Picky eaters at HMP Whitemoor, a maximum-security prison in Cambridgeshire that houses some of the UK's most dangerous inmates, including notorious cannibal Robert Maudsley, are being offered a special menu after complaining of food phobias. The prison's kitchen manager has introduced separate meals prepared and heat-sealed in individual packs to help reduce anxiety among inmates suffering from cibophobia, an intense and often irrational fear of specific foods linked to smells or textures.
The change was revealed in a report by the Chief Inspector of Prisons, which noted that the kitchen manager worked closely with prisoners to address their phobias. The report stated: “Meals were prepared separately, cooked and heat-sealed in individual packs, which helped reduce anxieties.” A prison source highlighted the financial implications, saying: “It’s important that offenders are given three square meals a day, but prisons usually have just over £3 a day per prisoner for breakfast, lunch and dinner. That means if some are getting different and more expensive meals, the rest of the prison will lose out.”
HMP Whitemoor is home to some of the most dangerous inmates in the UK, with 80% assessed as capable of causing serious harm and the majority serving life sentences. Among them is Robert Maudsley, 72, who has been behind bars since 1974 for a series of murders. He was sent to Broadmoor after garrotting a man who showed him images of child sexual abuse, then teamed up with another patient to murder a child molester. After being moved to HMP Wakefield, he killed two sex offenders on the same day, one with a spoon lodged in his head, earning him the nickname “Hannibal the Cannibal.” He was moved to Whitemoor last year after spending 23 hours a day in a glass cage cell for over 40 years.
The Mirror recently reported that jail authorities foiled Maudsley’s marriage plans after a pen pal, Loveinia MacKenney, 71, expressed a desire to marry him despite never having met him. However, inmates on whole-life orders, such as Maudsley, are barred from marrying.
