Netflix’s newest crime drama is based on Scotland’s most notorious killer

Netflix has added another chilling true-crime series to its lineup – and it’s a true story of a serial killer.

Des, the 2020 ITV drama about Scotland’s most notorious serial killer Dennis Nilsen, has officially begun streaming on the platform, according to the Scottish Sun.

The three-part series stars David Tennant as Nilsen, a seemingly ordinary civil servant from Fraserburgh who became one of Britain’s most prolific murderers.

Between 1978 and 1983, Nilsen killed as many as 15 young men he met on the streets of London, earning the grim nickname ‘The Kindly Killer.’

His horrific crimes came to light only after human remains were discovered blocking the drains near his home. Police later found that Nilsen performed disturbing rituals on his victims before disposing of their body parts.

Alongside Tenant, the series stars Daniel Mays, Jason Watkins, and Ben Bailey Smith.

Nilsen was convicted in 1983 on six counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder and sentenced to life in prison. He died in custody in 2018 at the age of 72.