The Deadly Beginning

Charmaine Carol Mary West was born on 22 March 1963, to Rena and Fred West, in Coatbridge, Scotland. Her sister, Anne-Marie was born a year later.

When Charmaine, sometimes called Char, disappeared in 1971, the family (that consisted of Fred, Rose, Anne-Marie, and baby Heather, although Fred was prison), lived in a ground floor flat at 25 Midland Road in Gloucester. When asked about Charmaine, Rose would say that her step-daughter had gone to live with her birth mother, Rena. However, this was not the truth. It is believed that Charmaine was killed when Rosemary lost her temper, and beat her to death, or maybe she was strangled, we may never know. Charmaine was wrapped in blankets and hidden in with the coal, until Fred got back. When he did, she was dismembered and buried by the back door, which was later the extension. In August, Rena came for her girls. It is thought that Fred got his wife drunk, then lured her to the car, and strangled her so that the whereabouts of Charmaine wouldn't be questioned. In the  December of that year, Rose and Fred married, and although Fred put bachelor on his marriage certificate, there's no proof that Fred and Rena ever divorced.

In the spring of 1972, Rose bore a child, a girl, whom they called Mae. She was a gorgeous baby. Mae had big, brown eyes with curly brown hair, (which grew after a few months after birth.) When she was about 15-18 months old, the family moved to 25 Cromwell Street.

Rose worked as a prostitute and Fred was a local builder, which didn't really get much pay.  Later in 1972, Caroline Owens (now Roberts) worked as a nanny, and Fred and Rose were sexual

Fred,Anne-Marie,Heather,Mae and Rose on holiday in Wales

towards her. Once, Fred said that his daughter, Anne-Marie, "wasn't a virgin". Eight year old Anne-Marie blushed red and dipped her head down. Caroline was suspicious that Fred was abusing his daughter, and one week after the incident, when she was in the laundrettes with Rose, she said that "she was going to get cigarettes". She left. Caroline, about a month later, was picked up by Fred and Rose and they abused her for about 12 hours. (But it was "mainly Rosemary"). They allowed her to leave, and Owens went to the police, although dropped the case because the police officers that spoke to her weren't "at all compassionate", and was very traumatised.

Lynda Gough, a lodger at Cromwell Street, went missing in April 1973. After not hearing from Lynda for a long period of time, her mother went to the Wests home, looking for her. Rosemary answered, wearing Gough's clothing and told her that her that Lynda had gone to work at Weston-Super-Mare. .Gough's mother asked about Lynda's clothes that were on the washing line, and what Rosemary was wearing, Rose said that she left some of her stuff behind. Not believing Rose, Gough's mother left, and searched for her daughter. After months of looking, Gough's family just assumed that she didn't want to be found. Little did they know, but Lynda Gough, aged just 20 years old, was buried beneath 25 Cromwell Street, in the cellar. (born Lynda Carole Gough 1 May 1953)


In September 1973, Rose bore a child. A boy. He was named Stephen Andrew West. Stephen had his fathers blue eyes and blonde hair, although it wasn't curly.

Carol Ann Cooper was a lodger at Cromwell Street, and went missing in Novemer 1973. Probably a sexually motivated killing. Carol was born on the 10th of April 1958, and lived in a children's home in Worchester. She dispeared walking home from the cinema. Like Lynda, poor Carol was buried in the cellar, which was used as Heather, Mae, and Stephens bedroom, in the beginning.

Tara, Rosemary Jnr, Barry and a friend from school.

Lucy Katherine Partington (born 4 March 1952): Killed December 1973/early January 1974. She 
spent Christmas with her family in Cheltenham and visited a friend. She disappeared after leaving to catch a bus home. There is strong evidence that she had been kept alive for at least several days. A 
week after she disappeared, Fred went to a hospital in the early hours of 3 January 1974 to get a serious laceration stitched. A knife matching the cut was found with Partington's body and police surmise he sustained the injury while dismembering it. Partington, a university student, was the cousin of novelist Martin Amis and the sister of author Marian Partington. The latter wrote about her sister's disappearance and the discovery of her remains in her memoir If You Sit Very Still (2012).

