BBC viewers have struggled to watch a heartbreaking documentary that they say "cuts deep" as a strong warning has been issued. The programme, titled Damilola: The Untold Story, premiered on BBC Two last night (October 5) and is now available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
Damilola Taylor was just 10 years old when he was stabbed and killed in what became one of the country's most high profile killings. He was stabbed in the leg just metres from his home whilst leaving an after school club. The documentary revisits the young boy's killing, 26 years on, and features previously unheard testimony from Damilola's friends and family, including that from Star Wars actor John Boyega.
Viewers react on social media
Taking to X, one person wrote: "I watched the documentary on bbc (yes bbc) on the senseless murder of Damilola Taylor, Rip poor little lad, heart breaking, although the documentary was focal on Damilola and the those immediately impacted, it also drew the lens back to show the amount of kids murdered."
Another said: "I’m not sure I have it in me emotionally to watch this Damilola Taylor documentary", as a third admitted: "That Damilola Taylor documentary is so heart wrenching." A fourth added: "This Damilola Taylor documentary cut deep. Imagine stabbing a 10 year old innocent boy and leaving him to bleed to death. Those two brothers are evil with so much hate in their hearts."
A fifth replied: "It was a very hard watch. I had to pause a few times. RIP Damilola, Mr Richard and Mrs Grace Taylor." Another penned: "The ending of the Damilola Taylor documentary, I can count my family members and school friends in that montage of lost souls. I started watching the doc as a mother, ended it as a child, if that doesn’t speak to the cycle… and its longevity then idk what does."
Warnings on TikTok and documentary details
Taking to TikTok to share the recommendation, one true crime fan admitted it was a "heartbreaking watch", adding: "Be warned because it's quite shocking." One person replied: "Just watched this last night... so sad." Another commented: "Absolutely heartbreaking you're right, so incredibly sad." A third wrote: "This will be a hard watch."
Taking viewers back to the final 24 hours of his life, the documentary also explores the years it took to bring a conviction. Two brothers, who were themselves aged 12 and 13 at the time, were convicted of manslaughter.
An official synopsis reads: "Made 26 years after the murder of 10-year-old Damilola Taylor shocked Britain, this documentary returns to his story with new testimony that sheds fresh light on what happened to him."
Actor John Boyega, who was eight when Damilola died and was one of the last people to see him alive, joins Damilola’s childhood friends to return to his final months and the years of youth violence that followed his death. Damilola: The Untold Story can be streamed on BBC iPlayer.
