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The Specialist: How to clean a crime scene and other messes
The breathtaking, unputdownable insider account of Britain's most hidden profession
What happens after the police tape comes down?
Ben Giles has spent thirty years cleaning what most people can't bear to imagine. Dead bodies decomposing for weeks. Kitchen floors painted with blood. Hoarders' homes where the filth tells stories of unimaginable loneliness. A whale carcass lodged on a cargo ship. This is the Britain you never see – until someone needs to make it disappear.
Starting with nothing but a bucket of Dettol and a can-do attitude, Giles built the UK's leading biohazard cleaning network. From industrial spillages to animal remains, he's faced horrors that would break most people – and taught hundreds of people to do the same, in full hazmat gear. Yet threaded through the gore and dark humour is something profound compassion for the lives interrupted, the families destroyed, and the deaths that society prefers to forget.
The Specialist takes you behind the scenes of suicides, murders, and tragic accidents — revealing not just which chemicals remove bloodstains, and how, but what violence, neglect, and loss actually look like when the rest of us can only look away. It's unflinching, occasionally hilarious, and utterly unforgettable.
What happens after the police tape comes down?
Ben Giles has spent thirty years cleaning what most people can't bear to imagine. Dead bodies decomposing for weeks. Kitchen floors painted with blood. Hoarders' homes where the filth tells stories of unimaginable loneliness. A whale carcass lodged on a cargo ship. This is the Britain you never see – until someone needs to make it disappear.
Starting with nothing but a bucket of Dettol and a can-do attitude, Giles built the UK's leading biohazard cleaning network. From industrial spillages to animal remains, he's faced horrors that would break most people – and taught hundreds of people to do the same, in full hazmat gear. Yet threaded through the gore and dark humour is something profound compassion for the lives interrupted, the families destroyed, and the deaths that society prefers to forget.
The Specialist takes you behind the scenes of suicides, murders, and tragic accidents — revealing not just which chemicals remove bloodstains, and how, but what violence, neglect, and loss actually look like when the rest of us can only look away. It's unflinching, occasionally hilarious, and utterly unforgettable.
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Published May 21, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
July 13, 2026
This was a fascinating read. I was enthralled from start to finish. I don’t k ow why but crime scene cleaning is such a perplexing and fascinating thing to me. It is so out of the realm to people outside of the industry. This is what makes this such an interesting read because how do you land into this industry, the why and how.
The stories that Giles has included here are so varied that you can’t help but be dragged into them. I mean how often do you read about how to clean up a whale carcass? How often has one thought about how and why chandeliers have that yellow tinge to them… and then how to remove that yellow tinge.
The stories that Giles has included here are so varied that you can’t help but be dragged into them. I mean how often do you read about how to clean up a whale carcass? How often has one thought about how and why chandeliers have that yellow tinge to them… and then how to remove that yellow tinge.
June 8, 2026
This was a very interesting read. Gave lots of insight into how biohazards such as crime scenes, homes of hoarders and fly tipping, are cleared away. They even discussed how they had to carefully handle a whale carcass. This book was full of different stories, including clean ups you may never have thought of. It also wasn’t too graphic making it a pretty enjoyable read.
June 4, 2026
Fantastic little book that delves into the weird unknown world of crime scene cleaning. Highly recommend.
July 3, 2026
Extremely fascinating and definitely felt grossed out at various moments but it will still so intriguing. Definitely not for someone with a weak stomach.
July 12, 2026
My type of book! Very interesting and entertaining.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews