View source for Hungerford massacre

{{Short description|1987 spree shooting in England}}
{{for|the 1876 attack in which two police officers were murdered|Hungerford police murders}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = Hungerford massacre
| image = Mass_Murderer_Michael_Ryan.jpg
| caption = Michael Ryan in 1986
| location = [[Savernake Forest]], Wiltshire, and [[Hungerford]], Berkshire, England
| coordinates = {{coord|51.411484|-1.513768|format=dms|type:event|display=inline,title}}
| date = {{start date and age|1987|8|19|df=yes}}
| time-begin = {{circa|12:30}}
| time-end = 18:52
| timezone = [[British Summer Time|BST]]
| target = Random civilians
| type = [[Spree shooting]], [[mass shooting]], [[mass murder]], [[murder-suicide]], [[matricide]], [[arson]]
| fatalities = 17 (including the perpetrator)
| injuries = 15+
| perp = Michael Ryan
| weapons = *[[Type 56 assault rifle|Norinco Type 56S]]
*[[Underwood Typewriter Company#History|Underwood]] [[M1 carbine]]
*[[Beretta]]<!-- do not specific a particular model without also providing a reliable source--> pistol
| motive = Unknown
}}

The '''Hungerford massacre''' was a [[spree shooting]] in [[Wiltshire]] and [[Berkshire]], England, which occurred on 19 August 1987 when 27-year-old Michael Ryan shot and killed sixteen people, including his mother and an unarmed police officer, before killing himself. No motive for the killings was established.

A report on the massacre, commissioned by [[Home Secretary]] [[Douglas Hurd]], found that understaffing and telecommunication problems may have hampered the police response to the developing incident. The killings were committed using legally owned [[handgun]]s and [[semi-automatic rifle]]s, and the report stated that existing firearms legislation should be more stringent. Consequently, the [[Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988]] was passed in the wake of the massacre, banning ownership of semi-automatic [[centerfire ammunition|centre-fire]] rifles and restricted the use of shotguns with a capacity of more than three cartridges.

The shootings have been compared to those [[Dunblane massacre|in Dunblane]] in 1996, and [[Cumbria shootings|in Cumbria]] in 2010, and the Hungerford massacre remains one of the deadliest firearms incidents in British history.

== Shootings ==

=== Wiltshire ===
[[File:Golden Arrow Service Station, Froxfield, Marlborough (1) - geograph.org.uk - 1870035.jpg|thumb|right|The Golden Arrow petrol station near [[Froxfield]], Wiltshire, where Ryan attempted to shoot the cashier (pictured in 2010)]]
On the morning of Wednesday 19 August 1987, 27-year-old Michael Ryan drove his silver [[Vauxhall Astra#Astra GTE|Vauxhall Astra GTE]] to [[Savernake Forest]], Wiltshire, {{convert|7|mi|spell=in}} to the west of his hometown of [[Hungerford]].<ref name="Barkham 2010">{{Cite news |last1=Barkham |first1=Patrick |date=10 June 2010 |title=Hungerford revisited |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2010/jun/10/hungerford-revisited-massacre-michael-ryan |access-date=27 December 2023 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="BBC Massacre">{{Cite news |date=18 August 2017 |title=Massacre: An afternoon that changed a town forever |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-sh/hungerford_massacre |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210311170813/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-sh/hungerford_massacre |archive-date=11 March 2021 |access-date=5 July 2021 |work=[[BBC News]] |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref name="MM 1993">{{Cite book |title=Mass Murderers |publisher=[[Time-Life Books]] |year=1993 |isbn=9780783500041 |location=Alexandria, Va. |language=en-US |chapter=Rampage in an English Village}}</ref>{{rp|p=166}} In his car were his [[Beretta]] pistol, [[M1 carbine]] rifle, and the [[Type 56 assault rifle]].{{r|MM 1993|p=166}} That day, 35-year-old Susan Godfrey and her two pre-school children had travelled from [[Burghfield Common]] near [[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]] and were picnicking in the forest.{{r|MM 1993|pp=168–169}} At 12:30 [[British Summer Time|BST]], Ryan, openly armed, approached the family. Godfrey placed the children in her car before Ryan walked her at gunpoint {{convert|75–100|yd|-1}} into the forest and shot her 13 times with the Beretta.{{r|Smith Report|p=5}}<ref name="Tweedie 2012">{{Cite news |last1=Tweedie |first1=Neil |date=28 August 2012 |title=Hungerford: 'Forget? We can't. It's never going away' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9501881/Hungerford-Forget-We-cant.-Its-never-going-away.html |access-date=2 August 2023 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |language=en-GB |archive-date=2 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802151109/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9501881/Hungerford-Forget-We-cant.-Its-never-going-away.html |url-status=live }}</ref> A woman walking in the woods found the children,{{r|MM 1993|p=168–169}} who introduced themselves to the woman and said {{nowrap|"[a]}} man in black killed my mummy".<ref name="BBC doc">{{Cite AV media |title=The Hungerford Massacre |date=7 December 2004 |last=Hunt |first=Teresa |type=Television documentary |language=en-GB |publisher=[[BBC]] |format=}}</ref>{{rp|at=02:50}}

Ryan left the forest and drove east on the [[A4 road (England)|A4]], stopping to fill both his car and a petrol can at the Golden Arrow petrol station near [[Froxfield]] at approximately 12:35. After another customer at the station left, Ryan shot at the cashier from the forecourt using the M1 carbine.<ref name="Gazette and Herald 2004">{{Cite news |date=9 December 2004 |title=Mental scars from massacre remain |url=https://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/7261108.mental-scars-from-massacre-remain/ |access-date=27 December 2023 |work=[[Gazette and Herald|The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald]] |language=en-GB}}</ref> He entered the store and attempted to shoot her at [[point-blank range]]; either his gun had [[Firearm malfunction#Mechanical malfunctions|jammed]]{{r|MM 1993|pp=168–169}} or the [[Magazine (firearms)|magazine]] had inadvertently detached.{{r|BBC doc|at=02:38}} He left the petrol station, driving east into [[Berkshire]]. The cashier telephoned [[999 (emergency telephone number)#United Kingdom|999]]; this call had been preceded by another emergency call from the previous customer who believed they had seen an armed robbery.{{r|MM 1993|p=170}}{{r|BBC doc|at=27:55}} [[Thames Valley Police]] (TVP) sent two patrol cars to the A4 to investigate. They were at that point unaware of the murder in Savernake Forest,{{r|Smith Report|p=6}} which had been responded to by officers from [[Wiltshire Police]], and there were initially two manhunts underway.{{r|BBC doc|at=29:05}}

