IPSWICH Crown Court was immersed in the biggest case of its history when the trial of the man accused of the red-light killings got under way.Months of preparation and careful planning swung into gear as court staff braced themselves for an influx of local and national media, as well as some from abroad.

Grant Sherlock

IPSWICH Crown Court was immersed in the biggest case of its history when the trial of the man accused of the red-light killings got under way.

Months of preparation and careful planning swung into gear as court staff braced themselves for an influx of local and national media, as well as some from abroad.

French journalists mingled with their counterparts from Norway while newspaper reporters from various titles chatted with their chums from the worlds of radio and TV.

The barriers which had been in place over the weekend should have been an indicator to passers-by that this wasn't an average case to be held at the court.

With five muders alleged, and five young women the victims, the international interest was immense.

Two choppers flew overhead and a cameraman sat perched atop a cherry picker watching proceedings from his lofty position.

Sky News took the biscuit though, having displayed impressive planning by organising the construction of a special platform on the roof of the nearby Berkeley Business Centre - a position which gave an unrivalled view over the media circus below.

Inside the court building, journalists arrived to collect tickets for either the main courtroom or an annexe which has been created in another court to accommodate the large numbers of reporters covering the case. They had been told to arrive early to avoid the queues.

After collecting their tickets, they were left to wait until after 11am when proceedings got under way.

Police stood guard both outside the court's main entrance and outside the doors of courtroom one, checking the credentials of all those who entered.

Those outside wore high-visibility jackets and watched as the media captured every moment around the court from an enclosure formed by barriers a few metres from the court entrance.

Those journalists in the annexe watched proceedings throughout the day via a videolink. Those chosen to be in the main court watched as Wright was brought into the court, getting the first glimpse of him in Ipswich since the court appearance when he entered not guilty pleas on each of the five murder counts in May last year.

Outside the court during breaks in the hearings, reporters filled seats which usually sit empty in the open spaces.

Steve Wright's father Conrad and his half-brother Keith remained in the court throughout the day. They watched proceedings from the annexe instead of the main courtroom.