two thirds of Brits read true crime as Criminal Psychologist reveals why we are so intrigued by crime

LONDON, May 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- From notorious criminals to high profile robberies and real-life horrors, interest in true crime is high with 74 percent of people choosing to read the category as it records the highest average reading times across several genres on the Readly app.

When it comes to the nature of crimes people follow, 47 percent read high profile crimes with major twists, 41 percent chose to read about notorious serial killers that were eventually unmasked and 35 percent are gripped by criminals who lead double lives.

A third (32 percent) are captivated by disappearances with no trace and 31 percent are intrigued by reading up on wrongful convictions, showed the research by Readly digital magazine and newspaper app.

Interest in the category appears to be due to the psychological and mysterious nature of the reports. 61 percent of people said they read to understand criminal minds and the psychological aspect and 53 percent enjoy the mystery involved in solving cases. For others, it's fuelling the inner detective and justice, with 40 percent reading true crime for the desire for justice and exposing wrongful convictions and 39 percent reading due to the real-world stakes.

"There are crimes throughout history that have the power to impact every one of us personally, threatening our fundamental sense of safety, whether we recognise it or not. Year after year, stories of real people as victims and offenders and real consequences activate our emotional response and foster a strong emotional connection with the victim and their families.

"Our fascination with true crime and the horror of the stories, is essentially a way of reminding us that we're not as civilised and safe as we may think and this destabilizing of people is a reminder that we have to find a way of dealing with the sense of threat and fears. For some people, when they solve a 'whodunnit', they are actually reassuring themselves that they are clever enough that they would never get caught out. Other people want to know every detail of how a particularly notorious serial killer operated as their way of dealing with the fear these crimes generate.