AETNUK All Rights Reserved. At 6.45 pm he said, Its funny, I killed all those people but I havent got the guts to blow my own brains out. "Theres no two ways about it. He pulled the wheeled stretcher with him and managed to load both Mr and Mrs Jackson and Lisa Mildenhall into the ambulance. Fifteen other people were also shot but survived. The event became known as the Hungerford massacre. That summer afternoon Ryan, a 27-year-old unemployed labourer, killed 16 people . John O'Gaunt School in Hungerford, Berkshire, where Michael Robert Ryan committed suicide following the Hungerford Massacre, 8th September 1987. Ryan was lying slumped in the corner, near a window, apparently dead.The rest of the unit entered the room and checked that he was not wired with explosives as a booby trap. Wouldn't hurt a fly.". Some reports were inaccurate, giving the wrong location. They keep meaning to frame it and put it up on the wall. He can barely speak about his friend, George White. Their pictures were a grim account of the trail of destruction and death that Ryan had left in his wake. His favourite toy was Action Man, the commando-type plastic doll, kitted out with uniforms and weapons. It was market day in Hungerford, a balmy Wednesday, 19 August 1987. He believes Ryan would get an illicit sexual thrill during his woodland trips and obtain pleasure and a sense of accomplishment from following and watching people unseen. The popular weekly market attracted many people and was an event enjoyed by locals and visitors alike. Two more vehicles driving along the road were shot at. 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