Documentary series about the woman who had her mother murdered

In the photo above: Blanchard had been in prison since 2016 and was released at the end of 2023. She tells her tragic story in a new documentary series.

Her case is one of the most tragic in recent decades: Gypsy Rose Blanchard was isolated and tormented for years by her mother, who suffered from Munchausen syndrome by proxy.

Clauddine “Dee Dee” Blanchard pretended to be a selfless and loving mother, but in reality she faked serious illnesses of her only daughter.

Dee Dee Blanchard drugged Gypsy, shaved her hair to make her look sick, and forced her into a wheelchair. The abuse ended in 2015 when Gypsy, then 23 years old, had her mother murdered.

The young woman had been in prison since 2016 and was released on parole in the US state of Missouri shortly before the turn of the year.

Her extraordinary story is the focus of a new documentary series that premiered on US television at the beginning of the year with great success and in which Gypsy Rose Blanchard recounts her experiences before and after her mother's murder in detail.

The whole thing will be broadcast on “Crime + Investigation” from Sunday.

That's what it's about

In “The Case of Gypsy Rose Blanchard,” she reports on details and background information about life with her mother, escape attempts, her earlier (and failed) attempt to kill Dee Dee Blanchard herself, and her relationship with Nicholas Godejohn, her mother’s murderer.

"I asked him to kill her. That's why I'm in prison," says Gypsy Rose in the new series. "I've had six years to work through everything. There are some things that nobody knew about before. Now I want to get all these disturbing secrets off my chest."

The documentary team visited Gypsy Rose Blanchard several times exclusively in prison – the series begins with an interview on the eve of an important parole hearing.

Gypsy Rose Blanchard: "My mother controlled everything I did. I had to sit in a wheelchair. She told everyone I had cancer. But it was all a lie."

In the new documentary series, not only Gypsy Rose Blanchard has her say in detail - police officers, doctors, judges and family members such as father Rod Blanchard, who divorced Dee Dee Blanchard a few weeks after the wedding, also speak out.

He says of his role as a father in the new series: "I definitely failed in that regard. It makes me terribly sad that Gypsy Rose had to go through all that. She must have felt very lonely."

Gypsy's stepmother Kristy Blanchard adds in the new series: "Gypsy was Dee Dee's daughter and at the same time her prisoner."

Background

“The Gypsy Rose Blanchard Case” can be seen exclusively on “Crime + Investigation” and “Crime + Investigation Play” in German-speaking countries.

The German TV premiere of the six one-hour episodes will take place in double episodes every Sunday from 14:2024 p.m. starting April 20, 15.

The episodes are available on demand not only via “Crime + Investigation Play” on Amazon, Apple, YouTube and ScreenHits TV, but also via Wow and the on-demand services of other platform partners such as Sky, Telekom and Vodafone.

In the US, “The Case of Gypsy Rose Blanchard” reached 9,9 million viewers across various platforms.

Meanwhile, the US broadcaster Lifetime, which belongs to A+E Networks, announced that it will produce a second season of the format, which will deal with the period after Gypsy Rose Blanchard's release from prison.

The new edition will also be shown again on “Crime + Investigation” and “Crime + Investigation Play”.

PR Agent / © Photo: Crime + Investigation, A+E