TV survival expert Ray Mears came within 20ft of catching killer Raoul Moat
The final episode of ITV's three-part series The Hunt for Raoul Moat ends tonight, showcasing the real-life search for killer Raoul Moat back in 2010.
In the last 13 years, many heartbreaking and captivating narratives have emerged about Britain's most famous manhunt, making it even more of a marker in history.
The link between TV survival expert Ray Mears and murderer Moat is one that many viewers may not know, but will be fascinated to discover.
In a new interview with the Telegraph, Ray has said the TV drama "brought back memories of an unforgettable experience" in his life and he is "glad" his skills helped.
The survival expert used his animal tracking skills to come within 20ft of Moat (Getty Images)Ray added: "It's a strange, ancient skill, tracking. I'll always be glad that on that unforgettable day in 2010 I could use it to help in a crisis."
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In July 2010, Moat, 37, was on the run after shooting his former partner Samantha Stobbart, killing her new boyfriend Chris Brown and blinding PC David Rathband.
Ray, who was a TV presenter and tracking expert, volunteered himself to the police force to help find the ex-convict who was on the loose in the North East.
He described the scene - with specialist police snipers, helicopters circling overhead and an RAF Tornado GR4 jet doing reconnaissance sorties - as like something "out of a Hollywood film set".
Ray says the ITV drama brings back 'unforgettable' memories of the search (Jeff Gilbert/REX/Shutterstock)
He was within his skill set but out of his comfort zone in the woodland (Getty Images)Ray went into the woods dressed in uniform, so the press wouldn't recognise him, wearing "body armour, ballistics glasses and a police cap".
He used his tracking skills and knowledge of nature, alongside the help of sniffer dogs, to lead officers into the woodland where the armed criminal was hiding.
At one point, Ray said he was within 20ft of the gunman, after tracking him for eight hours.
In 2013, he spoke out about Moat's hunt when he told local paper, the Gloucestershire Echo: "My concern was that people would think it was a publicity stunt.
"A lot of people claimed for some reason to have been there but I know, because I was there, that they were not. I have experience of tracking for 40 years.
Moat shot himself before Ray came face-to-face with the killer (PA)"I can't imagine there would be that many people in the country who would have been in a position to help the police find someone who had gone into hiding.
"It was a real-life hunt; within my skill set but outside of my comfort zone."
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Ray did not come face-to-face with Moat, as the criminal emerged and shot himself while the tracking specialist was having a briefing on July 10.
But Moat was just a stone's throw away from the boathouse, where Ray had found fresh footprints inside.
Ray explained to the Telegraph that Moat told officers in the negotiation "he'd been visited that day by a police dog".
He added: "To this day I think he was close when we arrived, maybe even escaping the boathouse from the far side."
ITV drama The Hunt for Raoul Moat continues tonight at 9pm
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