E15: The Madness of Jacob Levy
Families of Ripper victims often suppressed the memories of their murdered loved ones - fearing the stigma of being related to supposed "prostitutes". And descendants of men accused of being…
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It’s a cold case like no other. In the fall of 1888, five women were brutally murdered in the slums of London. The attacks were so violent that the killer earned a nickname — Jack the Ripper.
But everything you think you know about Jack and those murdered women is wrong.
Join Historian Hallie Rubenhold as she uncovers new facts about the five victims – revealing the appalling treatment they faced as women in the 1880s, and completely overturning the accepted Ripper story in this riveting podcast, Bad Women: The Ripper Retold.
Most Recent Episode
E15: The Madness of Jacob Levy
Families of Ripper victims often suppressed the memories of their murdered loved ones - fearing the stigma of being related to supposed "prostitutes". And descendants of men accused of being…
E14: The Monster Among Us
Children around the world are taught about Jack the Ripper and shown graphic images of his victims. Is that wise? Are we in danger of normalising his crimes and encouraging…
E13: The Bones of Marie Jeanette
Mary Jane Kelly was the final victim of Jack the Ripper. And the mutilation of her body was more horrendous than in any previous murder. But something also sets her…
E12: The Mystery of Mary Jane Kelly
Mary Jane Kelly’s life ended brutally in a small room in Whitechapel - but what journey brought her to East London? She sold sex in her final years - but…
E11: Chamber of Horrors
In October 1888, Jack the Ripper went to ground. Although the murders seemed to ceased, public interest in the killings remained intense. Entrepreneurs exploited this prurience for profit - even…
E10: In a Dark, Dark Corner
Kate Eddowes was murdered in a dark London square in the dead of the night. What had she been doing there? It seems improbable that she was selling sex... and…
E9: The Ballad of Kate Eddowes
Kate Eddowes rejected the drudgery of conventional working class life and left the factory and hearth to roam the open road. She travelled the country, performing and selling songs she…
E8: The Face of The Ripper
Elizabeth Stride was supposedly seen by several eyewitnesses in her final hours. They also saw a man with her. At last, Jack the Ripper had a face. These descriptions are…
E7: Public Woman 97
Swedish farmer’s daughter Elizabeth fell pregnant out of wedlock. The authorities considered her no better than a prostitute and subjected her to myriad physical and emotional humiliations. After she lost…
E6: The Gentlemen of the Press
Annie Chapman’s murder sparked fears that a crazed killer was on the loose in London, prompting the burgeoning newspaper industry to flood Whitechapel with reporters. Those journalists wrote the first…
E5: Dark Annie and the Demon Drink
Annie Chapman and her husband were making good on their ambitions to live a comfortable, respectable life. Only... Annie drank. Under pressure from her husband’s employer, Annie was sent away…
E4: Polly the “Prostitute”
Standing over the corpse of Polly Nichols, police officers decided that in life she had been a prostitute. Thereâs no evidence Polly ever sold sex, so why did the authorities…
Polly Walks Out
Polly Nichols had a husband, a young family and lived in a brand new home built by a philanthropic millionaire. Then she walked out on it all. Why?Surviving without a…
Welcome to Whitechapel
London on August 6th, 1888 is one of the greatest cities on Earth, but the Whitechapel neighborhood is a byword for poverty, violence, and vice. Jack the Ripper will slaughter…
The Ripper Myth
Jack the Ripper’s victims were prostitutes murdered while selling sex on the streets of Whitechapel - that’s what historian Hallie Rubenhold thought when she started researching the crimes. She was…
Bad Women: The Ripper Retold coming October 5
In late 1888, five women were brutally murdered in a slum neighborhood of London. The violent killer earned himself a nickname - Jack the Ripper. But everything you think you…
The Host
Hallie Rubenhold
Hallie Rubenhold is the host of Bad Women: The Ripper Retold. She is an award-winning historian, author, and consultant. Her research has centered on the often-neglected lives of women. Several of…
