Infamous Murderer & Serial Killer Profiles - #1 Dennis Nilsen

As part of a weekly series, Murder Mile blog will be investigating the profiles of some of the world's most infamous serial killers and murderers, by unearthing some interesting facts and titbits about their lives, loves, likes and dislikes, where they worked, where they lived and who they dated or married, all of which I hope will will give you more of an insight into them as a person, and even leading to an understanding of why they did what they did, instead of lazily defining this person by the horrific nature of their crimes and (more often than not) their kill-count. 

Profile #1: Dennis Nilsen, the north London serial killer and necrophiliac who between December 1978 and January 1983 lured numerous vulnerable young men to their deaths in his flat, some of whom escaped, many of whom died and others who remain unidentified to this day. 

L-R: Young Dennis Nilsen, Fraserburgh Harbour and Olav Nilsen

PERSONAL DETAILS

• Birth Name: Dennis Andrew Nilsen
• Date of Birth: 23rd November 1945
• Place of Birth: Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire (a coastal town in north-east Scotland)
• Places Lived: Fraserburgh (1945-55), Strichen (1955-61), Aldershot (1961), Onsabruck (West Germany, 1964-67), Aden (South Yemen, 1967-68), Plymouth (1969-69), Cyrus (1969-70), Berlin (1970), Inverness (1971), Shetland Island (1971-72) and Wilsden and Muswell Hill in North London (1972-83). Currently HMP Full Sutton in Yorkshire.
• Weight: 210lbs (15 stone)
• Height: 6 foot 1 inches (1.85 metres)
• Hair Colour: Dark brown
• Eye Colour: Dark brown
• Star Sign: Sagittarius 
• Nicknames: Known as “Den” by his friends, but was later dubbed by the British tabloid press as "The Muswell Hill Killer" and "The Kindly Killer" as with many of his victims being homeless young men, Nilsen would lure them in with a warm homecooked meal, alcoholic drinks, companionship and a place to sleep... before murdering them
• Disabilities: Slightly myopic, wore glasses to see and read
• Health Issues: None
• Sexual Orientation: Homosexual since his early teenage years, he later had sex with a prostitute whilst serving in Berlin, and stated that having sex with a female was "over-rated" and "depressing". Nilsen had a lust for young, slim, passive and vulnerable young men. 
• Personality: As a child he was described as shy, quiet and unadventurous; later as a diligent, intelligent and conscientious worker (who as a union rep’ vehemently stood up for his colleagues rights), but was prone to anger and violent outbursts when confronted 

