The Rest Is History – Episode 624: Jack The Ripper: History’s Darkest Mystery (Part 1)

Hosts: Tom Holland & Dominic Sandbrook
Date: December 8th, 2025

Overview

In this gripping first episode of a five-part series, Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook dive into the horrific and enigmatic case of Jack the Ripper, history’s most infamous and haunting serial killer. Set against the backdrop of late 19th-century London, the hosts explore the social, cultural, and political forces that enabled the Ripper to terrorize Whitechapel and capture the world’s imagination. The episode introduces the Ripper’s reign, the context of Victorian London, and the life and brutal death of his victim, Polly Nichols.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Infamous "Dear Boss" Letter & Naming of Jack the Ripper

[04:21–05:47]

• The episode opens with a chilling read-aloud of the infamous "Dear Boss" letter, which coined the name "Jack the Ripper."
• The hosts analyze the letter’s macabre, mocking tone and discuss its impact on public awareness:
  • Dominic Sandbrook [05:52]: “That’s the most notorious, the most infamous letter in the history of crime... so chilling because of the mocking, sadistic tone, the tone almost of banter.”

2. The Murders and Their Setting

[05:47–10:10]

• The Ripper’s murders are described in vivid detail, including the notorious “double event” and the horror of the Miller’s Court murder.
• The Ripper’s elusiveness is emphasized:
  • Tom Holland [08:42]: “…the ability of the murderer always to be one step ahead of the police... he kind of vanishes as though into thin air.”

3. Jack the Ripper as Modern Myth

[10:10–14:45]

• Discussion on how Jack the Ripper was the first "serial killer" of modern consciousness, spurring a new form of true crime media.

• The Ripper quickly became a global phenomenon, inspiring fascination, fear, and speculation world-wide.

  • Tom Holland [11:31]: “Psychiatrists... classify what he might be in scientific terms. For all these reasons, he’s notorious’s the first serial killer we know about.”

• The rise of “Ripperology”—a field obsessed with the case.

  • Dominic Sandbrook [13:41]: "There is always a danger that you will never, ever climb out [of the Ripper rabbit hole]."

4. Social and Historical Context: Whitechapel in the 1880s

[14:45–20:57]

• The case allows examination of the stark divides of Victorian London: wealth vs. poverty; the imperial metropolis vs. its “dark” underbelly.
• Descriptions of Whitechapel as an overcrowded, dangerous warren; its infamous streets symbolized the worst of urban deprivation.
  • Dominic Sandbrook [18:23]: “It is not like it is now. It is an absolute kind of reeking, stinking, crowded labyrinth… redolent of extreme poverty.”

5. The Victims’ Stories and Their Erasure

[20:57–23:21]

• The hosts acknowledge public and historiographical neglect of the Ripper’s victims, aiming to give names and stories back to women like Polly Nichols.
• Reference Hallie Rubenhold’s The Five as a pioneering work in understanding the victims’ lives:
  • Tom Holland [22:23]: “...the horror of their deaths enable them to serve as exemplars of a class of society that normally doesn’t enter the history books.”

6. The Wider Impact on Victorian Society

[23:21–29:09]

• The Ripper case both reflected and fueled Victorian anxieties over crime, poverty, and social breakdown.
• Events like "Bloody Sunday" and public disorder in Trafalgar Square heightened the sense of a powder keg in East London.
• The establishment, including Queen Victoria and the police hierarchy, was shaken and pressured for reform.
  • Tom Holland [17:17]: "So, I mean, it is absolutely a topic of obsessive interest in the corridors of power..."

7. Prelude to Murder: Martha Tabram and Escalating Violence

[31:53–35:26]

• Martha Tabram’s August 1888 murder set the stage—savage and unsolved, but lacking the “glamour” the press wanted.
  • Tom Holland [34:08]: “[Martha Tabram] is not the kind of person who would necessarily be remembered. She lacks the glamour…”

8. The Murder of Polly Nichols

[39:31–45:41]

• Detailed chronology of Polly Nichols’s murder, as discovered by Charles Lechmere and Robert Paul in Buck’s Row at 3:40 am.
• Forensic detail at the inquest highlights the savagery: throat cut, abdomen ripped open, multiple stab wounds.
  • Tom Holland [42:48]: “The victim’s throat had been cut almost from ear to ear. The abdomen had been savagely ripped open…”
• Anonymity of the victim, difficulty in identification, and the societal invisibility of the poor are recurring themes.

