Murder victim's sister issues message to acquitted Amanda Knox as she plans comedy show about arrest

Amanda Knox’s upcoming one-woman comedy show about her experience of being found guilty (and later acquitted) of her roommate’s murder, named after a popular public myth that she cartwheeled in the police station after her death, has come under fire from the victim’s family.

In 2007 Amanda Knox made international news after she and her then-boyfriend were arrested and later found guilty of the murder of Meredith Kercher, her roommate in Italy who was found stabbed to death. She was eventually acquitted of this in 2015 after a series of back-and-forth decisions, but not before the alleged crime became worldwide news.

Another man, Rudy Guede, was convicted of the killing and has since been released from prison, though he denies carrying out the murder.

Amanda Knox has since announced that she is set to perform a one-woman show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival called Cartwheel. This is based on a widely publicised story claiming that she cartwheeled in the police station after her roommates death, a claim she denies.

The show has already been criticised for being in poor taste, however now Kercher’s sister Stephanie Kercher has spoken out on BBC Breakfast to criticise Knox.

Stephanie, Kercher’s sister issued a direct message to Knox in the interview about her new solo comedy show

Stephanie appeared on BBC Breakfast to discuss Cartwheel and said in a direct statement: “What I would say [to Knox] is to think about the family here, think about her friends and to turn the tables if it was your sister that this had happened to, because I know you have a sister as well."

She continued by calling on Andy Burnham to intervene, adding: “I think that if it was a generic theme, as many comedy shows are, even when they're pushing the boundaries, it would be different.

"Because this is associated with an individual case and individual person, I think that's where the worry lies here for me, because who else is this going to then open up this opportunity for."

The murder victim’s sister spoke out after Knox claimed in a new interview that she thinks her roommate would have found her show funny.

Knox said that the show does not mock Kercher, but the resulting situation, a claim that Stephanie slammed

The American, who is now 39-years-old, responded to criticism in an interview with The Telegraph: “I don't joke about Meredith's death. I joke a lot about how I was vilified, but I don't joke about her murder.”

When asked if her roommate would’ve found it funny, she said: “Yeah, I think so. I mean, it is funny!"

This is part of what caused Stephanie to appear on BBC Breakfast, telling the hosts: “Meredith absolutely wouldn't find these topics of any comedy value.

"Our family's pain is immense. I can't explain to you how much pain our family have been through, and also we're talking two decades later now, this pain."

Knox released a statement on Instagram after a petition started by a friend of Meredith received 1,000s of signatures, saying that it ‘mischaracterized’ her show.

She added: “Cartwheel honours Meredith Kercher's memory and calls out the violence that was done to her and me.

"Many of the Fringe's most celebrated comedy shows tackle difficult subjects including grief, trauma, mental health, addiction, illness, identity and politics.”