John Hunt relives horror as killer ex murdered wife and two daughters in calculated home rampage

It was an ordinary July evening when John Hunt’s world collapsed in the most unthinkable way. The BBC racing commentator has spoken for the first time about the moment his family was stolen from him in a cold-blooded crossbow and knife attack that shocked the nation.

His wife Carol, 61, and daughters Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28, were brutally murdered in their own home by 26-year-old Kyle Clifford, Louise’s ex-partner, in what police describe as a “premeditated and barbaric” ambush.

Nearly a year on, Hunt, 56, is trying to navigate the silence left behind. Speaking with painful honesty in an emotional BBC interview, he revealed how he talks to his family every single day—desperately trying to hold onto the voices that once filled his home.

“From the moment I wake up, I say good morning to each of them… As I close my eyes at night, I chat to them,” he said softly, grief carved into every word.

The horror began when Clifford—who had previously shown no violent behaviour—entered the family’s Bushey home on a summer evening in 2024. He stabbed Carol Hunt to death, then lay in wait for Louise. When she returned, the court heard, Clifford raped and murdered her with a crossbow, the same one later used to kill Hannah as she arrived home from work.

In her final moments, Hannah dialled 999 and contacted her boyfriend, a heroic act that likely saved lives and allowed police to apprehend Clifford before further carnage.

But Clifford refused to face the court. He declined to attend his sentencing, robbing the Hunts of any opportunity to look him in the eye or confront him with the pain he caused. For John and his surviving daughter Amy, this added a fresh layer of trauma.

Amy, now the only child left, is determined to honour her sister and mother’s memory. She refuses to let them become another footnote in Britain’s long, grim tale of domestic abuse.

“We’re not going to let this end with statistics. We are breathing life back into their stories,” she said defiantly.

The family has also voiced deep frustration with the justice system, which they say bends over backwards for killers while leaving victims to suffer in silence.

“Once again, the rights of the perpetrator came before the innocent,” Hunt said. “We lost everything. He couldn’t even show his face.”

The case has reignited calls for tougher measures to protect victims of domestic violence and ensure grieving families aren’t left to pick up the pieces alone. With crossbow laws under renewed scrutiny, many are now asking how Clifford was able to obtain such a lethal weapon undetected.

“I get to live. Hannah gave me that, and I’ve got to treat it as a gift from her,” Hunt said, his voice breaking.

But the haunting truth remains: nothing will bring them back. A mother and two daughters were slaughtered in their own home—robbed of futures, laughter, and each other.

For John and Amy, every day is a reminder of what was stolen. But with courage and unflinching resolve, they are turning their agony into a call for change—one they hope Britain finally listens to.

Because, as John says, “This can’t happen again.”