Whitechapel (2009–2013): Season 1, Episode 1 - Episode #1.1 - full transcript

Here's Joe.

- Joe, nice to see you.
- Nice to see you.

- Commander, how are you?
- Very well.

That's why men like Joe
are the future of British policing.

No pressure there then!

OK, back.

Do not come any... closer!

Listen, you've been told once!
I do not want to tell you again!

We need bold initiatives
in partnership with the communities

to ensure good practice within
a solid management framework.

Ultimately,
this is about the effective delivery



of sanctions to the stakeholders.

Stakeholders?

Five years ago,
we simply called them criminals.

Excuse me. Excuse me.

- Night.
- I'll see you tomorrow.

Bye, Mary.

Oh, my God.

I've got you, love.
You're gonna be all right.

PCSO Bousfield to Control.
Receiving. Over.

Receiving you, Mary, Go ahead,

Immediate assistance
and an ambulance required

at the old board school
off Commercial Street.

There you go, love.

Christ have mercy!



Vince, there's a coffee. No sugar.

- Two teabags, Skip.
- Thanks.

Cant people die
at a decent time of day?

Got your own
crap-puccino there, Kent?

Right, what we got?

They were impressed with you in there.

Good money's on you
making commander in three years.

- That's generous.
- It's all part of the plan, Joe.

- Yes, sir.
- No need to be formal.

This is what your father wanted. He'd be proud.

We've got a dead woman
in Whitechapel.

Probable domestic. No DI.
A bit of a rough squat.

- I'll take it.
- Ready to head up your first murder?

- Absolutely.
- Good lad.

Once you've ticked that box,
we can move you on.

Get you out of the trenches and
up to headquarters where you belong.

- I don't know what to say.
- How about "thank you?"

Thank you, sir.

Excellent!

Commander Andersons
sending us a new DI.

Oh. Good cos we don't know
what we're doing!

Another fast-tracker.

Oh, if I'd have known,
I'd have made vol-au-vents.

I'll tell the others.

Now that's a good look.

- DI Chandler.
- DS Miles.

We'll get you suited up. This way.

The victim's name was Cathy Lane.
43 years old.

Mother of three.
Separated from her partner.

She was found around 2 a.m.
by a community support officer.

Cathy was still alive then

but by the time
the emergency services got to her,

she was dead.

- Who identified her?
- We all did. Let's go.

Have you worked
a murder scene before?

I'm not a virgin, you know.
I've had my fair share.

Right, well, you'll be laughing, then.

Streak of piss.

- Hello, Ray.
- We've got to stop meeting like this.

Oh, yeah. It wouldn't be the same
without a dead body between us!

- 'Morning.
- DI Chandler.

Can you see the cuts to her throat?

From the side here,
we have the first incision

and there is a second cut
that's more decisive right round.

This is the deep one.

Seems to go all the way
through to the vertebrae.

- Do you wanna get a look at this?
- No, I'm good.

- There's not much blood.
- It doesn't look that much, does it?

I know what you're thinking,
she was dumped, but you'd be wrong.

It's all here. Soaked
into her clothing. She's sodden.

It's interesting there's no struggle.

There's a bruise here
and more on the other side

with small haemorrhages
around the eyes,

suggesting asphyxia.

I think she was strangled first
and this is how he dropped her.

Just a snapshot
based on obvious injuries.

Patience.

- I want a detailed plan of the area.
- Fitzgerald and McCormack are doing that.

Witnesses?

Mary Bousfield,
community support officer. This way.

I saw a man with a long knife.

He was over 40.
Dark coat. About 5'10".

Posh but shabby. Had a funny hat.

Funny? How?

Funny, unusual.

- Had flaps.
- Did you see his face?

I'm really sorry. I know police
aren't supposed to cry.

I cry all the time, Mary.
You should see my mascara run!

Thanks.

Let 'em get her off to hospital.

Cathy Lane was a battered woman.

She split from her partner
but argued about money for the kids.

He didn't want to pay up
while she was living with other men.

They'd have too much to drink,
have huge rows.

We were constantly banging him up
in the cells for the night.

Once, he stuck a potato peeler
in her head. Bang!

