1 00:00:10,720 --> 00:00:13,480 Speaker 1: It was a chilly winter evening on the twentieth of 2 00:00:13,520 --> 00:00:17,479 Speaker 1: February eighteen thirty eight, as the Alsop family were just 3 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:21,360 Speaker 1: getting ready for bed. The elderly mister and Missus Orsop 4 00:00:21,760 --> 00:00:24,880 Speaker 1: lived with their three daughters on bar Binder Lane in 5 00:00:24,960 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 1: old Ford, a small village clustered around the River Lee 6 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:33,560 Speaker 1: on the northeast outskirts of London. A man of above 7 00:00:33,600 --> 00:00:38,160 Speaker 1: average means, mister Orsop's family cottage was larger than most 8 00:00:38,240 --> 00:00:42,040 Speaker 1: in old Ford, protected by a high wall and front 9 00:00:42,040 --> 00:00:46,920 Speaker 1: gate which was locked every night. Burglaries were not uncommon 10 00:00:46,920 --> 00:00:51,159 Speaker 1: in the area, and footpads Highway robbers that operated on 11 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:55,520 Speaker 1: foot sometimes lurked on the quiet country lanes after dark, 12 00:00:56,080 --> 00:01:00,760 Speaker 1: ready to pounce on unsuspecting travelers. With the notion of 13 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:04,720 Speaker 1: a professional police force only a fledgling idea at the time, 14 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:10,120 Speaker 1: country dwellers tended to stay at home after nightfall. Knights 15 00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 1: in the main were reassuringly quiet, save for the occasional 16 00:01:14,200 --> 00:01:18,080 Speaker 1: hooting of an owl or scream of a fox. So 17 00:01:18,120 --> 00:01:20,959 Speaker 1: it startled the whole family when the bell on their 18 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:25,839 Speaker 1: front gate began to jangle violently just after a quarter 19 00:01:25,920 --> 00:01:30,800 Speaker 1: to nine Inside the cottage, eighteen year old Jane also 20 00:01:31,240 --> 00:01:36,400 Speaker 1: looked uncertainly at her parents and two sisters, Sarah, the oldest, 21 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:40,800 Speaker 1: busy looking after their parents, insisted that Jane take care 22 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:45,440 Speaker 1: of it. Jane waited for a moment in the ensuing silence, 23 00:01:45,880 --> 00:01:49,880 Speaker 1: hoping the caller might leave them alone. Then the bell 24 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:54,840 Speaker 1: rang out again, even louder, this time, throwing a shawl 25 00:01:54,880 --> 00:01:59,040 Speaker 1: around her shoulders. Jane unbolted the door and stepped out 26 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:03,280 Speaker 1: into the misty night. From there, she could just make 27 00:02:03,320 --> 00:02:06,800 Speaker 1: out the figure of a tall man standing outside their 28 00:02:06,840 --> 00:02:10,480 Speaker 1: front gate in the lane. As she drew closer to him, 29 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:13,560 Speaker 1: she could see he was enveloped in a large cloak 30 00:02:14,080 --> 00:02:17,200 Speaker 1: and wearing what appeared to be some sort of headgear. 