Valley of Shadows – "Bad Women Presents Stolen Sister: Elizabeth Plunkett"

Pushkin Industries | Released March 30, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode from the Valley of Shadows podcast, featuring a collaboration with Bad Women Presents: Stolen Sister, is a powerful exploration of the life, murder, and legacy of Elizabeth Plunkett—a young Dublin woman brutally murdered by Ireland’s first known serial killers, John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans, in 1976. The narrative is driven by exclusive interviews, emotional testimony from Elizabeth's sisters, and a deep dive into how a family’s decades-long silence is finally broken in the pursuit of justice and dignity for their beloved sibling.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Breaking Decades of Silence

• The episode opens with sisters Bernie and Kathleen deliberating the decision to reach out to podcasters and investigators, breaking nearly fifty years of family silence about Elizabeth’s murder.
• Quote:
  • (Bernie, 03:01) “We’ve talked long and hard about this.”
  • (Kathleen, 03:29) “This is our last resort.”

2. Introducing Elizabeth Plunkett and Her World

• Listeners are brought back to Ringsend, Dublin, where Elizabeth grew up in a large, close-knit family, described with warmth and nostalgia for 1960s and 70s Dublin.
• The Plunketts' modest two-bedroom cottage and simple joys contrast sharply with the horror to come.
• Quote:
  • (Eddie/Thomas Plunkett, 07:48) “Pembroke Cottage is a small tiny cottage. You couldn’t all live there so we all had to kind of get a move on, move out, you know, there wasn’t a bob in Rings End.”

3. Elizabeth’s Personality and Independence

• Elizabeth emerges as headstrong, progressive, fun-loving, and independent—working at a printing factory, traveling, and rejecting the era’s traditional roles for women.
• Quote:
  • (Bernie, 11:02) “If she got her mind set on something, she was going to do it. Headstrong, you’d call it [...] She would stand up to [her brothers], because my father would say, oh, it’s only the girls now. Wash the dishes. And she’d say, there’s no reason why the brothers can’t wash dishes too.”
  • (Kathleen, 11:20) “She read Cosmo and she had notions, you know.”

4. Contrasting Lives: Elizabeth vs. Her Murderers

• A stark comparison is drawn between the secure world of Elizabeth and the criminal past of John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans, English ex-convicts who immigrated to Ireland with violent records and sinister ambitions.
• The men’s aim to kill “one woman a week” is revealed, chillingly paralleling the coming tragedy.
• Quote:
  • (Eddie/Thomas Plunkett, 09:08) “People will remember the name Shaw and Evans. It’s as evocative here as Myra Hindley and Ian Brady are in the UK.”

5. Family and Personal Memories

• Through interviews with family and Elizabeth’s best friend Mela, listeners get intimate glimpses of her relationships, sense of style, and a budding romance with Damien.
• Holiday snapshots, favorite music (ABBA), and stories about her adventurous spirit humanize Elizabeth amidst the unfolding true crime narrative.
• Quote:
  • (Mela Bush, 14:12) “Whatever she did, I did. Whatever I did, she... as a friend. She was the best. You could tell her any secret.”

6. The Fateful Night: August 28, 1976

• The episode meticulously recounts the details of Elizabeth’s last day, drawing on police statements and interviews:
  • A night out in Brittas Bay with friends, a trivial argument with Damien turns pivotal.
  • In a moment of awkwardness, Elizabeth leaves the pub—alone.
• Simultaneously, Shaw and Evans are prowling the area, searching for a victim.
• Quote:
  • (Bernie, 27:03) “Over one argument... if hadn’t it happened, life would be so completely different today for her family.”
  • (Annette, 27:25) “It was around 10:30pm when Elizabeth Plunkett walked away. I think she was more embarrassed than anything because Damien had said it to her in front of us.”

7. Inevitable Tragedy

• The narrative closes with Shaw and Evans having missed one potential victim, soon intercepting Elizabeth as she leaves the pub. The horror of what followed is foreshadowed, setting up the next episode’s focus on the crime itself and the failures of justice that would follow.
• Quote:
  • (Roz Purcell, 27:43) “With that Elizabeth Plunkett walked out alone into the dark night in Brittas Bay.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Pain of Injustice
  (Bernie, 06:12) “When somebody’s murdered, the only people they have to speak for them are their family. We’re being denied any sort of justice. We’re Elizabeth’s voice now.”
• On the Difference Pre- and Post-Tragedy
  (Roz Purcell, 12:24) “For everyone in the Plunkett family, their lives have a before and an after. Life before Elizabeth was murdered... life after Elizabeth was murdered, and those lives are so vastly different.”
• On the Killers’ Intentions
  (John Shaw or Geoffrey Evans, 24:47) “There must be something wrong with me when we did this. I know it were wrong, but I never thought it would finish up like it did.”
• On the Family’s Courage
  (Roz Purcell, 03:29) “And when they do send it, they’ll be breaking the seal of silence their family has held for almost 50 years.”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:43] – Bernie and Kathleen debate breaking their silence
• [04:23] – Decision to send the email that starts the investigation
• [07:07] – Nostalgic portrait of Elizabeth’s Dublin childhood
• [11:02] – Family anecdotes about Elizabeth’s independence
• [13:42] – Introduction of Mela, Elizabeth’s closest friend
• [19:00] – Setting the scene for the summer of 1976, family routines
• [27:16] – The argument and Elizabeth’s decision to leave alone
• [28:14] – Shaw and Evans stop and pick up Elizabeth

Tone and Storytelling

The tone is at once intimate and investigative, with sensitive narration by Roz Purcell and direct contributions from family that convey warmth, heartbreak, and steely determination. The episode skillfully intertwines personal memory with procedural accounts, creating a vivid, empathetic, and suspenseful portrait of both victim and crime. There is an emphasis on dignity, family love, and the long shadow cast by injustice.

Summary

"Stolen Sister: Elizabeth Plunkett" is a compelling, emotional account of a family’s journey to break a decades-long silence, seek justice, and reclaim the memory of a vibrant, independent young woman lost to Ireland’s first serial killers. Through moving interviews, carefully reconstructed events, and an unflinching look at systemic failures, the episode stands as both a poignant memorial and a sharp critique of justice denied.

For listeners who missed it:
This episode not only documents the facts of a notorious case, but goes further—giving Elizabeth Plunkett her voice back through her sisters and community, and reminding listeners of the enduring wounds of violent crime and the power of family in the face of loss.