Therese Siegenthaler,a pretty  girl born on 27 November 1952, and was hitch hiking to Ireland, but she never made it. Little is known about this young woman, but she was sexually abused and attacked, and probably kept alive for days. She disappeared during April 1974. 

During the November of that year, another young woman, Shirley Hubbard, went missing. Shirley was born 26 June 1959, and when she disappeared, she had left a work experience to go home, but she never made it. When her remains had been found, her head was taped up, with plastic tubes inserted up her nose to allow her to breathe while they assaulted her. 

Juanita "Nita" Marion Mott (born 1 March 1957): Killed April 1975. A former lodger at 25 Cromwell St, Mott was living with a friend of her mother's in Newent when she disappeared.

During late 1977, Rose West gave birth to a little girl. Tara Jane West. Tara's father was one of Rose's clients, because she worked a prostitute. Tara had black hair, brown eyes and half-cast skin. Her skin was darker because Rosemary's client was coloured. 

In late May 1978, Shirley Anne Robinson went missing. Shirley was born 8 October 1959, and was eight months pregnant, carry Fred West's baby when she was killed. A neighbor saw Rosemary with Shirley the day before she disappeared, the next day she/he asked about her and Rose said that shed had the baby prematurely and left. The neighbor later found out that Shirley was a victim of Fred and Rose, and was buried in the garden.

Fred and Rose West Victims (12 in total)

In late 1978, Louise Carol West was born. Unlike Tara, Louise wasn't fathered by a client.

On the 8 September 1962, a young woman was born. Her name was Alison Chambers, who was killed by Fred and Rose West in August 1979. Alison is the last known sexually motivated killing.

A young lady, named Sharon Contant went to 25 Cromwell Street at the same time as Alison. She was a nice girl, and they were both pretty. Sharon survived, since she resisted the torture.      Above: Alison Chambers, Heather, Shirley Anne
Sharon said that the first time that the first time    Robinson, Shirley Hubbard, Anna McFall, Lynda
she was hurt badly,                                                 Gough, Therese Siegenthaler, and Lucy Katherine
                                                                                 Partington.

Rose gave her a cup of tea. It tasted disgusting, like loads of aspirin.
It made her feel "woozy" and "a bit funny".

Another woman, Katherine Halliday, went to Cromwell Street, "for a bit of fun."., she was repeatedly attacked and assaulted in the family home. Katherine managed to escape, luckily. She later called Rosemary "an evil, evil woman".

Alison Chambers, Carol Ann Cooper, Juanita Mott.(Victims)

During 1980, (July, August/September), Rosemary bore her last baby boy, whom they named Barry John West, after Barry Island and after Fred's brother, John.

Rose had another daughter, Rosemary Junior during the Spring of 1982/83. Much like Tara, Rosemary (AKA Ro-Ro) was fathered by a coloured client.

Lucyanna Mary West was born in 1984/83, also fathered by a coloured man, another of Rose's clients.

It is believed that there are many more girls who died at the hands of Fred and Rose West, buried in fields, and in shallow graves in the woods, although this will most likely never be proved. These young women all had their own lives, and they didnt want to die. I hope that people think of them as real people rather than merely 'victims'.

  

Above:Anne-Marie's wedding in 1985.

(from the top left):Louise,Barry,Rosemary Junior (with Anne-Marie)

Rosemary holding baby Lucyanna, next to her is Mae. In the middle is Tara.

Bottom right (going up): Heather, Stephen and Fred.