Like that. Always knew
we'd find her dead one day.

- Who is this guy?
- Rob Lees.

He's a butcher.
Works with long, sharp knives.

- Let's talk to Rob Lees then.
- Don't you have a desk to go to?

No... I don't.

Let's go.

Here you go, governor.
Lovely, See ya, Ta-ta!

- Police.
- Yeah?

Can I have a word, please, sir?

- Hello, Jim.
- Got a new boy?

Oi! You'll get me into trouble. He's the boss.

Oh. Can I help you, sir?

- Rob Lees.
- Rob's not here.

- You know where he is?
- Nah.

His mobile's switched off
and he's not picking up at home.

- Has he been at Cathy again?
- Yeah.

- Is she all right?
- She's dead.

- Has Rob got a woolly hat?
- Eh?

- A woolly hat?
- No.

He wears one of those
furry Russian things with flaps.

Yeah, get Rob Lees flat watched.

Can we find out
where his mobile is? Right now.

And get someone down to his local.

Yeah, he is. I know.
But what can you do?

We better get a move on.

Before we go anywhere,
can we get something straight?

I'm in charge of this investigation.

I'm just showing you the ropes, son.

I didn't expect this.

Welcome to hell, gentlemen.

I think the killer knelt by her head,
held it with his left hand,

then cut her throat, left to right,
with his right hand.

The blood would have
run away from him.

There are no cuts to her clothing
so I assume her skirt was pushed up.

The community support who found her
pulled her skirt down,

but she thought she'd been raped.

We'll take swabs, obviously, but I haven't seen
any physical signs of rape.

And here's the surprise.
It's as if he's tried to gut her.

On the left-hand side, two inches in,
we have a deep, jagged wound.

On the right-hand side,
there are four more cuts.

The stomach has been cut in several places
and the intestines have been exposed.

I think he stayed
at his position at her head,

stabbed downwards, then drew the knife
up towards himself quite violently.

These cuts were done quickly.

This whole attack would have been over
in no more than a few minutes.

She wouldn't have known what hit her.

Rob Lees is what hit her.

- What can you say about the weapon?
- It has a strong blade.

Long? Like something
used for butchering meat?

The thing is, skin stretches
and soft tissues compress

so it's hard to talk about knife size.

I can only speculate very generally.

So speculate. For me.

Something like a hunting knife.

Or a boning knife?

I can't rule it out.

Thanks, sweetheart.

And there he is, half the division
out looking for him,

Rob Lees turns up on his own doorstep
looking like ten kinds of shit,

been up all night, smells like a pub.

- We'll have you home for tea.
- Excellent.

- What are you doing?
- I'm going to interview the suspect.

Why? DIs are supposed to sit behind
their desk and drink herbal tea.

I'll treat it as an office outing.

Look, I know this guy.

He's a liar, he's a manipulator,

and, what's worse,
he knows his rights.

So sit in, if you have to.
That's your prerogative.

But I'm asking you to let me do
what I'm good at. OK, sir?

Fine... but I want this result
as much as you do,

so we do this together.

We get it right
and we get it over with.

OK, boys, phone's off.

- Hey, that's my seat.
- Yeah, and that's my seat in there.

But we're all making sacrifices today.

This interview is being conducted
at Whitechapel Police Station.

The time is 10:15 a.m.
The date is the 31st of August, 2008.

I am Detective Sergeant Ray Miles.

The other police officer present is...

Detective Inspector Joseph Chandler.

- The solicitor present is...
- Lydia Hart.

Please state your full name
and date of birth.

Robert Lees. 11th of March, 1972.

Sanders, shh!

No.

- Do you understand the caution?
- Yeah, I understand.

Where were you this morning at 2 a.m.?

Drunk tank. Charing Cross.

I got a ten-copper alibi.

It checks out.

They were looking in on him.
Maybe half hour for the whole night, boss.

Where's the new DI-sky?

Probably with the commander
begging for a transfer.

Arts and antique squad.

- Ha!
- We haven't got the chance to know him.

We won't miss her, will we?!

It's got to be a record, that.
Shortest-serving DI.

Rob Lees is no longer a suspect.

