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Considering he who's forfeited approximately 40 years of his life as a result of a crime he was innocent of, Peter Sullivan projects a remarkably optimistic outlook.

When I met him last month, for what was his initial media appearance since being freed from prison in May, he was cheerful and looking forward to getting to Anfield to watch Liverpool play for the initial occasion since he was detained in 1986.

That was the year of the sexual attack murder of Diane Sindall in his local community of Birkenhead - an incident he said he had limited information regarding because someone spoke to him in a pub at the time and said, "allegedly there's been a murder".

When he was sentenced the following year at Liverpool Crown Court - he was sentenced to a indefinite period in some of Britain's most secure category A prisons where he would be hounded by his tabloid nicknames "Birkenhead's Monster", "Merseyside Killer" and "Nocturnal Predator".

Adjusting to a Digital World

Prior to our discussion, he was full of stories about how since his exoneration he has had to adapt to a fundamentally altered world.

When he was arrested, Margaret Thatcher was in Downing Street, the concept of the internet and Europe was still divided by the Iron Curtain.

He explained watching the demolition of the Berlin Wall from a communal television in prison.

Mr Sullivan described how trips to the shops now show how "the world has transformed" - from trying to work out how self-checkouts work to realising that "in place of having a cheque book, you've got it on your phone".

Modern Surprises

His imprisonment means he has been unaware of the way so many elements of everyday life have evolved - comparable to someone who has been in hibernation since the 1980s.

"Having endured so long in prison and learning there's no DHSS [Department of Health and Social Security, now the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)] where you can pick up your money - you're thinking, 'Goodness, what's going on here?'"

He now has a mobile device, after finding out doctor's appointments need to be arranged on something he now knows is called an 'application'.

He first became familiar with them when he was traveling on a bus shortly after his freedom and saw people operating smartphones. He only recognized they were phones when he saw someone put one to their ear.

Psychological Impact

Mr Sullivan's 14,000 days in prison have also led to an predictable sense of prison conditioning.

He described how after his freedom, one morning in his flat he returned to his bedroom and positioned himself on his bed, because he was subconsciously waiting for a prison officer to come and confine him into his cell.

"You've got to be at your door at a specific hour, otherwise the officers will go off at you", he said.

"I found myself thinking, 'What am I doing?'"

Demanding Answers

But Mr Sullivan's positivity is tempered by a desire for answers about how he came to be charged with an infamous murder that he was innocent of, and a perplexity about why he still has not had an apology.

"Everything is gone", he said.

"I lost all my freedom, I lost my mother since I've been in prison, I've lost my father.

"It pains me because I wasn't there for them", he said.

"I can't carry on with my life if I can't get an response off them."

"My only request, an apology [and to understand] the cause behind they've done this to me", he said.

Police Position

Merseyside Police said "limited value to be gained for a review of this matter today" because of "developments to investigative techniques and progress in the law over the last 40 years".

The force did refer some of Mr Sullivan's claims to the police regulatory agency, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), who will now examine his claims that officers physically abused him and threatened to link him to other crimes if he refused to admit to Diane Sindall's murder.

When asked if it would issue an apology, the force did not directly answer the question, but as part of a comprehensive declaration it said: "The force acknowledges that there has been a significant injustice of justice in this case".

Future Prospects

Mr Sullivan explained about his basic aspiration - an ambition that he said he had given up of being able to achieve at some points over his almost forty years behind bars.

"My only desire to do now is proceed with my own life and progress as I was before, and enjoy my remaining years now".

His life ahead may be made easier by government financial payment, paid to individuals affected of wrongful convictions.

This program is restricted at £1.3m, a cap which it is believed his resulting award will get very approach.

But the procedure is not guaranteed, and it is lengthy.

Andrew Malkinson, whose sentence for a rape he was innocent of was quashed in 2023, was only granted an provisional award earlier this year.

Convicted criminals who admit to their crimes and are released get a accommodation and some assistance for living expenses. Mr Sullivan, as an wrongly convicted individual, is not eligible for that help.

And so he is surviving a simple existence, with his humble goals - although many believe he is a millionaire in waiting.

His legal representative, Sarah Myatt, said "no amount that you could say that would be enough for sacrificing 38 years of your life".