=== Hungerford ===
{{OSM Location map
| coord = {{Coord|51.40882|-1.51506}}
| float =
| zoom = 15
| width = 250
| height = 300
| mark-coord1 = {{Coord|51.41146|-1.51378}}
| mark-title1 = South View
| shape1=n-circle
| shape-color1=dark blue
| shape-outline1=white
| mark-size1=16
| mark-coord2 = {{Coord|51.41115|-1.51197}}
| mark-title2 = Hungerford Common footpath
| mark-coord3 = {{Coord|51.41161|-1.51513}}
| mark-title3 = Fairview Road
| mark-coord4 = {{Coord|51.40805|-1.51324}}
| mark-title4 = Memorial Gardens
| mark-coord5 = {{Coord|51.40788|-1.51454}}
| mark-title5 = Bulpit Lane
| mark-coord6 = {{Coord|51.40869|-1.51501}}
| mark-title6 = Priory Avenue
| mark-coord7 = {{Coord|51.40771|-1.51736}}
| mark-title7 = Priory Road
| mark-coord8 = {{Coord|51.40542|-1.51422}}
| mark-title8 = John O'Gaunt School
| caption = Streets and locations where fatal shootings occurred in Hungerford
| auto-caption=1
}}

==== South View and Fairview Road ====
After leaving Froxfield, Ryan returned to the home he shared with his mother on South View in Hungerford.{{r|BBC Massacre}} Arriving there at approximately 12:45,{{r|Smith Report|p=5}} he was seen by neighbours who described him as looking upset. Soon after entering his house, one of the witnesses heard gunshots; Ryan had shot the two family dogs.{{r|MM 1993|p=170}} He exited the house with equipment such as ammunition, [[Survival skills|survival equipment]], and a [[flak jacket]]. He failed to start his car, and instead returned to the house and set the living room alight using the petrol he purchased from Froxfield;{{r|MM 1993|p=170}} Leaving the house, he headed east on South View towards school [[playing field]]s. En route he shot and killed two of his neighbours, Roland and Sheila Mason, with the Type 56 and Beretta respectively.{{r|Smith Report|p=5}} A fourteen-year-old girl, who also lived nearby, heard the noise and went to see what it was; Ryan shot her four times in the legs.{{r|MM 1993|p=170}} She sought first aid from her mother and another nearby resident and survived.<ref name="Parry">{{Cite news |last=Parry |first=Gareth |last2=Ballantyne |first2=Aileen |last3=Johnson |first3=Dennis |date=20 August 1987 |title=Gunman in combat gear kills himself after 14 die in shooting spree |url=https://www.theguardian.com/fromthearchive/story/0,12269,1286273,00.html |work=[[The Guardian]] |location=London |language=en-GB}}</ref> Ryan was chastised by a 77-year-old neighbour for "scaring everybody to death" for making noise, although he did not shoot her.{{r|MM 1993|p=172}} Ryan then wounded Marjorie Jackson, one of the people who had seen him arrive home, in her back. She telephoned her friend George White for help, and asked him to collect her husband Ivor from work in [[Newbury, Berkshire|Newbury]].{{r|MM 1993|p=172}}

Past the playing fields, Ryan walked along a footpath towards the town's [[Common land|common]]. He shot and killed 51-year-old Kenneth Clements with the Type 56.{{r|Smith Report|p=5}} Clements had been walking his dog with his family; the family escaped without injury.{{r|MM 1993|p=172}} At this time, approximately 12:50, police had linked the incident in Froxfield to the many calls they received in Hungerford and instead focused on South View.{{r|MM 1993|p=172}} Ryan returned to South View from the common, and the first police officers to arrive aimed to close both ends of the road to contain a possible gunman. These officers were unarmed, and when Ryan saw the police response he shot one of the officers, PC Roger Brereton, in the chest with the Beretta.{{r|Smith Report|p=5}}{{r|MM 1993|p=172}}<ref name="trutv.com">{{Cite web |last=Ramsland |first=Katherine |title=Terror in Hungerford: Whatever Moves |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/mass/michael_ryan/6.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120422192514/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/mass/michael_ryan/6.html |archive-date=22 April 2012 |access-date=17 January 2011 |website=Crime Library: Criminal Minds and Methods |publisher=[[truTV]]}}</ref> Brereton, who was in his patrol car, crashed into a [[telegraph pole]]. At 12:58, Ryan shot and killed him with the Type 56 while he was using his radio to report an active shooter.{{r|Smith Report|p=5}}{{r|MM 1993|p=172}}<ref name="Grice">{{Cite news |last=Grice |first=Elizabeth |date=7 December 2004 |title=Ryan shot at me, then at my mother |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2004/12/07/fthung07.xml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050501045755/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2004/12/07/fthung07.xml |archive-date=1 May 2005 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |location=London |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Still on South View, Ryan next shot at a mother and daughter who had just turned onto the lane in their [[Volvo]]. Both were struck, although the mother was able to reverse the car out of the road.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}}{{r|MM 1993|p=172}} Ryan next fired at the two-person crew of an ambulance that was responding to 999 calls on South View; both escaped without major injury.{{r|MM 1993|p=172}} After this, two of Brereton's colleagues securing the east end of South View came upon Kenneth Clements's son, who informed them that the shooter had continued west on South View.{{r|MM 1993|p=172}} They headed to investigate and Ryan shot at them; one took shelter in a house and the other – with Clements's son – drove across the common to safety. At 13:12, this officer radioed to request support from TVP's Tactical Firearms Unit (TFU) having seen the firearms Ryan was using. The TFU was on a training exercise in [[Otmoor]], Oxfordshire{{r|BBC doc|at=18:32}} (approximately {{convert|40|mi|-1}} from Hungerford) and would not have all its members in attendance until 14:20.{{r|MM 1993|p=173}} The officer, PC Jeremy Wood, set up a makeshift command post on the common, approximately {{convert|500|yd|-1}} from South View.{{r|MM 1993|p=177}}

