Who was Peter Farquhar and what happened to him? – The Sun | The Sun

TEACHER and author Peter Farquhar was found dead in his home in October 2015.

His death was ruled an accident before the sinister truth that he was cruelly killed was uncovered.

Who was Peter Farquhar?

Peter was born Peter Anthony Scott Farquhar on January 3, 1946, in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Not much is known about Peter's family, but we know his father was a physician and he has a brother, Ian.

Peter received his education at Latymer Upper School in London and went on to Churchill College in Cambridge for his undergraduate.

He achieved a first-class degree in English, which he later used to become an English teacher for over 30 years.

Peter taught English at Manchester Grammar School and then Stowe School in Buckinghamshire.

From 2007, Farquhar was also an occasional lecturer at Buckingham University.

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Away from his teaching career, Farquhar published three novels through Amazon, and a character in the 2013 film Believe was partly based on him during his time teaching in Manchester.

Peter was a devout evangelical Christian and had considered becoming a minister.

He was a regular worshipper and preacher at Stowe Parish Church for 20 years.

How did the novelist die?

On October 26, 2015, Peter was found dead in his home in Maids Moreton, Buckinghamshire.

His death was not treated as suspicious with friends and family of the novelist believing he died in his sleep after a short illness.

However, when his neighbour Ann Moore-Martin died in similar circumstances only two years later, a double homicide investigation was triggered.

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It took four years, 880 statements and an exhumation for police to discover Ben Field's awful deed.

Friends, family and neighbours of the deceased were shocked to discover that their deaths were a result of one man's greed.

Ben Field had duped both Ann and Peter into fake relationships.

He had killed Peter after drugging him and making him believe he was going crazy in order to inherit his house and money.

Field achieved this by deceiving and defrauding Peter to get him to change his will.

In November 2014, Farquhar changed his will, leaving half of his house and £15,000 to Field, and appointing him his literary agent.

The court heard that evil Field "suffocated him'' and then left a half-empty bottle of whisky in his room to make it seem as though he had drunk himself to death.

During his trial, Field admitted to drugging Farquhar with benzodiazepines and hallucinogens simply to "torment" him, telling the jury that he did it "for no other reason other than it was cruel, to upset and torment Peter – purely out of meanness".

What novels did Peter Farquhar publish?

Before he died, Peter had published three books.

His first book A Wide Wide Sea was written in 1997 but wasn't published until 2015.

It was published when a couple of his university students discovered his manuscript and convinced him to publish it.

His other titles were Between Boy and Man, published in 2010, and A Bitter Heart, published in 2012.

How did he know Ben Field?

Field and Peter met when Peter was a guest lecturer at Buckingham University.

It was later revealed that although he was more than four decades younger, Field was Peter's lover.

Their relationship was public and supported by their church where a betrothal ceremony was held where the pair exchanged crucifix necklaces.

An officer from Thames Valley Police, Mark Glover, said: "Peter and Ben first met when, in about April 2011, when Ben was a student and Peter was a guest lecturer at Buckingham University.

"Ben's motives for befriending Peter were all about Ben Field.

"Ben saw Peter as somebody who could advance his own literary writings and ultimately it was financially driven in that Ben would get Peter to change his will to Ben's benefit."

Eventually Ben and Peter began living together full time in Peter's home.

Officer Glover said: "Over the course of time there was a betrothal ceremony in a church, where they kind of committed to each other, and Ben carried on living with Peter in what Peter thought was a loving relationship".

Peter's brother, Ian, said Field "callously and greedily seduced his way into my brother's life".

Where is Ben Field now?

Ben worked as a church warden.

In January 2018 he was arrested for the murders of Peter and Ann.

He was convicted of the murder of Peter in August 2018 and Field was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum of 26 years in October 2019.

He was found not guilty of plotting to kill Peter's neighbour, Ann.

While sentencing Field, Mr Justice Sweeney told him that he "lived by deception and deceit and had been a well-practised and able liar".

He added: "You further admitted how you could manipulate and manoeuvre people, however sceptical they may have been, to achieve your ends without ever asking them to do so directly."

Since his conviction, Field has appealed his sentence twice, the first being dismissed by the court of appeals.

As of July 2023, Ben remains behind bars.

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