East End ghouls
Jack the Ripper's mystery lingers a century later
Story and photos by CNN Interactive Associate Producer Jenna Milly
LONDON (CNN) -- He crept through the streets and across the cobblestones making silence the most terrifying sound of the night. Generally believed to have killed at least five East End prostitutes in 1888, Jack the Ripper sliced through London's darkness in anonymity.
More than 100 years later, the identity of the killer -- even the extent of his crimes -- is still a mystery, an eerie mainstay of London lore.
Modern day bloodhounds mark the Ripper trail
Amateur sleuths can follow the trail themselves on a walking tour of the East End.
I decided to play gumshoe with the group London Walks, which offers a Jack the Ripper program every night at 7:30, starting at Tower Hill station on the Circle and District Underground lines.
Before heading to the first murder scene, tour guide Steve Newman, a young playwright and actor, sets the scene. Even before it earned the gruesome reputation of Jack the Ripper's killing grounds, the infamous East End was known for its grime and horrible slums.
"People ate skilly! It was warm water and flour," he shouts bringing to life the poverty of the era. The area was home to many prostitutes -- easy targets for a nighttime attacker.
Reviving the mood of this period, Newman reminds the group that it was a very prudish time. He described the people living in London's posh West End. "These people were embarrassed by piano legs," he says while leading us to the first murder scene.
In the dark places between alleys and pubs "ran a river of sin and iniquity," he says.
After visiting the various murder scenes, the tour stops at the place where one of Ripper's victims, Mary Kelly, was seen with an unidentified man the night of her murder. The sighting took place at the Ten Bells pub which still stands in east London serving happy hour ale to Ripper-curious clientele. The pub is literally wallpapered with case literature and newspaper clippings.
Other Ghosts
Jack the Ripper is not the only story that haunts London alleyways. For an evening of old fashioned goose bumps, London Walk's "Ghosts of the West End," "Haunted London" and "The Old City Nobody Knows" are three dark adventures.
Fireside storyteller Graham Watson, complete with a Scottish accent, guides the Tuesday night "Ghosts of the West End" tour. Has he ever seen one?
"A disappearing lady in the East End -- that was June of 1980," he says.
Another touring agency, Frames Rickards, also offers an extended evening trip, if you want more than just the Ripper to rouse your brow. For triple the money and half the exercise (you go by bus), the tour stops at macabre sites such as the medieval street where the "Death Cart" once traveled and the haunting grave of 50,000 Black Death victims. Excerpts of Shakespeare's and Dickens' works are also read in the corresponding settings.
See the London Walks homepage for additional information about times and tours. Ask your hotel concierge about Frames Rickards pamphlets and other spooky London tours.
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