Ryan next shot at George White, who was returning from Newbury with Ivor Jackson. White was driving his [[Toyota]] into South View when Ryan shot him with the Type 56;{{r|Smith Report|p=6}} he was killed instantly. Jackson sustained severe injuries and feigned death but survived.{{r|MM 1993|p=173}} Ryan then walked to the junction of South View and Fairview Road, where he used the Type 56 to shoot and kill 84-year-old Abdur{{efn|Khan's name has also been reported Abdul{{r|BBC Massacre}} and Abdul Rahman<ref name="Ford 2020">{{cite news |last1=Fort |first1=Hugh |title=Looking back at the Hungerford massacre 33 years on |url=https://www.getreading.co.uk/news/berkshire-history/gallery/hungerford-massacre-berkshire-august-19-18795342 |access-date=13 March 2024 |work=Berkshire Live |date=19 August 2020}}</ref>}} Khan who was tending his garden.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}}{{r|MM 1993|p=173}}{{r|MM 1993|p=174}} After firing at and injuring a pedestrian on Fairview Road, Ryan headed back towards the common. One of the police officers in attendance made another 999 call, but by this point the telephone network had reached its capacity.{{r|MM 1993|p=174}} On South View, Ryan's mother Dorothy, who had been out shopping and running errands,{{r|Smith Report|p=5}}{{r|MM 1993|p=166}} returned in her car to see Michael armed; she shouted for him to stop before he shot her four times, twice at point-blank range.{{efn|Sources differ as to whether Ryan used the Type 56{{r|Smith Report|p=6}} or the Beretta{{r|MM 1993|p=174}} to kill his mother}}{{r|MM 1993|p=174}}<ref name="Ramsland 7">{{Cite web |last1=Ramsland |first1=Katherine |title=Terror in Hungerford: Ryans Rampage |url=http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/mass/michael_ryan/7.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080615135820/http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/mass/michael_ryan/7.html |archive-date=15 June 2008 |access-date=30 June 2021 |website=Crime Library: Criminal Minds and Methods |publisher=[[truTV]] |language=en-US}}</ref>{{rp|p=7}} On heading towards the common, a resident of a parallel street shouted at Ryan to "kindly stop that racket"; he responded by shooting her in the groin.{{r|MM 1993|p=174}} At 13:18 PC Wood was joined by two armed police officers at the command post on the common. Two minutes later, they saw Ryan at the War Memorial Recreation Grounds on the edge of the common.{{r|MM 1993|p=177}}

==== Hungerford Common and town centre ====
[[File:Priory Avenue, Hungerford - geograph.org.uk - 5040770.jpg|thumb|right|After shooting dead Marcus Barnard, Ryan headed north on Priory Avenue (away from the camera)]]
Near the War Memorial Recreation Grounds, Ryan shot and killed 26-year-old Francis Butler with the Type 56.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}} At this point, Ryan discarded the carbine, it having been inoperable since the shooting in Froxfield.{{r|MM 1993|p=177}} He also temporarily discarded the Type 56, possibly because of spent ammunition, before recovering it.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}} The subsequent murders were committed with the Beretta.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}}

On reaching Bulpit Lane, Ryan shot and killed taxi driver Marcus Barnard, who was in his cab.{{r|MM 1993|p=177}} Ryan headed north on Priory Avenue, where he shot and injured the occupant of a parked van.{{r|MM 1993|p=178}} By this time, police had set up road diversions, and some of Ryan's victims were drivers affected by these change of routes.{{r|MM 1993|p=178}} Douglas and Kathleen Wainwright, visiting their son on Priory Avenue, were diverted to approach from the south, where Ryan was. Approximately {{convert|100|yd|-1}} from their destination, Ryan shot Douglas dead and injured Kathleen before non-fatally shooting at two other drivers.{{r|MM 1993|p=179}} Standing near Priory Avenue's junction with Tarrants Hill, Ryan shot at a van, killing Eric Vardy.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}}{{r|MM 1993|p=179}}

At 13:30, Ryan headed via Orchard Park Close to Priory Road, shooting at houses as he passed them.{{r|MM 1993|p=179}} He then shot at a passing car on Priory Road and fatally injured the driver, 22-year-old Sandra Hill.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}}{{r|MM 1993|p=180}}

After shooting Hill, Ryan forced his way into a house further down Priory Road and shot the occupants, 66-year-old Jack Gibbs and his 62-year-old wife Myrtle. Jack was killed instantly, and Myrtle died two days later at the [[Princess Margaret Hospital, Swindon|Princess Margaret Hospital]] in Swindon.{{r|MM 1993|p=180}}<ref name="GH 1987">{{Cite news |date=22 August 1987 |title=Massacre toll rises to 16 as two victims die |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2507&dat=19870822&id=-RI1AAAAIBAJ&pg=4112,5222288 |work=[[Glasgow Herald]] |page=3 |language=en-GB |via=[[Google News Archive]] |volume=205 |issue=179 |access-date=31 March 2020}}</ref> Leaving the Gibbs' home, Ryan shot at houses opposite and injured the occupants.{{r|Smith Report|p=6}} He then continued south on Priory Road where he shot once at a car driven by 34-year-old Ian Playle, who was fatally struck in the neck. His wife and their two children escaped injury; Playle died at the [[Radcliffe Infirmary]] in [[Oxford]] two days later.{{r|MM 1993|p=180}}{{r|GH 1987}}

At 13:45 the [[police helicopter]] arrived and broadcast warnings to the public.{{r|MM 1993|p=182}} At this time, Ryan shot and injured a male outside a property on Priory Road.{{r|Smith Report|p=7}}

