This week, Lead Detective Meg is back in the driver’s seat with a deep dive into Jack the Ripper and whether we should have predicted the atrocities he committed. Content warning: some dark murder stuff in this one, so listen with caution.

Introduction and red flags of the week 0:00 - 19:16

Lead Detective Meg and Dumb Constable Holly talk about friend crushes, true crime and Cranium. Plus, Meg has a Netflix-related red flag, someone eats a ladybird and the two-year-olds are taking over. This segment was trash, dump it. 

Jack the Ripper background 19:16 - 20:40

There’s some confusion here about how far back we’re heading in the Time Machine - but basically, it’s 1887 and Jack’s on the loose.

Red Flag 1: Social climate 20:40 - 26:00

The Cockney Constable is back, we’re afraid to say, and he’s eager to please. Holly’s sets the scene, and there are little boy shoe shiners around. Meg steps in with the stats and gives us an idea of Victorian London’s history, including brutal police and civil unrest.

Red flag 2: Overcrowding 26:00 - 31:20

The Lead Detective shares her findings on the population of Whitechapel. Homelessness is rife and people are paying to sleep in coffins or hang over a rope - bleak times. Is the perp The Man? 

Red flag 3: Was there more than one Jack the Ripper? 31:20 - 37:07

Meg sees some things she can’t unsee as she dives deeper into Jack’s evil. The two detectives explore whether grizzly crimes against women were on the rise and whether killers were inspiring each other. Things could be more chaotic than they seem.

Red flag 4: Alcoholism in Victorian London 37:07 - 45:55

This section is sponsored by zero beers. (We wish.) Holly has some thoughts about gin, but we don’t really understand them. Meg paints a grim picture of what it was like to be a woman in the 1800s. Don’t drink methylated spirits, kids.

Red flag 5: Needle in a haystack 45:55 - 49:49

There are SO many people in Whitechapel, so finding Jack was going to be tough. Meg goes into some vague details of the murders here, and the situation was very grim. The detectives try and dig into who the killer might have been. 

Red flag 6: Jack the Ripper motives & opportunities 49:49 - 55:12

Detective Meg explains how dangerous the situation was for sex workers and homeless people, and questions whether the killer was opportunistic. Did he have mummy issues? Or was he a raving lunatic? Or both? Probably both.

Red flag 7: Police investigation into Jack the Ripper 55:12 - 1:01:49

Meg is angry. Why couldn’t the police have catfished Jack the Ripper? Holly gets delirious and wonders why the police weren’t focussed on protection. Something smells fishy. The detectives ask if they are the bad guys here. 

Constable’s conclusions & lessons learned 1:01:49 - 1:03:20

The perp is pretty clear here. Take us away, we really f*cked up this time, gov. Also, there’s no way to make Jack the Ripper funny: it’s super sad and horrible.

Hosted by Holly & Meg

Recorded by Atlas Audio

Filmed by Douglas Joshua

Sources

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.