THIS is the chilling moment tragic Ellie Butler's mum "got a kick" from using her acting skills to try to deceive cops after her partner murdered the six-year-old.

Former EastEnders actress Jennie Gray gave away tell-tale signs after faking a hysterical 999 call to help abusive Ben Butler cover up his gruesome crime.

9 This is the moment Ellie Butler's mum Jennie Gray 'gets a kick' from acting as she tries covering up her daughter's murder Credit: Faking It: Tears of a Crime/Investigation Discovery

Little Ellie was battered to death by the evil 38-year-old and suffered "catastrophic" head injuries just 11 months after she was returned to his care by social workers.

Gray, 37, was handed 42 months in prison for child cruelty and perverting the course of justice over the death of their daughter in 2013.

Body language experts have revealed how the mum used her acting skills to try to trick cops after she was arrested following Ellie's death.

In police interviews, Gray smiles as she shows how she gets a "kick out of her performance".

9 Ellie suffered a catalogue of injuries before death

9 Gray was jailed for 42 months for child cruelty and perverting the course of justice Credit: SWNS.com

9 Butler battered Ellie to death in October 2013 Credit: EPA

Chilling footage from Investigation Discovery's Faking It: Tears Of A Crime also shows her crying crocodile tears as speaks to detectives about Butler.

Weeping, she says: "If I ever had any reason to believe someone could do that to my child, I'd do everything against them."

The mum, who also had a part in The Bill, "almost takes a bow" after being congratulated by the police officer interviewing her.

Despite testing her acting skills to the maximum, Gray still refuses to use her daughter's name while being grilled by cops.

9 Gray cries crocodile tears while being interviewed about Butler Credit: Faking It: Tears of a Crime/Investigation Discovery

Body language expert Cliff Lansley says: "Her acting skills weren't strong enough to mask the duping delight - the kick she was getting from achieving sympathy and empathy apparently from the interviewer".

The experts also reveal how monster Butler, who abused Gray and his daughter, subconsciously admits to murdering Ellie with a tiny 3mm head tilt in his police interview.

When asked if she was hit with an object or struck against a wall or floor, he nods slightly at the last question.

Cliff Lansley said: "I’m pretty convinced the damage was created by contact with a hard surface of the floor. His body has told us that.”

9 Gray lied to protect her partner after he killed Ellie Credit: supplied by pixel 8000 ltd

Ellie Butler: Jury hears harrowing 999 call

The harrowing events leading to Ellie's death Ellie Butler was born in December 2006. In February 2007, she was rushed to hospital with brain injuries - her dad Ben Butler was accused of shaking her. In July 2007, a care order put Ellie in her grandparents' care. Ben Butler was then convicted for causing grievous bodily harm in 2009 and sentenced to 18 months in prison. But then in June 2010 the conviction was quashed. This led to Mrs Justice Hogg making a court order in October 2012 to return to Ellie to her parents' care. A year later, Ellie was found dead with 'catastrophic' injuries in October 2013. In June 2016, Ben Butler was found guilty of her murder and mum Jennie Gray was convicted of perverting the course of justice.

Ellie was placed in the care of her maternal grandparents Neal and Linda Gray as a baby after Butler was accused of shaking her.

But she was returned to her parents in 2012 after a ruling by Mrs Justice Hogg in the High Court's family division.

Butler battered Ellie to death at their family home in Sutton, South London, in October 2013 - 11 months after he got her back.

The couple's trial heard how Gray failed to get medical help for Ellie's injury - a fractured scapula - with the youngster suffering a string of abuse in the months leading to her death.

In a haunting 999 call played at Gray's 2016 trial, the mum can be heard shouting "it's my daughter, she's not breathing" after they both claimed she fell down the stairs.

Moment Ellie Butler's killer dad nods slightly when asked if he smashed daughter into the floor

9 Butler gives a slight nod when asked if Ellie was slammed into the floor Credit: Faking It: Tears of a Crime/Investigation Discovery

9 Ellie, six, was murdered by her cruel father just months after she was moved to his custody Credit: PA:Press Association

Ellie Butler's grandfather Neal Gray​ ​says authorities have 'blood on their hands'

The pair both yell at the operator and Butler can be heard counting as though doing CPR - despite Ellie already being dead for two hours.

When paramedics arrived, they discovered Ellie in her pyjamas "cold and blue" on her bedroom floor with a "boggy mass" on the back of her head.

Ellie suffered a series of injuries including a broken shoulder that was left untreated for a month before she died at her father’s hands.

Letters revealed to the jury showed how Gray pleaded to God for her "pure evil" partner to stop being "angry, hateful and violent".

9 John William Cooper, right, was given four life sentences for a series of grisly murders in Pembrokeshire Credit: Bullseye/ITV Challenge

She also criticised her daughter's behaviour in a 10-point list which included "lying, not doing as she's told" and "acting like a child prior to her years".

The show also explores the police footage of former Bullseye contestant John Cooper, who carried out two double murders in Pembrokeshire in the 1980s.

He murdered Richard Thomas, Helen Thomas and holidaymakers Peter and Gwenda Dixon in between episodes of the popular game show.

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Cooper infamously evaded justice for around two decades but was finally convicted using the most advanced forensic techniques of the time.

The experts explore how Cooper confesses to the crime with a nod of the head as he tries to worm his way out of the crime.

He was sentenced to a whole life jail term at Swansea Crown Court in May 2011 following an eight-week trial.

‘Faking It: Tears of a Crime’ airs Friday at 10pm on Investigation Discovery.