Author: Richard Jones

The magistrates of Victorian London had to content with a wide variety of humanity appearing before them on all manner of charges. However, by far the largest number of court appearances in the Victorian police courts were for […]

For much of the 19th century, Spitalfields was a magnet to a large transient population, members of which came from far and wide. Although many of the people who drifted into the area were, to a large extent, […]

For children growing up in the East End of London in the late 19th century, the battle for health was a constant one. Polluted air and filthy streets meant that the majority of them were constantly affected by […]

Spare a thought for Sir George Compton Archibald Arthur – or, as several newspapers dubbed him, “little Sir George Arthur” – who, in November, 1888, managed to get himself arrested on suspicion of being Jack the Ripper. PRIVATE […]

In his weekly column in The Referee on Sunday the 7th of October, 1888. the journalist George Sims gave his opinion on the impact that the Dear Boss letter had had on society as a whole and on […]

Some of the more intriguing newspaper reports from the 19th century police courts are those that feature exchanges between the magistrate and the prisoners in the dock. Just for a brief moment we get a glimpse into the […]

It’s May already. Can you believe it? But, as May begins this can mean one thing only – yes, you’ve guessed it – it’s time for another of our Jack the Ripper Whitechapel murders true crime quizzes – […]

Spitalfields was once famed for its silk, and, to this day, you can still see examples of the old weavers houses as you make your way along Fournier Street, Wilkes Street and Princelet Street. But, by the early […]

Since 2018 we have been busily collecting votes in our online poll to find out who is the most popular choice for the mantle of having been Jack the Ripper. We now have over 22,000 votes and we […]

One of my favourite Victorian stories concerns a Wakefield publican who had the humble name of Joshua Bug – some articles actually spelt his surname as Bugg – but, irrespective of how his name was spelt, his story […]