Body On The Beach: What Happened To Blessing Olusegun is the new MTV documentary investigating the unexplained death of Blessing Olusegun. The new one-off episode aired last night (Wednesday 17 August) and hopes to shed light on Blessing’s unexplained death, something that her friends and family are still campaigning for answers on.

In September 2020, Blessing was found on Bexhill seafront with her shoes and phone near her. The 21-year-old’s body was wet and the tide was out when her body was found by a local dog walker.

The business student, who was originally from south-east London, had been on placement as a carer in Bexhill, East Sussex, at the time of her death.

The case came to a legal close this May when a coroner ruled that she died as a result of an accident. The subsequent post-mortem examination concluded that she had drowned. The inquest, which took place in Hastings over the course of one day, heard that Blessing couldn’t swim, and her mother said she would not have gone into the sea intentionally because of that. 

The family has campaigned for further investigation into the death, but police say that the death is regarded as as “non-suspicious” as there was “no evidence of a crime”, something campaigners have criticised Sussex police for. Due to the gap of unaccounted time between when Blessing was last seen and the time her body was discovered, there is still an element of mystery that surrounds this case.

The recent MTV documentary is hoping to shed some light on it all, as well as the downfalls of the police investigation. As the synopsis reads: “In September 2020, the body of 21-year-old Blessing Olusegun was found on a beach in Bexhill-on-Sea. No one knew how or why this young Black woman had died. Since that day, her mother and friends have been fighting to find out what happened to Blessing.

“With the case shrouded in mystery and social media alight with accusations of a flawed investigation, racism and unconscious bias, will the truth ever be known? In this investigative documentary, almost two years in the making, MTV correspondent Linda Adey joins Blessing Olusegun’s family and friends as they search for answers.” 

Blessing was last seen on CCTV around 1am on 18 September 2020 and in the footage, she was seen walking towards the beach. This was the last time that she was seen alive; at 6.20am the same morning, her body was discovered on the beach.

At 1.24am, she texted her mother, Esther Abe, to say, “I love you,” and then sent her bank pin code to Mrs Abe as she was due to use the card that day, the May 2022 inquest heard.

Mrs Abe’s statement added: “I know my daughter and I know how she was at that time. She had difficulties with her mental health but she was better. I completely do not believe she meant to harm herself on the beach. I think it could either be an accident or third-party involvement.” 

The mystery and confusion that surrounds this case has long been spoken about on social media and people are already praising the new MTV documentary for covering Blessing’s death and are thankful that the case is finally getting the coverage it deserves. 

People are hoping that the documentary not only sheds some more light on Blessing’s death, but also provides some answers. 

It will not only be an informative watch, but also a deeply emotional one. 

And more than anything, the new documentary has worked alongside Blessing’s family and friends in their campaign for more answers. 

Body On The Beach: What Happened To Blessing airs tonight (Wednesday 17 August) on MTV UK at 10pm. 

Images: MTV UK