It's a breathtaking scene — cliffs glowing amber, a lake shimmering beneath a dying sun, the horizon stretching endlessly into peace.

There's no denying the talent of the artist, and the patience in the brushstrokes.

But to appreciate its full beauty, you'd have to stand in Cell 15 on D-Wing Level 3 in Shepton Mallet Prison.

From the cell doorway, the illusion becomes complete. The painted balcony merges perfectly with the iron bars of the doorframe. For a moment, you could almost believe you're free, looking out at the world beyond the walls.

But step closer, and the beauty begins to twist.

The towers in the distance mirror the old gates of the prison. The balcony rails echo the bars of a cell. Hidden among the cliffs are faint, dark figures — silhouettes hanging in shadow. And in the centre of it all, a pencilled dragon curls unfinished, never coloured, never complete.

The artist was moved before he could finish it. And the reason why he was here — is far darker than the mural itself.

The painter was David McGreavy — known to history as the Monster of Worcester, or the Real Friday the 13th Killer.

McGreavy, who was 21 at the time, killed a nine-month-old baby, a four-year-old boy and a two-year-old girl on Friday April 13, 1973, while babysitting them in Worcester.

He was a lodger at the home of barmaid Elsie and hubby Clive Ralph, and babysat their kids Paul Ralph, four, Dawn, two, and nine-month-old Samantha, for two years without incident until the horrific murders.

On a quiet April night in 1973, 21-year-old McGreavy was left to babysit the three Ralph children while their parents, Clive and Elsie, were out. He had spent the evening drinking heavily at the Vauxhall pub and was known for his temper when drunk.

Sometime between 10 and 11 pm, McGreavy snapped. When baby Samantha began crying, he lost control. In less than an hour, he killed all three children. Eight-month-old Samantha died from a fractured skull, two-year-old Dawn's throat was slit, and four-year-old Paul was strangled. He then mutilated their bodies with a pickaxe and impaled them on a neighbour's iron fence.

McGreavy was caught a few hours later, walking two miles away and trying to hitch a lift out of Worcester. He confessed, telling officers, "It was me, but it wasn't me… All I could hear is kids, kids, kids."

He claimed he killed the children because one of them would not stop crying, and was sentenced to life for the murders in 1973.

He was sentenced to life imprisonment and spent 45 years behind bars, much of it in protective custody — including at Shepton Mallet, where he painted his haunting mural.

He was released on licence in 2019. The mural remains unfinished — a window to nowhere, painted by a man whose name became synonymous with horror.

The mural, unfinished, remains where he left it — its serene beauty forever stained by the horror of its creator.

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