31 00:02:18,240 --> 00:02:23,160 Speaker 1: The man was exceptionally tall. Jane looked back to the 32 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:27,600 Speaker 1: cottage and then back to the man. Can I help you, 33 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:32,200 Speaker 1: she asked. I'm a policeman, said the man tersely. For 34 00:02:32,320 --> 00:02:35,000 Speaker 1: God's sake, bring me a light. We've caught spring Hill 35 00:02:35,120 --> 00:02:39,480 Speaker 1: Jack here in the lane. The name startled her. She 36 00:02:39,560 --> 00:02:41,960 Speaker 1: knew of it well, but had thought it was merely 37 00:02:41,960 --> 00:02:45,640 Speaker 1: an urban myth, all those tales of a ghostly figure 38 00:02:46,040 --> 00:02:48,280 Speaker 1: said to be able to leap ten feet in the 39 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:53,959 Speaker 1: air that was supposedly terrorizing londoners. Just wait a moment, 40 00:02:54,240 --> 00:02:57,520 Speaker 1: said Jane, feeling a shiver of fear as she hurried 41 00:02:57,560 --> 00:03:02,280 Speaker 1: back to the cottage with trembling fingers. She gathered a 42 00:03:02,320 --> 00:03:06,760 Speaker 1: candle holder and candle and raced back outside, where the 43 00:03:06,800 --> 00:03:17,120 Speaker 1: man was still waiting for her by the gate. Hurriedly, 44 00:03:17,440 --> 00:03:20,520 Speaker 1: Jane made her way down to the strangely tall man 45 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:24,640 Speaker 1: and handed over the candle, straining her neck for a 46 00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:28,560 Speaker 1: glimpse of the fabled jack. But the man didn't run 47 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:33,280 Speaker 1: off to confront him as she expected. Instead, in one's 48 00:03:33,280 --> 00:03:37,120 Speaker 1: swirling motion, he swept off his cloak and held the 49 00:03:37,240 --> 00:03:42,040 Speaker 1: lighted candle in front of his chest. Jane let out 50 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:46,360 Speaker 1: a piercing, involuntary scream at the sight now revealed in 51 00:03:46,440 --> 00:03:51,680 Speaker 1: the candle's flickering glow. The man's face was hideous, with 52 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:56,040 Speaker 1: eyes that seemed to blaze like burning coal. He wasn't 53 00:03:56,080 --> 00:03:59,160 Speaker 1: wearing a hat, as she first thought, but some kind 54 00:03:59,200 --> 00:04:03,640 Speaker 1: of peculiar helmet while underneath his cloak. She saw then 55 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:06,920 Speaker 1: that his body seemed to be encased in a strange, 56 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 1: tightly fitting white oil skin garment, like a sailor might 57 00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:17,680 Speaker 1: wear or slaughter house worker, perhaps, as Jane put it 58 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:20,840 Speaker 1: in her terrifying account that she gave to the local 59 00:04:20,920 --> 00:04:24,640 Speaker 1: council the following day. The man then rushed toward her, 60 00:04:24,960 --> 00:04:28,920 Speaker 1: spewing blue and white fire from his mouth right into 61 00:04:28,960 --> 00:04:33,000 Speaker 1: her face. Before she could run away, he seized her 62 00:04:33,040 --> 00:04:36,120 Speaker 1: by her dress and neck and pinned her head under 63 00:04:36,160 --> 00:04:40,760 Speaker 1: one arm. Then he began viciously tearing at her clothes 64 00:04:40,800 --> 00:04:46,120 Speaker 1: and hair, shrieking repeatedly in terror. Jane struggled in his grasp, 65 00:04:46,480 --> 00:04:49,920 Speaker 1: and somehow she fought him off, managing to pull away. 66 00:04:50,839 --> 00:04:54,600 Speaker 1: In that moment, she saw with unbridled horror that where 67 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:58,960 Speaker 1: the man's fingers should have been were long, sharp metal 68 00:04:59,040 --> 00:05:04,400 Speaker 1: talons instead. The man or whatever he was, attempted to 69 00:05:04,440 --> 00:05:08,120 Speaker 1: grab Jane again, tearing at the skirts of her dress 70 00:05:08,400 --> 00:05:12,280 Speaker 1: as she bolted towards the front door. Just as she 71 00:05:12,320 --> 00:05:15,200 Speaker 1: reached for the handle, the fiend caught up with her 72 00:05:15,240 --> 00:05:19,839 Speaker 1: again on the doorstep. As she screamed for help, the 73 00:05:19,920 --> 00:05:23,320 Speaker 1: man clawed at her again, pulling