Stephen West grew up in the infamous ‘house of horrors’ where his dad was responsible for at least 12 murders over two decades, often with Rose’s help
Rose West was imprisoned for life(Image: PA Archive/Press Association Images)
The son of notorious serial killer Rose West is set to marry his fiancé Emma Bradley in August at the Celtic Manor hotel in Newport. Stephen West and his soon-to-be wife Emma have also recently welcomed their new daughter Eden into the world.
Rose West, 71, is serving a life sentence and will not meet her granddaughter after Stephen severed ties with his mother. He and former Glamour model Emma have since forged a relationship.
Stephen’s father, Fred West, was a serial killer responsible for at least 12 murders over two decades, often with the help of Rose, before his death in prison in 1995. Never miss a Newport story by subscribing to our newsletter here.
Stephen, who spent his childhood in the infamous ‘house of horrors’ in Gloucester, previously acknowledged a dark similarity to his father, saying: “There’s a bit of my dad in me.”
Rose West, having nearly completed three decades in jail, reportedly gave up on appealing her conviction in 2001 and seems to accept her fate of dying in prison.
Emma, now a qualified nurse at Gloucester Royal Hospital, has two daughters from a previous relationship.
Following news of Rose’s deteriorating health and her transfer to a disability-adapted cell in prison “because she can barely walk”, Emma revealed that both she and her partner were oblivious to the situation as they had severed ties.
She did, however, acknowledge that she and Stephen, who live together in Abbeymead, Gloucester, watched the recent Netflix series, Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story. Emma said her fiancé “doesn’t want to say anything because his main priority is the little ones.”
She added: “He is adamant, at this time of his life he’s got a young family to protect.”
Stephen, 51, now a grandfather, has been previously married twice and has a total of eight children.
The wedding will be Stephen West’s third marriage(Image: PA)
A source recently shed light on Rose’s daily life in prison. Speaking to The Sun, they said: “She never really leaves the wing she’s held on and is escorted all the time by prison officers if she goes anywhere. Sometimes she sits in the communal areas on her own.
“No-one talks to her because everyone knows who she is and what she did, even if she has changed her name. When I was there, she tried to make friends with the other women and gave them gifts, like vapes, but she was rejected. She enjoys watching nature documentaries on the TV in her cell, particularly those about birds.”
In an attempt to dissociate from her heinous past, West reportedly spent £36 to legally alter her identity to Jennifer Jones. It’s believed she executed the name change by deed poll in December, 2024, confiding to acquaintances that it signified her journey forward.
Fred and Rose West(Image: SWNS.com)
Yet, in HMP New Hall near Wakefield in West Yorkshire, her true identity remains common knowledge.
She is claimed to frequently eat tomato soup by herself in her cell for breakfast. She then spends the bulk of her day within her cell, knitting and watching television due to her limited mobility.
West is currently detained in a specialised section of New Hall called Rivendell House, where 30 inmates are each provided with an en-suite cell and a laptop. This laptop can be used to order food, and the shared spaces are reportedly “more inviting” than other areas of the prison, as noted in inspection reports.
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