9. Polly Nichols’s Life: From Respectability to Tragedy

[46:33–56:02]

• Polly’s early life mirrors a Dickens novel: born to the “respectable poor,” childhood loss, marriage, and family.

• Alcoholism, marital breakdown, poverty, and the failings of the Victorian welfare system (the dreaded workhouse).

  • Tom Holland [51:37]: “...family breakdown is a theme of almost all the victim stories... another theme is alcohol.”

• Repeated attempts to reclaim stability – in workhouse, with charitable families – end in disappointment and relapse.

10. Was Polly a Prostitute?

[57:52–61:07]

• A nuanced discussion on Victorian definitions of prostitution: the label "prostitute" was broad and stigmatizing.
• Most Ripper victims, including Polly, may have sold sex opportunistically but were not “career” prostitutes.
  • Dominic Sandbrook [59:53]: “No one knows how many prostitutes there were in London... the definition of a prostitute was unclear... it is an immensely amorphous label.”

11. Final Hours and Legacy of Polly Nichols

[61:07–64:56]

• On her last night, Polly is desperately seeking dosshouse money, gets drunk, and parts from Ellen Holland at 2:30 am—the last corroborated sighting before Polly’s murder.
• The brutal death of Polly Nichols marks the true beginning of Jack the Ripper’s reign of terror.
  • Tom Holland [64:46]: “...the murderous predator who Polly Nicholls had met with around 3.15am on 31 August 1888... his reign of terror had only just begun.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “They literally use the word vampire.” – Tom Holland [09:24]
• “If a journalist cannot sell anything else in London, he can always sell a story about Jack the Ripper.” – Quoting Leonard Matters [13:07]
• “So not only did I read lots of books about this, but there’s a website called Casebook: Jack the Ripper. And when you fall into that hole, there is always a danger that you will never, ever climb out again.” – Dominic Sandbrook [13:41]
• “What can be more appalling than the thought that there is a being in human shape stealthily moving about a great city, burning with a thirst for human blood...” – East London Advertiser, quoted by Dominic Sandbrook [09:27]
• “There are dozens of murders every year. There’s a gun crime panic in 1887. So it’s a place where you can fall through the cracks really quickly.” – Dominic Sandbrook [28:11]
• “I forgive you as you are. I forgive you on account of what you have been to me.” – William Nicholls at Polly’s inquest [48:58]
• “It’s like a game of Snakes and Ladders and you’re on a snake that is leading all the way to the bottom, that is, to Whitechapel.” – Dominic Sandbrook [52:42]
• “We certainly know that by the 30th of August she had somehow made enough money to buy her new bonnet... And she’d also had enough money to get incredibly drunk that evening in the Frying Pan, which was a notorious pub...” – Tom Holland [61:07]
• “A chilling cliffhanger to end on there, Tom. So next time we will be back with the investigation of the murder of Polly Nichols and the next link in this terrible chain.” – Dominic Sandbrook [64:56]

Important Timestamps

• 04:21–05:47: Reading and analysis of the “Dear Boss” letter.
• 07:05–08:53: The murder at Miller’s Court – the “climax” of horror.
• 14:45–20:57: Discussion of Whitechapel’s conditions and the social divide.
• 31:53–33:53: Martha Tabram’s murder and press reaction.
• 39:31–45:41: The murder of Polly Nichols—discovery of the body and forensic details.
• 46:33–51:37: Polly's early life and family breakdown.
• 57:52–61:07: Victorian attitudes toward prostitution and Polly’s likely experiences.
• 64:46–64:56: Closing summary and eerie cliffhanger.

Tone and Style

Tom and Dominic maintain their trademark blend of evocative historical storytelling, vivid atmospheric description, and wry, sometimes dark humor. They balance academic detail with empathetic focus on both the social conditions and the humanity of those involved, always with a view to making the past feel urgent and alive. The episode ends with an ominous promise to follow the investigation and the next series of murders.

Episode 2 Preview:
The investigation into the murder of Polly Nichols will continue, unraveling further details in the chain of horror and deepening the portrait of Victorian society at its darkest.