out several clumps of 74 00:05:23,400 --> 00:05:28,400 Speaker 1: hair as he did so. Jane's two sisters, hearing her screams, 75 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:32,320 Speaker 1: rushed to the door to help, but Mary, the youngest, 76 00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:36,920 Speaker 1: was too overcome with fright to do anything. Finally, Sarah, 77 00:05:37,200 --> 00:05:40,480 Speaker 1: Jane's older sister, managed to drag her out of her 78 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:45,440 Speaker 1: assailant's clutches and back inside the cottage, slamming the door 79 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:48,520 Speaker 1: shut behind them. The sisters tumbled to the floor in 80 00:05:48,560 --> 00:05:52,440 Speaker 1: a blind panic, while the attacker continued to beat on 81 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:55,880 Speaker 1: the door, so much so that they thought he might 82 00:05:55,960 --> 00:06:00,320 Speaker 1: break it down. As Jane and Sarah screamed for the 83 00:06:00,360 --> 00:06:03,920 Speaker 1: man to go away, the elderly mister and missus Alsop 84 00:06:04,279 --> 00:06:08,400 Speaker 1: went upstairs to try and see what was happening. Seeing 85 00:06:08,440 --> 00:06:11,760 Speaker 1: the terrifying look of the man from above, the pair 86 00:06:11,839 --> 00:06:15,479 Speaker 1: wrenched open an upstairs window and shouted into the night 87 00:06:15,800 --> 00:06:19,880 Speaker 1: for someone to help them. A quarter of a mile away, 88 00:06:20,240 --> 00:06:23,880 Speaker 1: at the John Bull Public House, the orsops cries were 89 00:06:23,920 --> 00:06:26,960 Speaker 1: heard by a group of men who set off immediately 90 00:06:27,040 --> 00:06:30,080 Speaker 1: to investigate, but by the time they made it to 91 00:06:30,080 --> 00:06:35,480 Speaker 1: the Orsop's cottage the attack appeared to be over. Inside 92 00:06:35,520 --> 00:06:39,520 Speaker 1: the house, they found a deeply distressed Jane being tended 93 00:06:39,520 --> 00:06:43,680 Speaker 1: to by her family. Her dress was torn to ribbons, 94 00:06:44,560 --> 00:06:49,880 Speaker 1: her face, neck and shoulders covered in deep scratches, and 95 00:06:50,040 --> 00:06:53,520 Speaker 1: several large clumps of hair had been pulled from her 96 00:06:53,560 --> 00:06:59,119 Speaker 1: head spring hill Jack, it seemed, was not an urban myth. 97 00:06:59,720 --> 00:07:07,520 Speaker 1: After You're listening to Unexplained and I'm Richard McLean Smith. 98 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:17,920 Speaker 1: Most countries and cultures have their own version of a 99 00:07:17,960 --> 00:07:22,480 Speaker 1: bogey man, and pre Victorian Britain was no different. Many 100 00:07:22,520 --> 00:07:27,360 Speaker 1: of them given the epithet of Jack. In rural British folklore, 101 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:31,000 Speaker 1: Jack in the Green, as it was sometimes called, was 102 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:34,640 Speaker 1: just one name for the nature sprites and mischief makers 103 00:07:34,920 --> 00:07:39,360 Speaker 1: known as Puck or the green Man. In the Welsh borders, 104 00:07:39,840 --> 00:07:43,840 Speaker 1: Jack o' kent was a legendary figure who'd supposedly once 105 00:07:43,920 --> 00:07:47,120 Speaker 1: made a pact with the devil. At the turn of 106 00:07:47,160 --> 00:07:51,400 Speaker 1: the nineteenth century in Britain, the Industrial Revolution and a 107 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:56,000 Speaker 1: new era of technological development was in full swing as 108 00:07:56,040 --> 00:08:00,080 Speaker 1: people migrated from the country into the cities. These migrants 109 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:05,320 Speaker 1: brought their rural folklore and stories of the supernatural with them. 110 00:08:05,880 --> 00:08:08,800 Speaker 1: