The story behind the gruesome White House Farm murders

White House Farm is a six-part miniseries based on the infamous murders that took place in Essex in 1985 where five members of the Bamber-Caffell family were killed. 

The show focuses on the investigation in the aftermath of the murders, with the Bamber's son Jeremy claiming that his sister Sheila (who suffered from schizophrenia) went 'berserk' and shot her parents and her two sons, before turning the weapon on herself.

However, the investigation is not straight forward and there are some jaw-dropping twists.

READ MORE: White House Farm: Former cop aims to help free Jeremy Bamber

Who were the Bamber-Caffell family?

Seemingly a happy and well to-do family from the outside, Nevill Bamber was a farmer and former RAF pilot who had married his wife June in 1949. 

The couple moved into the White House Farm in Tolleshunt D'Arcy in Essex which sat among 300 acres of farmland owned by June's father.

White House Farm in 2007 - (Wikimedia Commons / Glyn Baker)

Unable to have biological children the couple adopted Sheila and Jeremy separately as babies.

Financially secure, the Bambers were able to give their children a good home and private education. 

However June's intense religious beliefs had caused a rift within the family. 

June and Jeremy's relationship was so troubled that they were no longer speaking. 

While Sheila believed her mother disapproved of her and the pair had a tense relationship.

Sheila first got pregnant at 17 and was forced to have an abortion by her parents.

She suffered several miscarriages before finally marrying Colin and giving birth to twin sons Daniel and Nicholas. 

However, Colin had an affair and the couple split just five months after the boys were born. 

Who is Jeremy Bamber?

Jeremy Bamber was put up for adoption after his biological mother, a student midwife, had an affair with a married army sergeant. 

His biological family later went on to marry and had other children. 

Nevill and June adopted Jeremy when he was six months old, they sent him to a range of good schools including Gresham's School, a private boarding school in Norfolk.

Jeremy was deeply unhappy at Gresham's due to bullying and a sexual assault. 

He later attended sixth form and gained seven O-levels.

After his studies Nevill paid for his son to go travelling in Australia and New Zealand. 

Jeremy is said to have attended a scuba-diving course, broken into a jeweller's and boasted about smuggling heroin. 

When he returned home in 1982 Jeremy's father continued to provide for him.

Nevill set his son up with a cottage, car, percentage of a family company and even gave him a job which he was paid £170 a week for. 

What happened on the night of August 6, 1985?

Police first found out about the murder of June, Nevill, Sheila, Nicholas and Daniel in the early hours of 7 August. 

Jeremy Bamber telephoned his local police station, not 999, and told the police he had received a phone call from his father saying Sheila had "gone berserk" with a gun and that the line went dead in the middle of the call. 

After calling the police Jeremy drove to the farmhouse, as did three police officers. 

The group waited until 5am for a tactical firearms unit to arrive, they then used a loudhailer to try and communicate with Sheila for two hours. 

The only sound reported from the house was a dog barking. 

Jeremy was reported to have been calm outside of the property and explained that his father called him rather than the police to "keep things in the family". 

When officers finally entered the family home they were shocked to find the bloodied bodies of the Bamber-Caffell family in multiple rooms of the property.

Nevill was found in the kitchen, he had been shot eight times in a scene suggestive of a struggle. 

June was found laying on the floor of the master bedroom covered in a pool of blood, she had been shot seven times - once between the eyes. 

Daniel and Nicholas were found in their beds in their own bedroom, both had been shot whilst in bed. 

Sheila was found in the master bedroom with her mother, she had bullet wounds under her chin.

A doctor who was called to the house testified the deaths could have occurred at any time during the night. He said Bamber appeared to be in a state of shock: Jeremy broke down, cried and seemed to vomit.

The doctor said Jeremy told him about a discussion the family had had about possibly placing Sheila's sons in foster care.

Sheila was the first suspect: 

Initially Sheila Bamber was in the frame for the murders, this was in part due to the testimony of her brother's phone call from their father in which Nevill supposedly said Sheila had "gone berserk" with a gun. 

Sheila had struggled with her mental health in the past, suffering from schizophrenia and being admitted to hospital. 

Her doctor wrote that she believed the devil had given her the power to project evil onto others, and that she could make her sons have sex and cause violence with her.

Sheila was re-admitted to St Andrew's Hospital in March 1985, five months before the murders, after a psychotic episode. 

Blood and urine samples indicated that Sheila had taken haloperidol (a drug used to treat schizophrenia) and several days earlier had used cannabis.

However, two weeks after the murders Jeremy's girlfriend told police that he had implicated himself in the crimes.

Motives - Inheritance: 

There was a significant amount of inheritance tied up with the immediate and extended family which provided as a motive for the killings. 

The Bambers' company, N. and J. Bamber Ltd, was worth £400,000 in 1985 - more than £1,216,000 today.

During the murder trial, the court heard that in their wills June left £230,000 and Nevill left £380,000 to their children which was to be divided equally. 

Bamber's behaviour before and after the funerals increased suspicion as he was said to be sobbing during the service yet laughing and joking during the wake. 

Sheila, Jeremy and three other prints were all found on the murder weapon and there were scenes of a struggle at the mantle piece in the sitting room.

Sheila was also believed to have been too slight in frame to overpower her father in the struggle that would have ensued. 

Possible miscarriage of justice: 

Jeremy Bamber said he had been at home a few miles away when the shooting took place.

He has maintained his innocence throughout the trial and the aftermath of his sentencing. 

Jeremy Bamber lost his bid to bring a legal challenge over a refusal by the Prison Service to downgrade him from maximum security in 2020 (Andrew Hunter/PA).

A campaign, known as JB Campaign Ltd, gathered pace over the years to secure Bamber's release.

Justice for All took up his case in 1993 to prepare for his appeal that year and The Guardian ran a long investigative piece which included a telephone interview with Bamber from HM Prison Long Lartin, Worcestershire; Bamber said he still could not understand why he had been convicted.

A number of high-profile MPs including George Galloway and Andrew Hunter as well as journalists Bob Woffinden and Eric Allison have all protested Jeremy Bamber's innocence over the years. 

In 2015 the human-rights campaigner Peter Tatchell appealed to the Chief Constable of Essex Police to disclose all evidence related to the case.

The TV series: 

White House Farm had been airing weekly from mid-January until last week. 

The six-part mini-series is also available on Netflix and boasts a rating of 82-per-cent on Rotten Tomatoes.