L-R: "Bleep" the dog, Nilsen's family home and teenage Nilsen

​FAMILY HISTORY

• Parents: Elizabeth Duthie Whyte (a native of Fraserburgh) and Olav Magnus Moksheim (a soldier of the Norwegian Free Army, who served in Scotland during World War Two from 1940, when he married Elizabeth and adopted the surname Nilsen to blend in.
• Siblings: Three to Elizabeth & Olav - Olav Junior, Dennis and Sylvia - and four half-siblings
• Sibling Order: Second of three children (middle child)
• Traumatic Event: On 31st October 1951, Nilsen experienced the death of his beloved grandfather (a fisherman who would often be at sea for weeks-on-end and who Nilsen regarded as "great hero" and stated "life would be empty until he returned"). Unfortunately his mother didn't prepare her five year old son for this great shock, instead she informed him that his grandfather was "home" and that Dennis should "come in and see him". As the young Nilsen excitedly entered the bedroom, he saw that his grandfather - the only person he "ever truly loved" - was dead. Nilsen often states that this was the most traumatic moment of his life and that - at this moment - his idea of love and death fused together. 
• Divorced/Deceased Parents: Abandoned by his career-focused father and effectively raised by a single-parent (his mother), Nilsen's parents divorced in 1948 when he was 3 years old, she later remarried a local builder called Andrew Scott who was a strict disciplinarian and Nilsen's mother would go on to have a further four children with Nilsen's step-father, which left no time for Dennis in what was already an un-affectionate family. 
• Accident as a Child: Aged nine years old, Nilsen almost drowned whilst swimming at the beach in Inverallochy. This is a key moment in his young life as he'd often recall the feeling of drowning, feeling dead, and the joy of being touched by another boy (his rescuer). 
• Bed-Wetter (as child): Yes, but only briefly as with most children
• Fire-Starter (as child): No, Nilsen only made fire later in life for the disposal of bodies. 
• Animal Abuser (as child): No, Nilsen was very fond of animals. Once he found an injured sparrow on the street and - having grown up in a coastal town and having a real affinity for wildlife - Nilsen constructed a makeshift nest in his office drawer and over the next few days, proceeded to feed the bird using Fish Fingers which he'd masticated in his mouth first, before feeding it to the bird, like he was it's own mother. 
• Pets: In 1978, when Nilsen and "Twinkle" lived together, the adopted a stray tabby cat called Dee-Dee as well as a mongrel Collie cross called "Bleep" which he purchased as a puppy from a local pet-shop. They named the dog "Bleep" as - being a timid little dog - she couldn't bark, instead she made high-pitched squeaks. Along with his grandfather, Nilsen adored "Bleep" and often stated he was terrified of being arrested for fear of what would happen to his dog. Unfortunately his instincts proved correct, as when Nilsen was arrested, "Bleep" was put to sleep, as the Police didn't believe anyone would want a serial killer's dog. 
• Marital Status: Unmarried (as matrimony was illegal for homosexuals in the 1970/80's), but during his killing spree, Nilsen didn't have a boyfriend for longer than a few months
• Partners: David “Twinkle” Gallichan (1977-78) who he met at The Champion in Bayswater (West London) when Nilsen witnessed Gallichan being accosted by two men, Nilsen intervened and the two of them bonded over a few drinks. Being homeless, Nilsen invited Gallichan to move in with him, but where-as Nilsen was a homebody who wanted to stay home, Gallichan was young and promiscuous, so when he left Nilsen owing to Nilsen's angry and possessive manner, this abandonment caused Dennis Nilsen to slide into drinking binge and killing spree which left 15 young men dead. Gallichan is seen here in this video. 
• Children: None

L-R: Job Centre on Denmark Street and Nilsen as an Army chef

OCCUPATION/EDUCATION

• IQ: Unknown, his IQ was never tested
• Education: Left school aged 16, was an above average student but not exemplary
• Jobs: First job after school was in a canning factory (1961), he then signed up for 9 years as an Army chef (rank: private), he was trained at St Omer Barracks in Aldershot, and then served as a cook in the 1st Battalion the Royal Fusiliers in Osnabrück (West Germany), Al Mansoura prison (Aden, South Yemen), Seaton Barracks (Plymouth), Cyprus, Inverness and the Shetland Islands (all for the Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders). In December 1972 he joined the London Metropolitan Police and - having passed his exams - was posted to Wilsden Green Police Station until December 1973 when he resigned, having felt the Police Force lacked the camaraderie he found in the Army. After this he was a security guard (December 1973 to April 1974), he worked in Angie's Cafe (Covent Garden) and finally he successfully applied for a job as Acting Executive Officer at the employment office on Denmark Street, Soho (May 1974 to March 1983).
• Training: Trained chef; skilled with knives and meat, trainee Police Officer and a union representative for the civil service. 

