Come and join me, Ulrike, on my tour through Whitechapel to discover the other side of the Jack the Ripper story. And no, this isn’t just another London Jack the Ripper Tour. Those Whitechapel murders – this Jack the Ripper crime scene, that Jack the Ripper chamber of horrors – that’s the background; this Jack the Ripper Walk shines a different light on what happened in the East End of London in the autumn of 1888.
There are no murders without victims, and before they were victims, “the Five” were women with lives more difficult than we can imagine.
I am going to introduce you to these five women. I’m not going to talk about their deaths. I’m going to talk about their lives. The tragic turns and decisions in their lives that led them to “the prototype of hell” – Whitechapel and Spitalfields in the 1880s.
Jack London called the Victorian East End of London the Abyss, the pit of hell, once you fell in, there was no way out. It was an area of squalor and destitution at an unimaginable level.
Come with me and meet Polly…
And Annie…
And Elizabeth…
And Kate…
And Mary Jane…
See where they existed. The streets and alleyways they knew.
Where things closed in on them. See and imagine what it felt like to be lost, forgotten, out at the edge – on the very margin of the richest society on eath. Where despair was writ in the very fabric of their surroundings. And imagine how brave they must have been trying to keep it at bay. Their lives mirrored those of millions of other Victorian women. Let’s give them a face, a voice and let us not define them only by their deaths.
Fiona –
Ulrike’s walk Women on the Abyss was a real surprise, an insight into the lives of these women so overlooked by the gruesome stories of their murder. Ulrike has the rare ability to bring them to life and feel what it might have been like to have lived those unlucky lives with compassion and a thorough knowledge of the sources.
Lizzie Barney –
Women of the Abyss – what a walk, the second I have taken with Ulrike. These doomed women were brought back to life & we heard how brutal their lives were . The laws of the day & how something as simple as a farewell kiss sealed their fate. Riveting
Samantha Dawson –
Really enjoyed our Women of the Abyss walk yesterday with Ulrike. It’s a fascinating subject, the conditions and squalor of life in the East End for the poor of the Victorian age was really brought to life and Ulrike’s passion for the subject shone through. The two hour walk flew by so quickly and it was such a lovely way to spend our Sunday morning.
Carol Green –
Today I walked with Ulrike on her Victims of the Abyss Tour. I’ve always been impressed with Ulrike’s knowledge and passion for her subject. Whatever the walk, if Ulrike is your guide don’t hesitate, a great time is guaranteed.
Rob Smith & Maria Long –
Ulrike gave a fantastic walk that brought the lives of these women to light. She’s an interesting and compelling story-teller and the walk itself is a fascinating cultural study of a different part of London in a different time.
Linda and Carl –
We really enjoyed the walk and the narrative given by the guide, Ulrike.
Monica Benson –
What a perfect way of spending a beautiful spring morning! Strolling through the streets of London in the company of an incredibly warm And engaging person, who is able to bring the past to life. Ulrike is knowledgeable and entertaining, and what’s more, she really interacts with her group. We were soon all on good terms and were able to ask questions and make comments. I would always recommend any walk she leads.
Monica Benson –
What a perfect way of spending a beautiful spring morning! Strolling through the streets of London in the company of an incredibly warm and engaging person, who is able to bring past to life. Ulrike is knowledgeable and entertaining, and what’s more, she interacts with her group. We were soon all on really good terms and were able to ask questions and make comments. I would always recommend any walk she leads.
Monica Benson
João Borges da Cunha –
Ulrike is the perfect narrator. Ulrike is the most compelling storyteller. She is something further than a guide. She is much more than someone you will meet for a bunch of information and small talk. She is a very articulated lecturer who will not only fulfill your curiosity about the past and the dead, but will make you travel back in space and time, into a world you will never forget. In such an extent that you might never come back. I went with her to the precious walk “ Women of the Abyss – the Victims of Jack the Ripper” and I tell you, everything changed in my mind about the Ripper case. Above all, about his overlooked victims. And I’ve learned so much from Ulrike. Do you now why do you say a “hungover” after a night of taking something much more exquisite than twenty glasses of water? Do you know what a “jolly disposition” is? Come along with accurate Ulrike in her walks, a lifelong memory. Y.M. the King, here is a Dame. Let’s do it.
Vicky Cole –
Excellent walk and guide Ulrike. A different insight to the usual Jack the Ripper narrative, with great detail about the varied and interesting lives of the women and how they came to be living in Whitechapel. Focusing on their lives and not the manner of their deaths. A must for anyone interested in the social history of the Victorian East End and in particular the women who endured its grim conditions. All very well told and interestingly presented by Ulrike.