The Alibis: Character Profiles

Find out more about the characters from our short murder mystery series The Alibis.

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Dooley Jones (Victim)

Dooley Jones was a former business journalist. He worked for several high profile publications over the years before retiring early to live in the country and start a blog. He was passionate about environmental issues, and over the last few years became more withdrawn and solitary as he increasingly spent time reading about conspiracy theories and becoming paranoid. For 15 years, Dooley was married to his childhood sweetheart, Jean.

They separated however, when Dooley started becoming emotionally distant and obsessive about political issues. Spending more time alone in his study or attending demonstrations and meet ups.

Despite their differences, Dooley remained fond of Jean and refused to divorce her, partly because he believed there would be a reconciliation but also because he disliked her new partner, and was stubborn by nature. Aside from the more extreme facets of his character, Dooley was a mostly pleasant, well meaning and nice man. Liked by the community he lived in, but considered a little bit strange by the locals.
Jean Demontford

Jean Demontford is a successful estate agent who was married to the victim for 15 years. The marriage was mostly happy, but towards the end of the union, Dooley?s extreme political activism caused him to withdraw and he became more solitary.

Unable to tolerate his behaviour anymore, Jean moved out and quickly fell in love with someone else. Julian Hague, a divorced barrister in his 50s. Jean and Julian are head over heels and keen to remarry, but Dooley refuses to accept the marriage is over and therefore won?t agree to a divorce. Jean now uses her maiden name.

Over the last two years Jean, her legal representative and even her son Jeremy have pleaded with Dooley to agree to a divorce, but his spiteful and stubborn nature has meant they?ve been unsuccessful.

Prior to the murder, Jean had been receiving anonymous threatening letters which she suspects had been coming from Dooley as an angry response to Jean?s more formal legal letters.

On the day of the murder Jean, claims to have been showing a client around a property. However, as she?s essentially self employed no one has been able to verify this.
Jeremy Jones

Jeremy Jones is the son of the victim, he works as a commercial long haul airline pilot, much to the disgust of his environmentalist father. He now lives in London, and rarely goes back to Bristol, unless it?s to see his mother, who he is close to.

He has been very vocal about his anger towards his dad. The two have a relationship that can best be described as ?strained?.

Jeremy very much takes after his mother, he?s financially driven, politically more conservative. He is always smartly dressed and charming / articulate however he?s currently going through a divorce and his life is chaotic.

On the day of the murder, Jeremy visited his father to confront him about the threatening letters that his mother had been receiving, but left soon after.

At the time of the murder Jeremy claims to have been stuck in traffic on the M3.
Sally Arthur

Sally Arthur is a hard working local farmer, recovering alcoholic and former judo champion. She?s used to be casual acquaintances with Dooley Jones and lived near to him. She runs an ethical dairy farm and has also been farming organic crops for the last 5 years. She left her high paying job in the city after a conviction for assault. It was alleged she caused ABH after coming home from work early and he walking in on her her fiancé cheating. She moved to the country and set up a small holding and has sunk all of her savings into setting it up and keeping it going.

She and Dooley had a tense history, he believed that Sally was using nefarious tactics to keep the farm afloat. Including using harmful chemical pesticides which is a claim that Sally seriously denies. She counter that claims Dooleys slanderous behaviour has really effected her business. She also suspected him of vandalising her property and causing costly damage.

Some digging into her financial history reveals that Sally is on the verge of bankruptcy and she absolutely blames Dooley for this.

Sally was feeding the cows at the time the victim was killed, and CCTV shows her entering the barn and leaving an hour later, but the cameras don?t cover the back of the barn and the surrounding area.
Sarah Alsbeth

Sarah Alsbeth was the victim?s girlfriend and neighbour. She works from home as an art therapist and also part time in a shop that sells candles, incense and jewellery.

She had been in a casual relationship with Dooley for several months, and tried to encourage Dooley to divorce his wife Jean. Sarah has got previous. She?s a keen activist and protester, and is known to the police for arrests including; breaches of the peace, threatening a police officer, harassment and wasting police time. The local constabulary consider her something of a pest.

Sarah Alsbeth had been at home, alone, doing body painting when she claims to have heard raised voices. The land at the back of her home backs on to Dooleys Garden & sound carries quite well despite the distance. She says that she only retrospectively realised the raised voices were men arguing, as at first she thought they might be the radio. Sarah believes that she and Dooley were very well matched, that she ?got? him due to their mutual interest in environmental activism and she strongly believed that they would one day marry.

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Dooley Jones (Victim)

Jean Demontford

Jeremy Jones

Sally Arthur

Sarah Alsbeth