=== Suicide ===
[[File:John O'Gaunt School - geograph.org.uk - 100961.jpg|thumb|right|Ryan shot at helicopters from the classroom at the top-right of the three-storey building{{r|BBC Massacre}}]] 
Ryan was next seen further along Priory Road approaching [[John O'Gaunt School]], which was closed for the summer holidays.<ref name="Turnbull 2012">{{Cite book |last1=Turnbull |first1=Gordon |title=Trauma: From Lockerbie to 7/7: How Trauma Affects Our Minds and How We Fight Back |date=2012 |publisher=[[Random House]] |isbn=9780552158398}}</ref>{{rp|p=200}} The school's [[janitor|caretaker]] reported seeing a man enter one of the school buildings at 13:52,<ref name="Cawthorne 2007">{{Cite book |last1=Cawthorne |first1=Nigel |title=Serial Killers & Mass Murderers: Profiles of the World's Most Barbaric Criminals |publisher=[[Simon and Schuster]] |year=2007 |isbn=9781569759394 |language=en-GB |author-link=Nigel Cawthorne}}</ref>{{rp|p=221}} and the TFU secured gardens and houses in the area before surrounding the school at approximately 16:00.{{r|MM 1993|p=184}} At 16:40 they heard gunshots in the vicinity of the school and more officers went to the scene.{{r|Smith Report|p=11}} At least one further shot from a school building was heard at 17:15; these may have been aimed at the police and press helicopters.{{r|Smith Report|p=11}} Ryan's precise location after the shooting at 13:45 had been unknown as there had been no confirmed sightings,{{r|Smith Report|p=7}} but at approximately 17:26 police first saw him at the school shortly after he had thrown his Type 56 out of a third-floor window.{{r|Smith Report|p=11}}{{r|MM 1993|p=184}} Once containment of Ryan was confirmed, fire and ambulance crews were able to access the previously locked-down parts of the town, including the fire in South View,{{r|Smith Report|p=11}} which had spread and destroyed the Ryans' home as well as the three other properties in the [[Terraced house|terrace]].{{r|C&I}}<ref name="Pantziarka 2014">{{Cite book |last1=Pantziarka |first1=Pan |title=Lone Wolf: True Stories of Spree Killers |date=2014 |publisher=[[Random House]] |isbn=9780753551325 |quote=for the next four hours fire crews were held back while the fire at 4 South View spread to the neighbouring houses.}}</ref>{{r|BBC Massacre|quote=Four houses, including Ryan's home{{nbsp}}[...] were later demolished}}

Ryan fired at both police and helicopters that were circling above the school.{{r|BBC Massacre}} He became engaged in conversation with a sergeant within the TFU and informed them of his arsenal and ammunition, claiming that he had a grenade as well as the Beretta.{{r|MM 1993|p=184}} He said that he would not exit the building until the police informed him of the welfare of his mother and stated that "Hungerford must be a bit of a mess."{{r|MM 1993|p=184}} The sergeant said he understood Ryan when he claimed that his mother's death was "a mistake;" Ryan reportedly replied, "How can you understand? I wish I had stayed in bed."{{r|MM 1993|p=184}} He later shouted, "It's funny. I killed all those people, but I haven't the guts to blow my own brains out." At 18:52, after a few minutes of silence, a shot was heard from the school building, and Ryan no longer responded to police.{{r|Smith Report|p=11}} Without knowing the full extent of Ryan's arsenal and ammunition and with the possibility of [[booby trap]]s or more perpetrators, the police stayed at their positions and devised an operation to enter the building.{{r|Smith Report|p=11}} At 20:00 the plan was enacted, and at 20:10 armed police entered a barricaded room to find Ryan dead of a self-inflicted gunshot through the right [[temple (anatomy)|temple]].{{r|Smith Report|p=11}}{{r|MM 1993|p=184}}

== Aftermath ==
The shootings were declared a [[major incident]] and in the immediate aftermath, TVP locked-down many areas to secure evidence and exclude press activity. A [[Criminal Investigation Department#United Kingdom|CID]] headquarters was established at the force's premises in [[Sulhamstead]], approximately {{convert|18|mi|-1}} east of Hungerford. They conducted a sweep search of the town, identifying 78 bullet holes in 15 vehicles. Investigations were supported by the force's Autoindex system, the [[HOLMES 2|HOLMES]] platform not yet implemented.{{r|Smith Report|p=12}}

[[Prime Minister]] [[Margaret Thatcher]] visited Hungerford on the day after the massacre.<ref name="Morl 2022">{{Cite news |last1=Morl |first1=Lily |date=20 August 2022 |title=35 years on since the Hungerford massacre that shook the nation |url=https://www.getreading.co.uk/news/berkshire-history/gallery/hungerford-massacre-35-years-horrific-24808652 |access-date=1 August 2023 |work=[[BerkshireLive]] |language=en-GB |archive-date=17 November 2024 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20241117014825/https://www.getreading.co.uk/news/berkshire-history/gallery/hungerford-massacre-35-years-horrific-24808652 |url-status=live }}</ref> She stated that "if [gun control laws] need to be tightened up [to] prevent more events like this, of course, that will be considered."<ref name="UPI">{{Cite news |date=20 August 1987 |title=Thatcher: English language can't express horror of Hungerford |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1987/08/20/Thatcher-English-language-cant-express-horror-of-Hungerford/1718556430400/ |access-date=1 August 2023 |work=[[UPI]] |language=en-US |quote=if (the gun control laws) need to be tightened up or we find this could prevent more events like this, of course, that will be considered.}}</ref>

