Faking It: Tears of a Crime

The 2016 murder of best‑selling author Helen Bailey was carried out by her partner Ian Stewart. Earlier in the same year, Stewart had actively assisted volunteers who were searching for the missing author, demonstrating his involvement in the search before the fatal act took place.

The broadcast is an episode entitled , listed simply as a programme of the episode genre. It presents a self‑contained story centred on a real‑life tragedy, and it is framed as a factual account rather than a dramatised series. The core of the episode recounts the 2016 killing of Helen Bailey, a best‑selling author, by her partner Ian Stewart. The narrative follows the events that led to the murder, focusing on the relationship between the two and the fatal act that ended Bailey’s life. The programme makes clear that Stewart was responsible for the homicide, positioning his actions as the pivotal moment of the story. Earlier in the timeline, Stewart had been involved in assisting volunteers who were searching for Bailey. The episode highlights his role in supporting those efforts, showing how he was initially seen as a helpful figure in the search before the later, violent turn. This contrast between his earlier assistance and the subsequent crime forms a key element of the episode’s structure. By linking Stewart’s prior cooperation with volunteers to the later murder, the episode offers a concise account of the sequence of events surrounding Helen Bailey’s death. It stays focused on the factual details of the case, presenting the information without embellishment or additional speculation.