Everybody- Listen, everybody.
Rob Lees is no longer a suspect.

Now that we...

Now that we no longer
have Rob Lees as a suspect...

Now that Rob Lees
is no longer part of this...

Is no longer a... Yeah.

Now that Rob Lees is no longer...

We've got to start over,

We've got a description of the suspect
so let's find him on CCTV.

He's wearing a hat with flaps
so he should stick out like a sore thumb.

- Sanders, you're good at watching telly.
- I am.

You take first shift on that.
Fitz, draw up a rota.

Right, Rob Lees has been eliminated
from this inquiry.

We start afresh.
Consider this a new investigation.

Right.

I need some chalk.

I might have some.

I can wait.

As long as it takes.

Teachers pet!
Arse-licker!

- Thank you, er...
- Kent.

Thank you, Kent.

Right, our suspect is in his 40s.
Average height and build.

Dark complexion.
Wearing a hat with earflaps.

It's a distinctive look,

so let's start with CCTV opportunities
and find this guy.

- Great idea. We'll start tomorrow.
- Er, no. We start now.

End of shift. Unless
you're authorising double-time.

Oi!

All right.

Oh, dear God.

What's your name?
Can you spell it for me?

- It was him.
- Eugh! Who's let off?

You're a detective. Work it out, eh?

Tell him to wait upstairs.

I've got a bloke upstairs.
Says he knows everything about the murder.

Miles!

I beg your pardon?

In your own time, Mr Buchan.

She was lying on her back. Skirt's pulled up.

She looked like she was drunk.

Her throat was cut
and her stomach had been mutilated.

- You saw the mutilation?
- Not exactly.

Where were you standing
when you saw Cathy Lane's body?

Oh, I wasn't there.

Mary Ann Nichols was the first
canonical victim of Jack the Ripper

and she died on the 31st of August, 1888.

So? Jesus Christ!

31st of August.
Same date, same time of night.

She also died next to a board school.

I was describing her injuries to you.

I don't bloody believe this!

My book.

It has all the canonical murders

and some other events
I think were linked.

I believe the man who killed your lady
was copying Jack the Ripper.

I'll bet she was lying on her back,
head pointing east,

eyes open,
hands by her sides, palms open,

legs out straight, slightly parted.

A perfect recreation.

You're a Ripperologist, aren't you?

Well, yes, I am. And I also host
an excellent Ripper tour.

A lot of the operators use their tours
to promote inaccurate theories

but I pride myself on my strict adherence
to the known facts.

Well, here's a fact. You're a loser.

Now get out before I nick you
for wasting police time.

You can keep the book.

It'll help you to predict
what the killer will do next.

There are four more deaths to come,
if I'm right.

Out!

You should be grateful.
I'm giving you a head start.

They never caught the Ripper

and now time and history
have spirited his identity away.

- Get out!
- Thank you for your time.

Go on.

Every time there's a stabbing
in Whitechapel,

they come crawling out of the woodwork.

I hate Ripperologists.

Right.

Forensics?

There's nothing. No prints,
no fibres, no DNA. Nothing.

- Witnesses?
- Nobody heard anything.

Well, they all knew there was a fire,
there was the noise of the fire engines

but no one heard a scream or a struggle.

Well, Mary Bousfield's a witness.

Talk to her again.
See if she remembers anything else.

Friends and family?

Well, everyone I spoke to
was very upset.

There were no enemies. No motive.

Right, so we've got
no physical evidence, no witnesses.

No known... No known motive.

Right.

Right, knock on every door again.
Talk to Cathy's friends again.

Go through every minute of CCTV again.

How can you conduct an inquiry like this?

Look at you. Look at your desks.
There could be actions here.

Clean it up and log it in.
I want paperless desks.

Use your bins... See?

Use your bins... and empty them
at the end of every night.

And who's the office manager here?

Well?

I am, sir.

Sort it out, McCormack! It's a disgrace!

And haven't you...?
Haven't you heard of showers?

Or... Or irons?
I mean, where are your ties?

Where's your tie? Get your feet off!

All right, I'll get one.

It's no bloody surprise
the potential witnesses aren't talking!

You don't look professional
and it smells in here!