Funerals for the dead were conducted in the weeks after the tragedy,{{r|Smith Report|p=12}} beginning with Eric Vardy's in [[Great Shefford]] on 26 August.<ref name="Alamy Vardy 1987">{{Cite web |author1=Press Association |date=26 August 1987 |title=Mourners gather at the graveside of Hungerford massacre victim Eric Vardy during the funeral service at Great Shefford, near Hungerford Stock Photo |url=https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-mourners-gather-at-the-graveside-of-hungerford-massacre-victim-eric-109456271.html |access-date=5 August 2023 |website=[[Alamy]]}}</ref><ref name="AC 1987">{{Cite news |title=First funeral held |work=[[African Concord]] |issue=147–159 |date=1987 |quote=Eric Vary has been buried in a small graveyard on a windswept West Berkshire hillside}}</ref>{{rp|p=37}} Roger Brereton's funeral, held the following day at St Mary's Church in [[Shaw, Berkshire]], was attended by [[Home Secretary]] [[Douglas Hurd]].<ref name="PA 19870827">{{Cite web |author1=Press Association |date=27 August 1987 |title=Crime – Hungerford Massacre – Shaw, Newbury |url=https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-crime-hungerford-massacre-shaw-newbury-110956705.html |access-date=3 August 2023 |website=[[Alamy]] |archive-date=3 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230803142131/https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-crime-hungerford-massacre-shaw-newbury-110956705.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Dorothy Ryan was buried in [[Calne, Wiltshire]] on 29 August.<ref name="NYT 1987">{{Cite news |date=29 August 1987 |title=Dorothy Ryan, Victim of Son In English Killings, Is Buried |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/08/29/obituaries/dorothy-ryan-victim-of-son-in-english-killings-is-buried.html |access-date=3 August 2023 |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=32 |language=en-US |agency=[[Reuters]] |archive-date=3 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230803142131/https://www.nytimes.com/1987/08/29/obituaries/dorothy-ryan-victim-of-son-in-english-killings-is-buried.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Michael Ryan was cremated at Reading Crematorium on 3 September,<ref name="PA 19870903">{{Cite web |author1=Press Association |date=3 September 1987 |title=PA News Photo 3/9/87 The Coffin Carrying Hungerford Killer Michael Ryan At Reading Crematorium |url=https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-pa-news-photo-3987-the-coffin-carrying-hungerford-killer-michael-ryan-106054017.html |access-date=3 August 2023 |website=[[Alamy]]}}</ref>{{r|Smart 2011|p=258}} the location of his ashes known to only one member of his family.<ref name="Carter 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Carter |first1=Claire |date=16 September 2017 |title=The lonely little boy with a lavish upbringing who went on to be a mass murderer |url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/inside-indulgent-lonely-childhood-hungerford-11162474 |access-date=3 August 2023 |work=[[Daily Mirror|mirror]] |language=en-GB}}</ref>

=== Inquest and report ===
The [[inquest]] into the massacre concluded on 29 September. The [[coroner]] for [[West Berkshire]], Charles Hoile, recognised the dichotomy of the nation wanting rapid police response to such events while also insisting on [[Police use of firearms in the United Kingdom|a routinely unarmed police force]].{{r|Smith Report|p=12}} The jury in the inquest recommended to the coroner that "semi-automatic weapons should not generally be available [and] an individual should not be allowed to own an unlimited quantity of arms and ammunition."{{r|Smith Report|p=14}}

Hurd commissioned TVP's [[Chief Constable]], Colin Smith, to prepare a report on the incident. The Hungerford Report found that on the day of the massacre, the town – which was usually policed by two sergeants and twelve constables – was policed by one sergeant, two patrol constables, and one station duty officer.{{r|Smith Report|p=1}} It reported that such restrictions in personnel that day "could certainly have become a relevant factor had Ryan not been traced and contained rapidly."{{r|Smith Report|p=14}}

Communication – both internally within the force as well as handling communications with the public – was criticised. [[Telephone exchange]]s could not handle the number of 999 calls made by witnesses; the Newbury exchange normally handled 300,000 calls per day but this increased to 800,000 on 19 August.{{r|Smith Report|p=8}} Some witnesses' reports were significantly delayed which resulted in out-of-date or duplicate information being passed to emergency services. The public telephone network, as well as lines to the emergency services, were saturated. As a result, [[British Telecom]] implemented measures to relieve stress on the telecommunications network on the evening of 19 August, freeing up communications for the police. The force also used 13 mobile telephones; as with the landline network, [[Racal]] blocked the public from using the cellular network to allow the police's mobile phones to work.{{r|Smith Report|p=10}}

The report suggested that although the police force helicopter was undergoing repairs and did not arrive at Hungerford until 13:45, it was likely a catalyst for Ryan to seek refuge in the school. Smith said that the presence of helicopters other than the police's aircraft hampered operations; at least four private helicopters – most (if not all) from the press – were a distraction for the police pilot and made ground units unable to hear radio transmissions.{{r|Smith Report|p=15}}

Regarding Ryan's firearms, the report determined that his weapon collection had been legally licensed.{{r|Smith Report|p=3}} Smith concluded that "the public&nbsp;[...] will demand that this tragic event is used as a catalyst for changes in both the law and administrative procedures [of gun licencing]", and that neither "legitimate sporting [nor] leisure interests" would be seriously damaged nor significantly impeded if semi-automatic firearms were prohibited from general sale.{{r|Smith Report|p=16}}

The report led to the [[Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988]], which banned the ownership of semi-automatic [[centerfire ammunition|centre-fire]] rifles and restricted the use of shotguns with a capacity of more than three cartridges (in magazine plus the breech).<ref name="FA 1988">{{Cite act |title=Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 |date=15 November 1988 |orig-section=c. 45 |reporter=UK Public General Acts  |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/45/contents |access-date=1 August 2023 <!-- |title-link=Firearms (Amendment) Act 1988 --> }}</ref> An amnesty held following the passing of the Act amassed 48,000 firearms.<ref name="Travis 2003">{{Cite news |last1=Travis |first1=Alan |title=Firearms amnesty to be called |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/jan/11/ukguns.immigrationpolicy |work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=2 August 2023 |date=11 January 2003}}</ref>

In June 1988, PC Brereton was posthumously awarded the [[Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct]].<ref name="Hudson 2017">{{Cite web |last1=Hudson |first1=Nick |title=30 years on policing remembers 'The Tragedy' that was Hungerford |url=https://www.policeprofessional.com/news/30-years-on-policing-remembers-the-tragedy-that-was-hungerford-2/ |work=Police Professional |access-date=2 September 2023 |date=19 August 2017 |archive-date=2 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230902193222/https://www.policeprofessional.com/news/30-years-on-policing-remembers-the-tragedy-that-was-hungerford-2/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Perpetrator ==
{{redirect|Michael Robert Ryan|the New Zealand runner|Mike Ryan (athlete)}}
'''Michael Robert Ryan''' was born on 18 May 1960, at Savernake Hospital in [[Marlborough, Wiltshire|Marlborough]], Wiltshire,<ref name="Smart 2011">{{Cite book |last1=Smart |first1=Sue |title=Great British Suicides |date=1 January 2011 |publisher=John Blake |isbn=9781844545360 }}</ref>{{rp|p=252}} the only child of Alfred and Dorothy Ryan.{{r|MM 1993|p=161}} His father (born {{birth based on age as of date|55|1960|5|18|noage=1}}) had worked for a [[local government]] agency as a building inspector and died from cancer in 1985 at the age of 80.{{r|MM 1993|p=161, 163}}<ref name="Haines 1994 p228">{{Cite book |last1=Haines |first1=Max |title=Multiple murderers |date=1994 |publisher=Toronto Sun |location=Toronto |isbn=9781895735062 }}</ref>{{rp|p=228}} Ryan's mother (born 1925 or 1926) worked as a school [[dinner lady]] and later as a waitress at the [[Elcot Park Hotel]].{{r|MM 1993|pp=161–162}}