Early Life Of Fred And Rose

Heather

Heather Ann West, a pretty sixteen year old girl who died at the hands of her parents in June 1987. She was born on the 17 October 1970 in Gloucester. Her father, whom had grown up in Much Marcle, born on 29 September 1941 and named Frederick Walter Stephen West. Her mother, grew up in Northam, born on 29 November 1953, and called Rosemary Pauline Letts, the fifth child. Fred was the eldest of his siblings, and could "get away with much more than we ever could", according to Doug West, his younger brother.
Fred had a motorcycle accident one evening in 1958, and suffered bad head injuries. He was in a coma for a week, with a metal plate inserted into his head. After, his family say that he "changed". Fred was easily angered, very sexual, and violent. Two years later, he fell of a fire escape at a youth club when he tried to put his hand up a girls skirt. He was unconscious for a day.

Young Fred

Fred West and his siblings weren't really given much love, growing up.  His mother was old fashioned, and strict. She used to hit the children with a belt. The father used to apparently say: "you can do what you want, just don't get caught doing it!".

Rosemary didn't have a nice childhood, either. She was the fifth child, out of seven, born to Daisy and Bill. Daisy was very depressed, and William ("Bill") Andrew Letts was a Schizophrenic. He beat the children and his wife. Just before Rosemary was born, Daisy had ECT (electro therapy) to help cure her depression. This could have damaged her unborn baby.

As Rosemary grew up, she was bullied in school, and incest was a usual thing in both cases.
Fred, at the age of 21, became re-acquainted with old girlfriend and runaway, Rena Costello, (Catherine Bernadette Costello). Catherine used to date West, but she comes from Scotland and picked up the name "Rena" from prostitution. She was already pregnant with another mans baby, a little girl, who's father was a from Pakistan, and studying in College. He was a bus driver for extra cash. Fred and Rena married in November 1962, and on 22 March, 1963, Charmaine Carol Mary West was born. The little family lived in Coatbridge, Scotland, at the time, and Anne Marie was born in 1964, before they moved to a caravan park near Gloucester. Rena got her friend Isa McNeil  from Scotland to take care of the children.

Young Rose

According to Fred's recount, he met Anna McFall while on his ice cream round. She was beautiful. He spoke so highly of her, like she was an angel. He said that he'd taken Anna back to Rena and she did Anna's hair, which was tangled. Apparently she'd looked beautiful with her long, silky hair. Anna stayed with them, as she'd had no where to live.

Fred and Rose met a bus stop, on her fifteenth birthday, when he apparently couldn't stop staring at her. Fred was older, dirty, and had "ganky green teeth". So she ignored him. They got on the bus, and he sat next to her, without permission and started talking to her. Rose later recalled him being able to "charm the birds off the trees". Rose had soon agreed to meet him a pub near her home, where she thought that she'd be safe.

Aged sixteen, Rosemary moved in with Fred, when Rena and Isa had moved back to Scotland to escape Fred's sexual appetite. While still married to Rena, he was having multiple affairs with Anna McFall and Rosemary Letts. Rosemary was convinced by Fred to get into prostitution, and used the name "Mandy". Anna looked after Charmaine and Anne-Marie, as Fred refused to let Rena take the girls when she left, in December 1968/early 1969.
Anna went missing later that year.

Fred, Rena, Charmaine and Anne-Marie (pushchair)

Rose, Fred and the little girls moved to 25 Midland Road, a ground floor flat, when Rose became pregnant with her first child, a little girl, Heather Ann. In December 1970, Fred was in jail for theft and dishonesty. In June 1971, while Fred was in prison, Charmaine went missing. When asked, Rose said that Rena had come to collect her.

According to the woman who lived in the flat above, her daughter, Tracy, would sit down with Char and 'hold hands', and do 'normal little girl things'. Tracy was only two months older than Charmaine and they were best friends. Once, Tracy was told by her mother to 'go downstairs to borrow a pint of milk' when she'd walking in on Charmaine sitting on a chair with her hands behind her back and Rose was holding a wooden spoon and looked like she was going to hit her with it.

Charmaine, baby Heather and Anne-Marie

The day that Charmaine was murdered, I suppose that Rose thought that Charmaine had done something naughty, so called her home from school. (She did this once with Stephen, her son born in 1973). I guess Charmaine resisted and Rose killed her in a fit of rage.