A still from one of NIlsen's home-movies he made with David Gallachan

SOCIAL LIFE

• Favourite Food: Unspecified, but Nilsen trained as an Army chef who served in South yemen so (according to colleagues at the Job Centre) he could make a “mean curry”
• Favourite Music: Tommy by The Who, Fanfare For The Common Man by Dvorak, Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Rick Wakeman, Royal Philharmonic’s Hooked on Classics and – his personal favourite - Frankenstein by The Edgar Winter Group
• Favourite Film: Tommy (The Rock Opera) by The Who
• Favourite Book: Unknown (currently researching)
• Favourite Drink: Dark rum with Coca Cola, occasionally he would drink beer with whiskey chasers, and was known to make mulled wine at Christmas for work colleagues
• Smoker: Yes, brand unknown
• Hobbies: Nilsen was not into sports, he liked poetry (both reading and writing, a hobby he continues to this day, although he's not allowed to publish any), music (he still plays the keyboard) and amateur film-making (examples if which are seen here). Nilsen has also written his two-volume autobiography - The History of a Drowning Boy - which the European Court of Human Rights has banned the publication of). 
• Religion: Raised as strict catholic, but he is currently agnostic
• Drugs/Alcohol: Nilsen disliked hard drugs, as even with his drug of choice being whiskey and rum, he was prone to blackouts through alcoholic binges, hence why he is unable to remember many of the names/details of his victims. But during his prison life, Nilsen has boasted that he enjoys illegally smugged in cannabis. 
• Political Leanings: Left-wing, a staunch Labour supporter and union representative

L-R: Nilsen kitchen at Cranley Gardens, black bin-bags full of body parts and Nilsen's knives and cooking pot used to dismember his victims

MURDER CAREER

• Reason for Murder: Nilsen never intended to kill any of his victims. Dubbed "The Kindly Killer", Nilsen would meet a young, slim and (often) homeless male and invite him back to his flat for food, drink, sex and companionship, but cursed with a violent temper and an innate fear of being abandoned, once they were asleep, he would be overcome with the feeling that his "lover" would leave him, and so he'd murder them so they'd "stay forever"
• Method of Murder: Strangulation using a ligature usually whilst his victim was asleep or heavily intoxicated on alcohol or heroin, he would then drown his victim in the bath, bucket or the kitchen sink. One victim - Carl Stotter - was strangled and drowned by Nilsen, but as "Bleep" (Nilsen's dog) started licking Stotter's face, it became clear that Stotter wasn't dead. Overcome with guilt - having probably sobered up a little - Nilsen spent the next few days helping Stotter to recover, having convinced him that he had become trapped by the cord of his sleeping bag and that Nilsen was trying to save him, not strangle him​
• Length of Career: 30th December 1978 to 26th January 1983
• Number of Victims: This is impossible to determine as Nilsen was usually drunk, destroyed most of their remains (by fire, boiling, flushing or disposal by bin) and Nilsen's memory of the events are sketchy-at-best but there were 8 victims identified - Stephen Holmes, Kenneth Ockenden, Martyn Duffey, William Sutherland, Malcom Barlow, John Howlett, Graham Allen and Stephen Sinclair - 6 or 7 unidentified victims, and numerous "attempted" victims including Carl Stotter, Douglas Stewart and Paul Nobbs. Nilsen later commented that the only reason Paul Nobbs survived is because - with so many dead bodies hidden under his floorboards - Nilsen simply didn't have any space left for Nobb's corpse. 
• Criminal Record: None, prior to the murders
• Preferred Victims: Aged 14-27 years old; young, gay, slim and vulnerable, who saw Nilsen as a father figure and (often) resembled his ex-partner David "Twinkle" Gallachan
• Preferred Murder Location: In his own flat; 23D Cranley Gardens (Muswell Hill, London) and 195 Melrose Avenue (Wilsden, London), both locations still exist as family homes
• Preferred Pick-Up Locations: Usually he's meet his dates/victims in local pubs, such as The Golden Lion in Soho, The Champion in Bayswater, The Coleherne in Earls Court, The Princess Louise in Holborn, The King William in Hampstead, The Salisbury near Leicester Square, The Black Cap in Camden and The Cricklewood Arms in Cricklewood. 
• Perversions: Owing to his fear of abandonment, Nilsen - having strangled his "date" - would bathe, shave and dress their corpses, then engage in a full loving relationship with (what he described as) “a new kind of flatmate”, by propping the cadaver on a chair in front of the TV; chatting to them, bathing, kissing, sleeping and even engaging in necrophilia with the corpses whilst watching them "make love" in a mirror (he denied having penetrative sex instead opting for Intercrural sex - non-penetrative sex by thrusting his penis between the corpses thighs). In his teens, Nilsen often wore make-up so he'd look like a corpse, then using a mirror, he would masturbate himself whilst staring at his "dead" reflection. 
• Disposal: Most of the corpses were stored in cupboards, trunks, under the sink/floorboards so he could "enjoy" the corpse for months on end, but as soon as liquefaction took place (with many of the cadavers becoming riddled with maggots), Nilsen would dismember them; boiling the flesh of their faces in a large cooking pot; skin, intestines and internal organs were flushed down the toilet and larger limbs chopped up and left out for the rubbish. But when Nilsen's landlord decided to renovate 195 Melrose Avenue he asked Nilsen to leave. Nilsen promptly built a large bonfire in the back garden and placed a tyre on top to disguise the smell of burning flesh, hence why many of his victims remain unidentified to this day.