Ryan attended Hungerford Primary School and [[John O'Gaunt School]] before studying at [[Newbury College (England)|Newbury College]] from the age of 16.{{r|Smart 2011|p=252}}<ref name="C&I">{{Cite web |title=The Hungerford Massacre |url=https://www.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk/crime-files/michael-ryan-and-the-hungerford-massacre |website=Crime + Investigation UK |publisher=[[AETN UK]] |access-date=29 August 2023 }}</ref> After dropping out of college, some sources state that Ryan was at one point employed as an antique dealer,<ref name="Roycroft Brine 2021">{{Cite book |last1=Roycroft |first1=Mark |last2=Brine |first2=Lindsey |title=Modern Police Leadership: Operational Effectiveness at Every Level |date=2021 |publisher=[[Springer Nature]]|isbn=9783030639303}}</ref>{{rp|p=60}} although this is not corroborated by the official report into the shootings.{{r|Smith Report|p=2}} On 7 April 1987, he began employment as a labourer on a [[Manpower Services Commission]] scheme with [[Newbury District Council]], working on footpaths and fences including at the [[River Thames]] in [[Reading, Berkshire|Reading]].{{r|MM 1993|p=164}}{{r|Smith Report|p=2}} He left the job on 9 July,{{r|Smith Report|p=2}} and returned to claiming benefits.{{r|MM 1993|p=164}}

=== Firearms ownership ===
Ryan was issued a [[Firearms regulation in the United Kingdom|shotgun certificate]] on 2 February 1978, and on 11 December 1986 he was granted a firearm certificate covering the ownership of two pistols.{{r|Smith Report|p=3}} The licence only permitted Ryan to use the weapons at approved ranges; his application stated that he would use them at the Dunmore Shooting Centre Club in [[Abingdon-on-Thames|Abingdon]]{{r|Smith Report|p=3}} and he was also a member of the Wiltshire Shooting Centre rifle club in [[Devizes]].{{r|MM 1993|p=167}} He later applied to have the certificate amended to cover a third pistol, as he intended to sell one of the two he had acquired since the granting of the certificate (a [[Smith & Wesson]] [[.38 Special|.38-caliber]] revolver) and to buy two more. This was approved on 30 April 1987. On 14 July, he applied for another variation, to cover two [[semi-automatic rifle]]s, which was approved on 30 July. At the time of the massacre, he was licensed to possess eight firearms, which he purchased between 17 December 1986 and 8 August 1987:{{r|Smith Report|p=3}}<ref name="Cheston 2012">{{Cite news|last=Cheston|first=Paul|date=20 July 2012|title=Arms dealer who sold rifle used in Hungerford massacre jailed for trafficking deadly missiles|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/arms-dealer-who-sold-rifle-used-in-hungerford-massacre-jailed-for-trafficking-deadly-missiles-7962228.html|access-date=20 July 2021|work=[[Evening Standard]]|archive-date=20 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210720153842/https://www.standard.co.uk/news/politics/arms-dealer-who-sold-rifle-used-in-hungerford-massacre-jailed-for-trafficking-deadly-missiles-7962228.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
*[[Beretta]] 9mm pistol
*Zabala shotgun
* [[Browning Arms Company|Browning]] shotgun
* [[Vincenzo Bernardelli S.p.A. (firearms)|Bernardelli]] [[.22 caliber|.22]] pistol
* [[Česká zbrojovka firearms|CZ ORSO]] self-loading [[.32 ACP]] pistol
* [[Type 56 assault rifle|Norinco Type 56]] [[7.62×39mm]] semi-automatic rifle{{efn|The Type 56 was described as a [[Kalashnikov AK-47]] copy, and was identified as a Kalashnikov in the report from Thames Valley Police to the [[Home Secretary]]{{r|Smith Report|p=3}}}}
* [[Underwood Typewriter Company|Underwood]] [[M1 carbine]] [[.30 Carbine|.30]] rifle{{r|Smith Report|p=3}}

Ryan used the Beretta, the Type 56, and the M1 carbine in the massacre, and fired at least 119 bullets.<!-- Smith Report says 119 were fired "in Hungerford", which implies it doesn't include Savernake or Froxfield, but it then says he used the carbine once in Hungerford (which is not the case). Perhaps "in Hungerford" means "in the Hungerford massacre"? -->  He predominantly used the Type 56, with which he fired 84 bullets.{{r|Smith Report|p=7}}

The CZ pistol was being repaired by a dealer at the time, and he had sold the Bernardelli shortly before the shootings.{{r|Smith Report|p=3}} The Norinco was purchased from firearms dealer [[Mick Ranger]].<ref name="Barnett 2003">{{Cite news |last=Barnett |first=Antony |date=27 April 2003 |title=Exposed: Global dealer in death |url=https://www.theguardian.com/gun/Story/0,2763,944414,00.html |work=[[The Guardian]] |location=London |language=en-GB}}</ref>
{{r|Smith Report|p=5}}
Ryan showed some of his firearms – as well as [[improvised explosive device]]s – to his colleagues at his labouring job. As well as his target practice at legitimate venues, Ryan used a large road sign at the junction of the [[M4 motorway|M4]] and the [[A338 road|A338]].{{r|MM 1993|p=164}}

