A campaign by the editor of the Matlock Mercury, to win the freedom of a Derbyshire man he believes has spent 27 years in jail for a murder he didn’t commit, continues to make the headlines.

The Daily Express has devoted almost a full page to the story of prisoner Stephen Downing and the work of editor Don Hale in unearthing new evidence which points to his innocence.

Tomorrow the story will be featured in the Sunday People, the Mail on Sunday and on Monday morning it is due to be featured on GMTV.

The BBC is also planning a second television documentary programme.

The first TV production was made by BBC Pebble Mill and broadcast during 1998 on BBC 2. Shown originally to a Midlands regional audience, the documentary was later shown nationwide, once again on BBC2, and was backed by a live radio phone-in show immediately afterwards.

A second documentary is currently being compiled by BBC Pebble Mill. It could be released fairly soon after the decision by the Criminal Cases Review Commission if the recommendation to refer Downing’s case to the Court of Appeal is approved.