Get yourselves organised. Self-discipline,
self-respect, deodorant. Go!

This is what real policemen look like!

This is what
real policemen smell like!

I wouldn't expect you to understand.

All your courses,
they may look good on paper,

but they count for nothing here!

We're not paper policemen!

This is a murder investigation,
not a beauty contest!

I think he's got
obsessive compulsive disorder.

I've never known a man so obsessed
with cleanliness in my life.

He must be gay.

- Ooh, do you think?
- I've got gay-dar. I can tell.

- Are you gonna have a shower?
- Am I gonna have a shower?

Fresh as a daisy.

Oh, my God! I've found him!

I've found him!

This is from the camera at Puma Court
just before the murder.

There's the hat.

It looks like a deerstalker.

- He looks like Sherlock Holmes.
- Or Jack the Ripper.

Oh, shut up, you nonce!

What's he wearing under his coat?

It's an apron.

You can keep the book,

It'll help you to predict
what the killer will do next.

There are four more deaths to come,
if I'm right.

"The Star's headline read 'Leather Apron,'

the only name linked
with the Whitechapel murders..."

"A noiseless midnight terror..."

"The strange character who prowls
about Whitechapel after midnight..."

"Universal fear among the women..."

"There was a great fire
the night Mary Ann Nichols died

only streets away from where she had
her throat cut and body mutilated."

Oh, shit.

Oh!

Are you all here for the world-famous
Buchan's Guided Ripper Tour?

Goodo. Would you all like to step in,
please? Save the old voice.

Now, we will be visiting
all the sights of the Ripper's murders,

as well as some of his regular haunts.

So I must ask if everyone here
is over 18.

- Are you over 18, young lady?
- Yes!

Goodo.

Now, this is a two-hour walk

and it is not suitable for those
of a weak or squeamish disposition.

It will be dark, it will be frightening,

and maybe tonight we shall see
some of the ghosts of Whitechapel.

OK, that's ?10 per person, please.

Thank you, sir. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you.

Bitte sch?n.

Thank you, sir. Enjoy the tour.

We're going off-piste tonight.

None of the other tours
will bring you here.

They don't appreciate its significance.

This passageway
was known as George Yard.

It was here on a first-floor landing

on the 7th of August, 1888,
that a terrible discovery was made.

A woman, stabbed 39 times
and left to die.

Her name was Martha Tabram

and she may have been
the Ripper's first victim.

Some Ripperologists discount her

because she didn't have
her throat cut nor was she mutilated.

She's not a Ripper victim, they say.

Doesn't fit the pattern.

Ah...

a serial killer does not
emerge fully formed.

Even he must learn his craft

and Jack learned quickly.

Let us go and visit the place where
he killed his first canonical victim,

Mary Ann Nichols.

I think this man has killed before.

I wanna look for previous,
in the last few months or so.

A murder with overkill.
39 stab wounds to the torso and legs.

- And this is from where?
- It's an idea.

- 39 stab wounds is a very specific idea.
- Well, it might be nothing.

It is nothing.
The Ripper's for tourists.

I think you're ignoring the possibility that...

- There was no murder like that here.
- You sure?

Yeah, of course I'm sure.
It's my job to know.

All right, serious assault, then.
She might have survived.

You are kidding!

You've been given a job.
Will you-

just do it?

Sir.

Kent, there was a fire on Wilt Street
the same night as the murder.

It might be connected.
Will you find out everything you can?

Yes, sir.

And it's not Father's Day,
you're not the world's greatest lover and...

What does IOFB mean?

I Only Fire Blanks.

The wife got it for me
after I got the snip.

Get them off.

No sense of humour,
that's his problem.

He don't wanna be one of us.

He's like a wife who wants
to change all your bad habits.

You know, the plastic copper.
Not a real detective.

Sarge, I think you should see this.

Emma Jones, August 7th,

She was found with a lump on her head
and 39 stab wounds.

- Spot on, sir.
- Did she identify her attacker?

She said he was young,
around 5 foot 9 with dark hair

and she reckoned he was a soldier.

What made her say that?

She saw tattoos,
thought they were regimental.

Which regiment?