=== Health and motive ===
In the hours following the massacre, newspapers speculated that Ryan was inspired by viewing "[[video nasties]]" despite there having been no opportunity to investigate such causes.<ref name="Petley 2012">{{Cite journal |last1=Petley |first1=Julian |title="Are We Insane?". The "Video Nasty" Moral Panic |journal=Recherches Sociologiques et Anthropologiques |date=30 June 2012 |volume=43 |issue=1 |pages=35–57 |doi=10.4000/rsa.839 |quote=within hours, literally, of the massacres at Hungerford in 1987 and Dunblane in 1996, and of the conclusion of the trial of the two boys who murdered James Bulger in 1993, the papers were once again awash with stories blaming horror videos for these crimes|doi-access=free }}</ref>{{rp|p=35–57}} The British [[tabloid press]] was filled with stories about Ryan's life; biographies stated that as well as watching violent videos he had a near-obsessive fascination with firearms and possessed magazines about survival skills and firearms, including ''[[Soldier of Fortune (magazine)|Soldier of Fortune]]''.<ref name="Ballard 2005">{{Cite book |last1=Ballard |first1=J. G. |title=Conversations |date=2005 |publisher=[[RE/Search]] |location=San Francisco, CA |isbn=9781889307138 }}</ref>{{rp|p=314}}<ref name="Mason 1993">{{Cite conference |last=Mason |first=Errol |title=Critical Factors in Firearms Control |book-title=Australian Institute of Criminology |year=1993 |url=http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/proceedings/17/mason.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051029220944/http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/proceedings/17/mason.pdf |archive-date=29 October 2005 }}</ref>{{rp|p=209}} The [[Rambo (franchise)|''Rambo'' films]] were later suggested as inspiring Ryan, although there is no evidential link between fictional video violence and the subsequent enactment of actual physical violence.<ref name="Critcher 2003">{{Cite book |last1=Critcher |first1=Chas |title=Moral Panics and the Media |publisher=[[Open University Press]] |year=2003 |isbn=9780335209088 |location=Buckingham Philadelphia |language=en-GB}}</ref>{{rp|p=79}}

Ryan had neither previous criminal convictions nor a record of medical problems.{{r|Smith Report|p=2}} Following his death, Ryan's [[mental health]] came under analysis. Jim Higgins, a [[Consultant (medicine)|consultant]] [[forensic psychiatrist]], suspected that Ryan had acute [[schizophrenia]], describing how "[[matricide]] is the schizophrenic crime."<ref name="Thorson 1987">{{Cite news |last1=Thorson |first1=Larry |title=Britain's Worst Mass Murderer a Polite Loner With AM-Britain-Shooting Bjt |url=https://apnews.com/article/e20257fdd6af0cabcd307d6ec3e3d6a1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709182623/https://apnews.com/article/e20257fdd6af0cabcd307d6ec3e3d6a1 | archive-date=9 July 2021 |url-status=dead |access-date=30 June 2021 |work=[[Associated Press]] |date=20 August 1987 |language=en-US}}</ref> A psychologist in [[BBC One]]'s ''The Hungerford Massacre'' documentary described how Ryan had "anger and contempt for ordinary life".<ref name="Smith 2004">{{Cite news |last1=Smith |first1=Rupert |title=TV review |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2004/dec/08/broadcasting.tvandradio |work=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=1 July 2021 |date=8 December 2004}}</ref>

Although no motive for the massacre has been determined,{{r|Smith Report|p=1}} psychologist Craig Jackson of [[Birmingham City University]] has suggested that Ryan may have been [[Sexual assault|sexually motivated]] in his attack on Godfrey in Savernake Forest; the presence of a groundsheet {{convert|10|yd|m|0}} from where her body was found may have meant that Ryan intended to sexually assault her.<ref name="Smith Report">{{Cite web |title=Shooting Incidents at Hungerford on 19 August 1987; Report of Mr Colin Smith CVO QPM |last=Smith |first=Colin |url=https://www.jesip.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Hungerford-Shootings.pdf |website=JESIP |publisher=[[Home Department]] |access-date=2 August 2023 |date=c. 1988 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802090929/https://www.jesip.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Hungerford-Shootings.pdf |archive-date=2 August 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|p=5}}{{r|BBC Massacre}} Jackson believes that the shootings that followed were not planned as Ryan had no [[manifesto]], but  may have been borne out of a desire to [[Abusive power and control|control]]. He may have been influenced, however, by the [[Hoddle Street massacre]] in [[Melbourne, Australia]], 10 days previously.{{r|BBC Massacre}}

Investigative psychologist Keith Ashcroft likened the massacre to the shootings at [[Dunblane massacre|Dunblane in 1996]] and [[Cumbria shootings|Cumbria in 2010]], stating that "the killers [were] subject to gossip and sometimes quite serious victimisation. Their rage at perceived injustice is way beyond that of a normal person, but they have not lost touch with reality."{{r|Tweedie 2012}} Ashcroft differed from Higgins on the possibility of psychosis, stating that "[spree killers] are not psychotic. Isolation, emptiness, is solved by taking control. And the ultimate control is that exercised over life and death. Finally, they externalise their rage, targeting family and society."{{r|Tweedie 2012}}

== Legacy ==
The massacre remains, along with the 1996 Dunblane school massacre and the 2010 Cumbria shootings, one of the deadliest mass shootings in the UK<ref name="BBC 2534669">{{Cite news |date=19 August 2005 |title=1987: Gunman kills 14 in Hungerford rampage |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/19/newsid_2534000/2534669.stm |access-date=1 April 2017 |work=[[BBC News]] |language=en-GB |archive-date=24 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170524232001/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/august/19/newsid_2534000/2534669.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> and the name "Hungerford" has become synonymous with the massacre.<ref name="BBC b08b7ttm">{{Cite AV media |date=23 January 2017 |title=Aftermath – Series 1 – Hungerford – BBC Sounds |type=Radio broadcast |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b08b7ttm |access-date=2 August 2023 |work=[[BBC Radio 4]] |archive-date=2 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802094129/https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b08b7ttm |url-status=live }}</ref>{{rp|at=02:12|q=Sadly, for years, Hungerford has been synonymous with 1987 and what happened}}