As people attempted to make sense of the brave new 111 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:13,680 Speaker 1: world emerging around them, they casually populated it with strange 112 00:08:13,720 --> 00:08:19,320 Speaker 1: phenomena and sinister figures. Around eighteen o three and eighteen 113 00:08:19,360 --> 00:08:24,120 Speaker 1: o four, stories started to circulate of ghosts haunting the 114 00:08:24,200 --> 00:08:29,560 Speaker 1: lonely lanes in the countryside. Around London. These pale figures, 115 00:08:29,920 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: often clad in what appeared to be a white shroud, 116 00:08:33,520 --> 00:08:37,800 Speaker 1: were said to stalk and attack lone pedestrians, especially women, 117 00:08:38,160 --> 00:08:42,760 Speaker 1: after dark. In Hammersmith, on the western fringes of London, 118 00:08:43,360 --> 00:08:46,160 Speaker 1: a ghostly figure was said to have assaulted a woman 119 00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:49,720 Speaker 1: while she was walking past the chapel one winter evening. 120 00:08:50,679 --> 00:08:55,160 Speaker 1: According to contemporary accounts, the specter grasped the woman in 121 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:59,480 Speaker 1: its arms, causing her to faint. The woman was said 122 00:08:59,520 --> 00:09:04,520 Speaker 1: to have died from shock two days later. Two men 123 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:09,559 Speaker 1: were walking through that chapel's churchyard sometime around nine p m. 124 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:14,160 Speaker 1: When something stood up from behind a gravestone and grabbed 125 00:09:14,200 --> 00:09:17,760 Speaker 1: one of them by the throat. The man was violently 126 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:21,320 Speaker 1: turned around as if to face it, only to find 127 00:09:21,400 --> 00:09:25,160 Speaker 1: that there was nothing there. Yet, when he struck out 128 00:09:25,200 --> 00:09:28,680 Speaker 1: with his fist, he felt something in the emptiness in 129 00:09:28,720 --> 00:09:32,520 Speaker 1: front of him. It was like punching through the material 130 00:09:32,640 --> 00:09:36,559 Speaker 1: of a large coat. He said. It was all enough 131 00:09:36,600 --> 00:09:40,880 Speaker 1: to convince one man named Francis Smith to begin nightly 132 00:09:40,960 --> 00:09:45,679 Speaker 1: patrols in the area armed with a gun. Late one 133 00:09:45,800 --> 00:09:49,680 Speaker 1: night in January eighteen o four, Smith was pacing the 134 00:09:49,679 --> 00:09:54,480 Speaker 1: streets alone when he suddenly spotted a ghostly white figure approaching. 135 00:09:55,920 --> 00:09:59,520 Speaker 1: Damn you, Who are you and what are you? Damn you? 136 00:09:59,600 --> 00:10:03,400 Speaker 1: I'll shoe u jew, he said, then took aim and fired. 137 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:09,400 Speaker 1: The white figure collapsed instantly to the ground. Moments later, 138 00:10:09,920 --> 00:10:14,160 Speaker 1: a deeply distraught Smith found himself standing over the body 139 00:10:14,520 --> 00:10:19,320 Speaker 1: of Thomas Millwood, a bricklayer, walking home from work in 140 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:25,040 Speaker 1: his traditional white clothes. Francis Smith was initially sentenced to 141 00:10:25,120 --> 00:10:28,520 Speaker 1: death for the crime, but later had his sentence reduced 142 00:10:28,679 --> 00:10:31,840 Speaker 1: to a year's hard labor on account of the fact 143 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:35,920 Speaker 1: that Smith was thought to have truly believed that Millward 144 00:10:36,040 --> 00:10:39,679 Speaker 1: was a ghost and therefore less culpable for his murder. 