Sir, she was stabbed 39 times.
She couldn't really say.

So a murder in a school yard
and an attempted murder by a squaddie.

- You think there's a connection?
- I wanna talk to Emma Jones.

- She's still in hospital.
- Kent, come with me.

I've got to pack this in.

Buy a nice wee pub
in the country or something.

He doesn't look well. I hate hospitals.

What do you think is wrong with him, sir?

Excuse me. Dr Phillips, please.
I'm looking for Dr Phillips.

Are you sure? Maybe I can help you.

Dr Phillips, please.

He's not here. I think
he swapped shifts with Dr Cohen.

- Maybe he can help you.
- Thank you.

I didn't treat Emma Jones
but I am aware of her case.

Does this account look familiar?

22 stab wounds to the trunk.

Left lung penetrated in five places,
the right lung in two.

Heart penetrated once.
Liver penetrated five times.

Spleen twice
and the stomach six times.

The wound on the breastbone
made by a long instrument,

possibly a bayonet.

Well, this is the attack
on Emma Jones.

No. It's an attack that happened
over 100 years ago.

Ah, yes. Heart penetrated once. I see.

In Emma Jones's case,
the knife glanced off the ribs.

The heart was not pierced.

- Is that why she survived?
- Well, that and the ambulance.

- I'd like to speak to her, please.
- That's not possible.

- She's in intensive care.
- Even so.

In a coma. I'm sorry.

Thank you.

Why would someone wanna copy
a 100-year-old murder?

They never caught the Ripper.

Did they come close?
Perhaps but we'll never know.

The real Jack probably committed suicide
shortly after the last murder.

Maybe he plunged into the icy Thames
taking his secrets with him.

And we are left with his legacy,
the birth of the serial killer.

My book. An encyclopaedia of facts.

All the clues you need
to start your own hunt for Jack.

Will you be the one to find the Ripper?

Thank you very much. Oh, thank you.

That was very interesting.
Thank you. Very good tour.

- Guten Abend.
- Danke sch?n.

Oh, I normally get a few bites.

I wasn't on song tonight.

Too many Germans in the crowd.
They don't give much back.

I like the Yanks. Great enthusiasm
and they like a souvenir.

Can I have a word?

Absolutely. You can buy me a drink.

So, I suppose you're the Ripper's biggest fan.

I don't think fan is the right word.
I don't admire what he did.

You seem to enjoy
the murders, though. All the details.

You pretty much live it every night.

Oh, dear.

I am a performer
for the tourist hordes, that is true, but

in my heart I'm a detective,
like your fine self.

You know what it's like,
the irresistible siren call of a mystery.

The delectable twist of a conundrum.

We are slaves
to that delicious eureka moment

when the scales fall away
and everything is laid bare.

There's no eureka moment in what I do.

I follow the bloody footprints
and arrest the man holding the knife.

But that is tragic.

To be a detective
and not to have the fire.

So you're more interested
in being a detective than a Ripper?

I'd be a poor man's Ripper.

Only able to dispatch small dogs
and ladies under five foot.

Can you imagine?

On the night Cathy Lane was killed,

I was watching my mother
sing with the church choir

in aid of the roof restoration fund.

I fell asleep and disturbed everyone
with my snoring.

- Can you help me?
- Yes.

The man who murdered Cathy Lane
will kill again.

OK, this is the pattern.

Emma Jones,
stabbed 39 times, 7th of August.

Survived. Just.

Martha Tabram, stabbed 39 times,
7th of August, 1888. Died.

Cathy Lane, throat cut, mutilated,
31st of August.

Mary Ann Nichols, throat cut,
mutilated, 31st of August, 1888.

The man who attacked and killed these women
in 1888 was Jack the Ripper.

The man who's attacking these women
in 2008 is his biggest fan.

We have a copycat.

Oh, here we go again.

Come on! This is your patch!
You should have spotted this.

You should be ashamed, really,
that it's taken a plastic like me

to work out what's been
going on under your noses.

All right, all right.

- The Ripper only killed prostitutes, didn't he?
- That's correct.

So are you saying Emma and Cathy
were on the game?

No.

There's nothing to suggest
either of these women were toms.

