We turn up early at the designated meeting point at Tower Hill underground station just as it starts to rain, the busy tube station seems to be churning out unbelievable large amounts of confused tourists, all eagerly reaching for their pack-a-mack rain covers.

Everyone seems to be eyeing each other up nervously under the picturesque backdrop of the Tower of London, waiting for the Jack the Ripper tour to start. Suddenly the numerous umbrella wielding tourists converge on a couple holding Jack the Ripper tour maps and it becomes clear this is where you buy tickets from.

After everyone has bought tickets (seven pounds for adults and five pounds for students) the tour guide, Donald Rumbelow organises everyone into two groups and begins to fill everyone in on the gruesome history of London’s past including the intricacies of the various police forces, which serve London and the Queen.

Donald Rumbelow is an ex-City policeman and since the publication of his book, ‘The Complete Jack the Ripper’ in 1975 he has become known as the authority on the Ripper murders and is considered the “alpha and omega of Ripperology”. As such the Jack the Ripper tour he operates has become a firm favourite with London tourists from far and wide and is seen as an essential trip to take when visiting the capital city.

As soon as the tour begins it becomes clear why a walking tour is actually a great deal better than bus tour equivalent, the small winding streets that you are led down although now occupied by modern hotels and trendy apartments, still carry the signatures of their bloody past. Actually walking the streets where the Ripper’s victims were struck down and slaughtered in is quite a disturbing experience. Especially as the dialogue of the tour is so precise and meticulous in nature. There really isn’t much left to your imagination. Although it’s ridiculous don’t be surprised to find yourself peeking over your shoulder half expecting a long coated murderer sulking away into the dark corners on the East end streets.

The tour is extremely popular and there must have been at least fifty people when we headed along one weekday evening. The group was mainly made up of American and Australian tourists hungry for gory details and ghastly murder, which you get in full.
The tour passes through several of the spots where victims were slain and phrases such as “and the throat was slit to the spine” and “their organs were placed over the right shoulder” are littered throughout the tours dialogue.

Trotting along as part of the tour is quite a strange experience and it certainly wets your appetite to learn more about the Jack the Ripper murders and the factors which may have lead to the case never being solved. You will find yourself in some rather unusual parts of London, which you will look at in a different light when you pass by them again at a later date.

Throughout the tour, the guide Donald mentions a few of his books which you get the opportunity to buy at the end of the tour. This could be a good way to learn more about the Ripper case and expand the knowledge you pick up during the walk. The walk definitely has some benefits to counter part bus tours but it depends what you are looking for. If you are after a historic view of London’s murderous past with a hint of dry British humour then this tour is ideal, but if you are looking for a ghost train style thrill then perhaps the comfort and drama of the Ghost Bus Tours could be more up your street….

www.jacktheripperwalk.com