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.
Jo Lloyd –
What a brilliant walk. Ulrike is a great guide and told a compelling and moving story about the victims of Jack the Ripper with great humanity and warmth. If you want to ‘do a Ripper walk’, do this one. It very rightly changes the narrative.
shachar –
very interesting tour. a new look at the ripper story/ ulrike was a great guide and we enjoyed it very much
Viv Pyner –
What a super walk, even in the near freezing conditions we experienced today. Ulrike is an expert guide and we all learnt many facts about the unfortunate women who were murdered by Jack the Ripper. It is a very welcome addition to the catalogue of walks offered by London Walks, and it was great to meet Ulrike again who remembered me from her Seven Deadly Sins. I can heartily recommend this walk, well worth going on, even if it is freezing.
Mike S. –
This was an absolutely outstanding experience! On a rainy Sunday morning, only two of us turned up for this walk, which meant that we had Ulrike’s undivided attention. We learned so much about the ways in which the victims of Jack the Ripper were misrepresented in the press. It was fascinating to hear their life histories – Ulrike is a great story teller and the two hours seemed to go by in a flash. We’ve been on several of the London Walks and have thoroughly enjoyed all of them. A tip – for £5, you can buy a six month ticket which gives you £5 off every subsequent walk that you do.
Rosy Danby –
Very interesting. An insight into the horrors of life for the poorest women in the east end of London in the 1880’s. Not a barrel of fun but thought provoking. Thank you Ulrike.
Laura Hayden –
What a different but highly informative view of the Ripper story, looking closely at his victims and the misinformation often perpetrated about them. Ulrike presented the plight of these women well, explaining the realities of the Victorian age and how the deck was stacked against these women who became the Ripper’s targets. I appreciate her appropriately detailed insight into their lives. All in all, an excellent walk. Highly recommended to anyone who wants to learn about the lives of the real people of that age and circumstances.
Sachdev Family –
Take this tour without hesitation. Ulrike does and values her research and always gives due credit to her sources. Her expert story-telling will mentally transport you back in time as you walk the streets and alleys of London.
Caroline Latham –
This is an important issue for the modern world, giving back to the victims of Jack the Ripper their humanity and I really enjoyed the tour. Ulrike is very knowledgeable. It is a great counterbalance to the many Jack the Ripper tours.
Mary Chadwick –
Women of the Abyss is a fascinating tour. It tells you about the lives of the Ripper’s victims and allows you to see them as real people in their own right. It seems they were all in the wrong place at the wrong time. The times they lived in are hardly imaginable to us today, but Ulrike brings each woman to life. I would definitely recommend this tour that highlights the times when the British Empire was at its most powerful, yet failed its people in their homeland.
Leah –
I took ,my first ever , tour today.
Women of the Abyss – is a tour shedding lights on the life and circumstances of the five victims of Jack the Ripper. Ulrike is such a great storyteller engaging and knowledgeable.
I really enjoyed the tour and would highly recommend.