Jack the Ripper: Case Study

Lesson 4: An In Depth Look at the Royal Conspiracy Theory

The 2001 movie "From Hell," starring Johnny Depp, like the BBC production, is a work of speculative fiction. The movie itself was derived from the graphic (illustrated comic) novel of the same name written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Eddie Campbell. The graphic novel was based in turn on Knight's book, Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution. Though liberties were taken with the events and the characters, the background setting in this movie was highly authentic.

Though no photographs of Inspector Abberline exist, he was described as being rather portly, and certainly not the handsome figure cut by Depp. There is no evidence to point to the fact that Inspector Abberline in real life was either an opium addict or a psychic. These and other changes were made to deepen the fictional character, and were not intended to be based on truth.

Some liberties were taken in the details of the murders, and minor changes were made in the descriptions of the crimes. The insinuation that Elizabeth Stride was a lesbian is unsubstantiated. However, it was believed that Mary Kelly may have been bisexual.

Inspector Abberline and Mary Kelly never met before her murder. There was some speculation at the time of the murders that the last victim was not Mary Kelly. She was identified by Joseph Barnett but her face was mutilated beyond recognition and at the time forensic means such as DNA were a dream of the future. She was identified "by the eyes and hair."

The theory that Mary Kelly may not have been the victim is based on a sighting of her hours after the murder occurred. However, it is probably more likely the time of death was incorrect rather than someone else was sleeping in Kelly's bed.

The graphic novel From Hell and also the movie by that title are based on Knight's theory, but it is believed by many to be more fact than fiction.

Sources: From Hell: the movie The Final Solution by Stephen Knight

Casebook: Jack the Ripper Essay From Hell: Fact or Fiction?

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