Nilsen being interviewed in HMP Full Sutton

ARREST/SENTENCE

• Detection: On the 4th February 1983, Nilsen sent a letter to his estate-agent complaining that his drain was blocked. Four days later Michael Cattran of Dyno-Rod examined the drain and found a "flesh-like substance and many small bones", Nilsen feigned surprise and even suggested it was Kentucky Fried Chicken, but the flesh was examined by a patholigist, proved to be human remains and Nilsen was arrested. Upon entering Nilsen's flat, Detective Inspect Jay was overwhelmed by the smell of rotting flesh, stated "don't mess me around son, where's the rest of this body?", Nilsen pointed towards a cupboard which was full of black sacks full of body parts. 
• Arrested: On the evening of Wednesday 9th February 1983
• Trial: Began on 24th October 1983 at the Old Bailey (London), before Judge Sir David Croom-Johnson and concluded on 4th November 1983, Nilsen was charged with six counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder, and pleaded "not guilty" to all charges. The jury returned the next day with a majority verdict of "guilty". 
• Sentence Length: Initially condemned to a "life sentence" - which in the 1980's meant he would serve at least 25 years before parole is considered - in December 1998, the Home Secretary Jack Straw increased Nilsen's term to a "whole life tariff" which means he will never leave prison. He is one of 71 prisoners currently serving a "whole life tariff". 
• Prison: Nilsen is currently serving his "whole life sentence" at HMP Full Sutton (East Riding of Yorkshire) England, which is a Category A Prison. he previously served at HMP Parkhurst Prison but was moved having been attacked with a razor to the face and chest by fellow prisoner Albert Moffatt, his injuries required 89 stitches. 
• Type of Prisoner: Difficult. As a former Union Rep', Nilsen often petitions the Home Office with complaints about unfair rules. In October 2001, he filed a law suit when the prison removed a few "unsavoury" images from his hardcore homosexual magazines - Vulcan and Him - and prone to outbursts of anger, he once threw a bucket of faeces and urine at a prison officer, but - more often than not - he keeps to himself and replies to letters. 
• Parole: Not eligible. 

Of course, if you'd like to learn more about serial-killer Dennis Nilsen, BOOK NOW onto Murder Mile Walk, a guided walk of Soho's most notorious murderers. 

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Next week's profile:  John Wayne Gacy - "The Killer Clown"

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If you "enjoyed" this blog post, why not take a peek at; Serial Killers & Murderers Who Were Never Caught, London's Deadliest & Often Forgotten Disasters, Are More Serial KIllers Born During a Full Moon, Killer's Birthdays / Star Signs, Serial Killers Who Were On TV, Celebrities Who Have Killed, London's Railway of Death, Serial Killers as Kids and the World's Weirdest Death Rituals

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Michael J Buchanan-Dunne is a writer, crime historian and tour-guide who runs Murder Mile Walks, a guided tour of Soho’s most notorious murder cases, hailed as “one of the top ten quirky & unusual things to do in London” and featuring 12 murderers, including 3 serial killers, across 15 locations, totalling 75 deaths, over just a one mile walk.