AUTHOR Peter James has said revising the Babes in the Woods murders for a television drama was both “harrowing and fascinating”.

The international best-selling crime novelist appeared in the first episode of Once Upon a True Crime, a documentary series examining cold cases that were solved decades after the crime took place.

In the documentary, Peter said he learned a lot about the 1986 murders from speaking to police officers who worked on the case from the beginning and following Russell Bishop’s acquittal.

He said: “I found it quite harrowing doing it, but also fascinating because one of the things that interests me as a crime writer is the criminal mind.

“I had never fully understood Bishop. I remember the day he was found not guilty, and I thought I don’t know who you are.

“I saw Bishop being paraded around Brighton like he was the local hero for getting off.

The Argus: Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway

“I thought ‘you may be pleased you have been acquitted of the murder, but should you be riding around celebrating when two little girls are dead?’”

“From that moment I was always fascinated with trying to understand him better and his mindset.”

Bishop was jailed for a minimum of 36 years in 2018 after being found guilty of killing nine-year-olds Nicola Fellows and Karen Hadaway.

The Argus: Peter James said revisiting the murders as part of the documentary was both "harrowing and fascinating"Peter James said revisiting the murders as part of the documentary was both "harrowing and fascinating"

He was 20 years old when he sexually assaulted and strangled the girls in a woodland den in Wild Park, Brighton, in October 1986.

Bishop was cleared of their murders on December 10, 1987 but within three years went on to kidnap, molest and throttle a seven-year-old girl, leaving her for dead at Devils Dyke.

While serving life for attempted murder, Bishop was ordered to face a fresh trial under the double jeopardy law, in light of a DNA breakthrough.

He died in hospital on January 20.

Peter said it is difficult to understand the significance of Bishop’s death for the families and those personally affected by his crimes.

He said: “There’s been a lot of mixed opinions about his death, with people saying he’s escaped justice by dying and not spending the next 25 to 30 years in prison.

“But there are also some people who say 'good riddance'. I think it probably does bring closure, but it’s difficult to know.”