The Hungerford Tragedy Gardens, adjacent to the town's [[war memorial]], were established to memorialise the victims of the massacre.<ref name="HVM">{{Cite web |title=Crimes |url=https://www.hungerfordvirtualmuseum.co.uk/?view=article&amp;id=135 |access-date=2 August 2023 |website=Hungerford Virtual Museum}}</ref> Most residents of Hungerford refer to the events as "the tragedy".{{r|BBC Massacre}} One local stated that "[someone] called it the 'massacre'{{nbsp}}[...] that is {{em|so}} offensive to people in Hungerford – it was the Hungerford Tragedy – we've always called it the Hungerford Tragedy".{{r|BBC b08b7ttm|at=09:05|q=People still make a mistake. A man who I know very well called it the 'massacre' the other day. That is ''so'' offensive to people in Hungerford – it was the Hungerford Tragedy – we've always called it the Hungerford Tragedy. It should never have happened, but it did.}} Conversely, Marjorie Jackson – who was injured on South View – does not view the events as a tragedy, stating "It was a massacre{{nbsp}}[...] there's no two ways about it."{{r|BBC Massacre}}

=== Cultural references ===
====In books====
* The main character of [[J. G. Ballard]]'s novel ''[[Running Wild (novella)|Running Wild]]'' is a Deputy Psychiatric Advisor with the [[Metropolitan Police Service]] who authored "an unpopular minority report on the Hungerford killings" and is sent to investigate mass murder in a [[gated community]]<ref name="Grossberg 1992">{{Cite book |editor1-last=Grossberg |editor1-first=Lawrence |title=Cultural Studies |date=1992 |location=New York |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=0415903459 }}</ref>{{rp|p=220}}
* The massacre inspired [[Christopher Priest (novelist)|Christopher Priest]]'s 1998 novel ''[[The Extremes]]''<ref name="Platt 2017">{{Cite book |last1=Platt |first1=Charles |title=Dream Makers |date=2017 |publisher=[[SF Gateway]] |isbn=9781473219687}}</ref>{{rp|p=151}}
* [[Forensic pathologist]] [[Richard Shepherd (forensic pathologist)|Richard Shepherd]], whose first case was the massacre, covered the Hungerford massacre in his 2019 memoir ''Unnatural Causes''<ref name="Shepherd 2019 p2">{{Cite book |last1=Shepherd |first1=Richard |title=Unnatural Causes |date=2019 |publisher=[[Penguin Books]] |location=London |isbn=9781405923538 }}</ref>{{rp|p=2}}<ref name="Smith 2019">{{Cite news |last1=Smith |first1=PD |date=3 May 2019 |title=Unnatural Causes by Richard Shepherd review – pathology under the microscope |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/may/03/unnatural-causes-life-many-deaths-britains-top-pathologist-richard-sheperd-review |access-date=5 September 2022 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB}}</ref>
<!-- Please only add more cultural references with a valid reliable citation -->

====In music====
* "Sulk", the penultimate track on [[Radiohead]]'s album ''[[The Bends (album)|The Bends]]'', was written as a response to the massacre<ref name="Randall 2004">{{Cite book |last1=Randall |first1=Mac |title=Exit Music: The Radiohead Story |publisher=[[Omnibus Press|Omnibus]] |year=2004 |isbn=1-84449-183-8 |location=London |language=en-GB}}</ref>{{rp|p=119}}
* [[Radical Dance Faction]] vocalist Chris Bowsher, who witnessed the massacre, wrote the band's songs "Hot on the Wire" and "Hungerford Poem" about the killings<ref name="Maximum Rocknroll 1991">{{Cite journal |title=Maximum Rocknroll |journal=[[Maximum Rocknroll]] |date=1991 |volume=92 |quote=I saw people killed but I kept behind [Ryan] where he couldn't see me{{nbsp}}[...] The first [piece about the massacre] I wrote was 'Hungerford Poem' and 'Hot on the Wire' is the follow-up. Originally it was going to be called 'And Then the Circus Came' because after the shooting the media descended on Hungerford like a circus.}}</ref>
<!-- Please only add more cultural references with a valid reliable citation -->

====In television and radio====
* In December 2004, [[BBC Two]] aired a documentary on the massacre<ref name="Syal 2004">{{Cite news |last1=Syal |first1=Rajeev |date=8 February 2004 |title=Hungerford outrage at TV documentary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1453748/Hungerford-outrage-at-TV-documentary.html |access-date=12 April 2021 |work=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |language=en-GB |archive-date=12 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210412202112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1453748/Hungerford-outrage-at-TV-documentary.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="BBC 4075055">{{cite web |title=How a gun massacre changed Britain |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4075055.stm |publisher=BBC News |access-date=12 February 2025 |date=7 December 2004}}</ref>
* The massacre was the subject of a 2017 episode of the [[BBC Radio 4]] documentary series ''Aftermath''{{r|BBC b08b7ttm}}

== See also ==

{{portal|Berkshire|1980s}}
* [[List of massacres in Great Britain]]
* [[List of rampage killers]]
* [[Port Arthur massacre (Australia)]], a spree killing in Australia in 1996 which prompted similar gun law reforms
* [[Ughill Hall shootings]], which occurred eleven months earlier in Sheffield
* [[1987 Redfield and Patchway spree killings]], which occurred two months later in Bristol and were reportedly inspired by the Hungerford massacre
* ''[[Southcliffe]]''

== Footnotes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*{{Cite book |editor1-last=Barker |editor1-first=Martin |editor2-last=Petley |editor2-first=Julian |title=Ill Effects: The Media/Violence Debate |date=2001 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |location=London |isbn=978-0-415-22513-7 |pages=63–77 |edition=2nd}}
*{{Cite journal |last1=Webster |first1=Duncan |title='Whodunnit? America did': Rambo and Post-Hungerford Rhetoric |journal=Cultural Studies |date=May 1989 |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=173–193 |doi=10.1080/09502388900490121 |publisher=[[Routledge]]}}

{{Mass shootings in the United Kingdom}}
{{Murders in the United Kingdom in the 1980s}}

[[Category:1980s in Berkshire]]
[[Category:1980s mass shootings in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Massacres in 1987]]
[[Category:1987 in England]]
[[Category:1987 mass shootings in Europe]]
[[Category:1987 murders in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:20th century in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:20th-century mass murder in England]]
[[Category:August 1987 in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Crime in Wiltshire]]
[[Category:Deaths by firearm in England]]
[[Category:Firearms in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:History of mental health in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Hungerford|Massacre]]
[[Category:Mass shootings in England]]
[[Category:Massacres in England]]
[[Category:Matricides]]
[[Category:Murder in Berkshire]]
[[Category:Murder–suicides in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Spree shootings in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Suicides by firearm in England]]