One of the things that puzzles many people about this particular long ago murder spree is quite why Jack the Ripper is still so famous, even though over a hundred and twenty years have elapsed since they occurred.
Firstly, I suppose that one of the reasons was the newspapers of the day gave a huge amount of coverage to the crimes and provided their readers with daily updates on them with the result that Jack the Ripper effectively became a menacing media figure. For this reason, just saying “Jack the Ripper” brings to mind vivid images of foggy, gas lit streets through which this unknown monster stalks his victims. Another reason for his enduring fame lies, perhaps, in the fact that he was never caught, and so he has left behind one of history’s greatest murder mysteries. Hunting the ripper, even after the passage of over 120 years, is a fascinating past time in which we can all indulge and which really can, to paraphrase Agatha Christie’s famed detective get those little grey cells working overtime.