Good point.

Were they attacked in the same place
as the Ripper's victims?

Well, no. Those places no longer exist.

The slums were cleared
and the roads were changed.

With the greatest of respect, sir,

these women were attacked
in unconnected locations by different people.

A soldier in his 20s, about 5'9"

and a 40-something man
wearing a deerstalker hat.

Different people, different locations.

You had a theory but...

well, you're new to this and it's easy to get
carried away with all the history and that in the area.

Game over.

Right, who's hungry?

I think the killer could be dressing up
to match the historical suspect.

Dressing up? So he's a perv, then?

No. No, no, no.

So that the witness descriptions
match what the police had in 1888.

The police look for a soldier
after Martha Tabum's death.

The prime suspect with
Emma Jones's stabbing is a soldier.

The prime suspect with Mary Ann Nichols,
a man in a leather apron.

Think about it.

The guy in the CCTV
had an apron under his coat.

Skip?

I thought Jack the Ripper had a black bag,
a top hat and walked through smog.

I think that'd draw attention
in Brick Lane, don't you?

September the 8th, 1888.
The next victim was Annie Chapman.

I think on the 8th of September,
we're gonna have a murder on Hanbury Street.

We need to be there to stop it.

I've heard it all now.

Fantasy time.

Joe, what you're proposing
goes against all procedures.

You gain nothing by chasing bogeymen
and you stand to lose everything.

- But I can see a pattern emerging.
- You're ambitious and that's good.

But I think you're letting
your ambition cloud your judgment.

You want this murder to mean something
because death should be significant,

but the truth is most murders are banal.

I'm not imagining this.

Take my advice. Step back a little.

Detach yourself.

And if another woman dies?

Then we never had this conversation.

This obbo's gonna be a waste of time.

No one's gonna get murdered tonight
by a copycat Jack the Ripper.

So eat up.

If my mother could see you know,
do you know what she'd say?

She'd say you shouldn't go
chasing any suspects

till at least half an hour
after you've finished eating.

Half an hour?
We'd be here all night, mate.

Our historical murder
won't happen till 5 a.m.

I thought I could eat
but you take the biscuit.

Come on! This is a farewell meal
for our good friend DI Chandler.

He gambled and he lost.

This is his last supper...
on expenses!

Can we have more beers?

When I eat curry, I can smell it
on my pits the next day.

- Do you want one, sir?
- Oh, no, thanks.

You should.
You look like a copper on an obbo.

What he means, sir,
is that you need to relax. Blend in.

Try and make it look
like you're on the lash.

Nothing remains
at number 29, Hanbury Street,

and this is as close as we can get

to where the body of Annie Chapman
was found in the back yard

on this very night in 1888.

And it was a terrible sight.

He didn't just cut her throat.
Oh, no.

He tried to cut her head off.

He split her open and threw
her intestines over her shoulder...

...like a grotesque scarf.

Not much left of poor Annie Chapman.

Just a few sad belongings
at her feet.

Moving on.

Good luck to you, sirs.

We should check him out.

He just seems to know a lot about it.

It's his job.

Funny job.

Bloody waste of time, resources
and my patience.

I told you nothing would happen.

As soon as we're stood down,
I'm having a word with the commander.

I'm having a slash.

5 a.m., Skip.

That's it for the DI, then.

Not so much fast-track
as bus fare home.

Are you gonna call it, then, sir?

I tried, didn't I?

We did save a life tonight.

Yeah... I'll put it on my CV.

- Where is she?
- Number four out the back!

Establish the perimeter! Get Dr Llewelyn!
Get Miles and then follow me!

- DS Miles, come in. Over.
- Skip!

- Skip, we're up!
- Oh, Jesus!

"He took hold of her by the chin

and then commenced the incision
from left to right."

"An attempt had been made
to separate the bones of the neck.

The abdomen
had been entirely laid open,

the intestines lifted out of the body

and placed by the shoulder
of the corpse."

It's the Ripper.

- He was right, wasn't he?
- Yeah.

Congratulations. You were right.

So all you gotta do now is solve the unsolvable

and catch the most famous
serial killer that ever lived.

Good luck.