Nobody Heard Them Cry, a brand-new podcast from The Irish Sun, explores the harrowing murders of Esther and Jessica McCann by Frank McCann in 1992
- The Irish Sun’s Nicola Bardon narrates podcast which details the brutal murders of Esther and 18-month-old Jessica at the hands of Frank McCann 33 years ago
- As Frank McCann prepares to face a parole board for the 7th time, the podcast features interviews with Esther’s sister Marian and Frank’s brother Bernard, along with expert insight from Gardaí and Irish Sun Crime Editor Stephen Breen
- Three-part series is available to listen now on all popular streaming platforms
Nobody Heard Them Cry, a brand-new podcast from The Irish Sun, explores one of Ireland’s most harrowing and haunting murder cases, the deaths of Esther McCann and her 18-month-old foster daughter, Jessica in 1992.
The three-part series which is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts now, revisits the shocking killings that took place 33 years ago, when Esther’s husband, publican and swimming coach Frank McCann, deliberately set fire to the family home on Butterfield Avenue in Rathfarnham, Dublin. Esther and baby Jessica were left trapped inside and died in the blaze.
Frank McCann was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1996 for their murders and has since spent nearly three decades behind bars, primarily in Arbour Hill and Mountjoy prisons. Now, as he prepares to face a parole board for the seventh time, the case has once again come into sharp public focus.
Speaking on the podcast, Marian Leonard, sister of Esther McCann, shares her fears ahead of the parole hearing: “He has a plan. I don’t know what the plan is, but he has a plan to do harm. Whoever he’s going to do the harm to, there could be incidental people in his way. I would have a fear of him burning down our house.”
“Once he makes his mind up… if he’s made up his mind to kill somebody, nothing will have changed. All those years that he’s been inside – whether it’s Bernard, me, my brother, whoever – nothing will have changed Frank McCann’s mind. He is as dangerous today as he was in 1992.”
Narrated by Nicola Bardon, making her debut as a podcast host, Nobody Heard Them Cry takes a deep and unflinching look at the case that shocked the nation in the summer of 1992.
At the heart of the series are powerful contributions from Esther’s family. Her sister, Marian Leonard, speaks candidly about her ongoing fear as Frank McCann seeks parole, while his brother, Bernard McCann, reflects on the devastating impact of the murders – and the lasting hatred and contempt he still feels decades later.
Bernard McCann recalls a chilling conversation with Esther just days before her death: “We were at my brother Derek’s wedding, a lovely sunny day, and Esther came over to us. We’re a happy-go-lucky family, always joking, and she said, ‘Frank’s trying to kill me.’”
“We all laughed it off at first, but she repeated it: ‘No, Frank’s trying to kill me.’ Something interrupted the conversation and we all went our separate ways.”
“I think about it often. If I had acted… if I had been more aware. But nobody there believed it at the time. Life is full of ‘what ifs’, isn’t it?”
Brought to you by the makers of the number one podcasts ‘The Stardust Tragedy’, ‘The Kinahans’ and ‘The Making of a Detective’, Nobody Heard Them Cry also features expert analysis from gardaí Martin Walker and Michael Campbell, alongside insights from Irish Sun Crime Editor Stephen Breen, helping to piece together the full story behind the case.
All three episodes of Nobody Heard Them Cry are available to listen to now on all popular podcast platforms.
Fiona Wynne, Editor of The Irish Sun, says: “For too long the world knew only about the tragic and heartbreaking way the lives of Esther and Jessica ended. Now, through the courage and fortitude of those who loved them most, we were able to show the world the light they brought while they were here.
It’s been a privilege to tell their stories. Our deepest gratitude and respect to Marian, Bernard and all who trusted us to give a voice to two innocent people who deserved so much more, as they continue to grapple with the repeated parole bids of the double killer who turned their lives upside down.”
You can listen to Nobody Heard Them Cry here on Spotify or Apple
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