I Fought The Law: What happened to Charlie Ming, Ann Ming’s husband?

ITV’s I Fought the Law is the drama that everyone is obsessed with right now – the four-part true crime series follows Ann Ming (played by none other than Sheridan Smith) as she battles the double jeopardy law which initially prevented her daughter’s murderer from going to prison.

Julie Hogg was murdered by William ‘Billy’ Dunlop in November 1989, with Ann herself later discovering her daughter Julie Hogg’s mutilated body hidden under a bath panel, following a series of police failings. Dunlop was acquitted by a jury for the murder, but he later told a police officer when he was in prison for attacking another woman that he had committed the crime, but was protected by the quirk of the double jeopardy law.

In I Fought The Law, viewers see how Ann’s determination saw her take on the police, and later the government, to ensure Julie got justice. By her side during these difficult and arduous few years was her husband, Charlie, who often attended court hearings alongside Ann.

So what happened to Charlie, who was Ann’s rock during this time? Cosmopolitan UK explores.

Where is Charlie Ming now?

Ann and Charlie’s relationship had previously faced adversity; Charlie was of Chinese descent, and the Ming family was the only Chinese mixed-race family in their local area, resulting in Ann being more protective of her brood.

In I Fought the Law: The Ann Ming Story, Ann describes how some neighbours made racist remarks whenever Charlie had friends or relatives around.

Despite comments from onlookers, Ann and Charlie were strong – the pair shared a son and two daughters (Julie was their middle child).

When Ann first reported Julie missing in November 1989, the police initially held the belief that Julie may have simply ran away. In an interview with The Telegraph, Ann adds that even Charlie was starting to believe what the authorities were saying.

“Charlie said to me, ‘Do you think she has gone off? They’ll charge her with wasting police time if she has,’” she recalls.

However, it was Ann herself who found Julie’s body, which had been hidden behind a bath panel in her own home. This was despite police officers initially searching Julie’s house when she initially was reported missing.

While Dunlop was acquitted during the 1991 trial due to lack of evidence, he later told a police officer when serving a seven-year sentence (for attacking another woman) that he had killed Julie Hogg. However, because the double jeopardy law meant that someone who has been acquitted of a crime can’t be retried, courts could only send Dunlop to prison for perjury (lying to court). This led to Ann to begin her campaign to change the double jeopardy law.

Charlie stood by Ann’s side as she contacted MPs and the media to keep her campaign alive, however, as seen in I Fought The Law, Ann’s mission for justice meant that there was often tension at home. In 2003, the double jeopardy law was altered to allow retrials in serious cases if new and compelling evidence came to light. This legal reform opened the door to a new trial for Dunlop and in 2006, he was convicted for Julie’s murder and sentenced to life in prison with a minimum term of 17 years. When the news was announced at The Old Bailey, Charlie was by Ann's side.

However, Charlie’s health was beginning to deteriorate, having been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. During his more frail years, Ann nursed her husband, before he passed away in 2013, aged 88. He had his funeral service at Teesside Crematorium.

Ann, now nearly 80, has since met a new partner who she has opted not to publicly name. “He lost his wife just after Charlie, and we’ve known each other 29 years,” she told The Telegraph. “He wants to get married. And I’ve said, ‘No, no, I don’t get why we’d get married!’ But he’s lovely, he really is.”

Who plays Charlie Ming in I Fought The Law?

Daniel York Loh plays Charlie in the series, opposite Sheridan Smith who plays Ann.

Kimberley Bond

Multiplatform Writer

Kimberley Bond is a Multiplatform Writer for Harper’s Bazaar, focusing on the arts, culture, careers and lifestyle. She previously worked as a Features Writer for Cosmopolitan UK, and has bylines at The Telegraph, The Independent and British Vogue among countless others.