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Considering he who's sacrificed approximately 40 years of his life because of a crime he didn't commit, Peter Sullivan strikes a surprisingly optimistic tone.

In our conversation last month, for what was his first interview since being freed from prison in May, he was enthusiastic and excited about getting to Anfield to watch Liverpool play for the initial occasion since he was taken into custody in 1986.

That was the year of the sexual attack murder of Diane Sindall in his home town of Birkenhead - an event he said he was merely aware of because someone approached him in a pub at the time and said, "reportedly there's been a murder".

When he was sentenced the following year at Liverpool Crown Court - he was destined to a extended term in some of Britain's toughest category A prisons where he would be persecuted by his tabloid nicknames "The Beast of Birkenhead", "River Mersey Murderer" and "The Wolfman".

Adjusting to a Digital World

Prior to our discussion, he was rich with anecdotes about how since his freedom he has had to adapt to a completely different world.

When he was arrested, Margaret Thatcher was in Downing Street, no one had heard of the internet and Europe was still partitioned by the Iron Curtain.

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

Mr Sullivan told me how trips to the shops now show how "everything's changed" - from trying to work out how self-checkouts work to realising that "rather than having a cheque book, you've got it on your phone".

Digital Surprises

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

"After spending 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 collect your money - you're thinking, 'Wow, what's going on here?'"

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

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

Mental Effects

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

He remembered how after his release, one morning in his flat he walked back to his bedroom and positioned himself on his bed, because he was subconsciously waiting for a prison officer to come and lock him back into his cell.

"You must be at your door at a certain time, otherwise the officers will yell at you", he said.

"I found myself thinking, 'Why am I here?'"

Desiring Closure

But Mr Sullivan's positivity is balanced by a desire for answers about how he ended up being charged with an notorious murder that he had no part in, and a perplexity about why he still has not had an admission of error.

"Everything is gone", he said.

"My liberty was taken, I lost my mother since I've been in prison, I've lost my father.

"It hurts because I couldn't be present for them", he said.

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

"The sole thing I need, an apology [and to understand] the reason why they've done this to me", he said.

Authorities Position

Merseyside Police said "there would be little benefit to be gained for a review of this matter today" because of "advancements to investigative techniques and developments in the law over the last 40 years".

The force did refer some of Mr Sullivan's allegations to the police watchdog, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), who will now investigate his claims that officers beat him up and threatened to link him to other crimes if he failed to confess to Diane Sindall's murder.

When asked if it would apologise, the force did not clearly address the question, but as part of a detailed response it said: "The force recognizes that there has been a serious failure of justice in this case".

Future Prospects

Mr Sullivan told me about his basic aspiration - an ambition that he said he had given up of being able to realise at some points over his nearly four decades behind bars.

"My only desire to do now is continue with my own life and move forward as I was before, and experience freedom now".

His life ahead may be made less challenging by government financial payment, paid to victims of miscarriages of justice.

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

But the system is not immediate, and it is lengthy.

Andrew Malkinson, whose sentence for a rape he was innocent of was overturned in 2023, was only awarded an interim compensation payout earlier this year.

Admitted offenders who acknowledge their crimes and are released get a place to live and some support regarding living expenses. Mr Sullivan, as an exonerated person, is not eligible for that help.

And so he is surviving a simple existence, with his basic aspirations - although many think he is a millionaire in waiting.

His attorney, Sarah Myatt, said "no sum that you could say that would be adequate for losing 38 years of your life".