Christopher Phillips: Did a Grief Disorder lead to a Prison Sentence?

60-year-old Christopher Phillips kept his mother’s body in a freezer for almost three years, talking to her about her favourite television programmes and holding her hand as if she were still alive. A court heard that he was suffering from a little-known mental health condition called Prolonged Grief Disorder. But he also kept collecting her pension money - and he's now been sent to prison. 

In this episode, Liz speaks to Dr Michael Duffy, a psychotherapist and specialist in trauma therapy, about what happens when grief becomes prolonged and overwhelming. They discuss Christopher Phillips’s unusual case, how the condition differs from normal grief and depression, why it can be missed by doctors, and whether a better understanding of Prolonged Grief Disorder could have prevented his grief from spiralling into crime.

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Presenter: Liz Hull

Guest: Dr Michael Duffy

Editor: Chelsey Ranore

Creative Director: Caroline Cheetham

Assistant Producer: Harriet Muckle

Production Manager: Vittoria Cecchini

A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular.

The Trial series uses actors and some voices generated by AI. Their words are taken as verbatim from the official court transcript.

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