145 00:10:41,160 --> 00:10:44,600 Speaker 1: A man did actually come forward admitting to being the 146 00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:49,840 Speaker 1: so called Hammersmith ghost. Shoemaker John Graham, claimed that he 147 00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:53,440 Speaker 1: began parading round the streets in a white sheet to 148 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:58,360 Speaker 1: try and scare an apprentice of his. However, sightings of 149 00:10:58,400 --> 00:11:03,080 Speaker 1: a ghostly white figure stalking the streets of London persisted 150 00:11:03,559 --> 00:11:17,080 Speaker 1: for the next twenty years. Between eighteen twenty four and 151 00:11:17,160 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 1: eighteen twenty six, in the countryside surrounding London and Hampshire 152 00:11:21,960 --> 00:11:27,240 Speaker 1: in South England, something else appeared to have emerged, known 153 00:11:27,280 --> 00:11:31,400 Speaker 1: as the Southampton Ghost, since the story originated in Southampton 154 00:11:31,600 --> 00:11:34,600 Speaker 1: on the English south coast. It was said to be 155 00:11:34,760 --> 00:11:40,360 Speaker 1: skeleetally thin and over ten feet tall. Newspaper reports of 156 00:11:40,400 --> 00:11:44,440 Speaker 1: this character mentioned that the specter was also able to 157 00:11:44,559 --> 00:11:49,600 Speaker 1: jump very high. An account in the Northampton Mercury on 158 00:11:49,640 --> 00:11:53,640 Speaker 1: the twenty first of January eighteen twenty six described that 159 00:11:53,720 --> 00:11:57,559 Speaker 1: a person had been spotted nightly in Southampton wearing some 160 00:11:57,679 --> 00:12:01,400 Speaker 1: kind of mask. The ghoulish figure had been fired at 161 00:12:01,559 --> 00:12:05,920 Speaker 1: without effect due to apparently being enveloped in steel armor. 162 00:12:07,280 --> 00:12:10,720 Speaker 1: They were also said to wear a pair of spring boots, 163 00:12:11,080 --> 00:12:14,600 Speaker 1: which enabled them to vault over a ten feet wall. 164 00:12:16,600 --> 00:12:20,040 Speaker 1: One witness apparently gave chase, and though they couldn't quite 165 00:12:20,200 --> 00:12:24,360 Speaker 1: catch them, got close enough to report the specter was 166 00:12:24,400 --> 00:12:29,720 Speaker 1: a tall man wearing a dark coat with shiny metal buttons. 167 00:12:30,840 --> 00:12:36,320 Speaker 1: In early September eighteen thirty seven, local newspapers in the 168 00:12:36,360 --> 00:12:40,960 Speaker 1: counties surrounding London began to report a series of attacks 169 00:12:41,280 --> 00:12:46,360 Speaker 1: perpetrated by what was variously described as an imp, a bear, 170 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:51,520 Speaker 1: a devil, a ghostly white bull, or simply a ghost 171 00:12:51,679 --> 00:12:58,520 Speaker 1: clothed in white, sometimes wearing chain mail or armor. Over 172 00:12:58,559 --> 00:13:02,080 Speaker 1: the next two months, the mysterious figure was said to 173 00:13:02,120 --> 00:13:05,079 Speaker 1: have made attacks in a total of two dozen villages 174 00:13:05,360 --> 00:13:08,000 Speaker 1: to the south and the west of London, most of 175 00:13:08,040 --> 00:13:12,720 Speaker 1: them on women, and the specter's behavior had become more violent. 176 00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:18,320 Speaker 1: On the eleventh of October, Polly Adams, a tavern worker 177 00:13:18,400 --> 00:13:22,160 Speaker 1: from black Heath, was attacked by a so called devil 178 00:13:22,280 --> 00:13:26,760 Speaker 1: like gentleman at Blackheath Fair, who tore off her blouse 179 00:13:26,840 --> 00:13:31,040 Speaker 1: and scratched her stomach with its claws before escaping by 180 00:13:31,120 --> 00:13:35,319 Speaker 1: leaping over a fence. A little later that month, a 181 00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:39,920 Speaker 1: domestic servant was set upon while walking across Clapham Common. 182 00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:44,160 Speaker 1: The assailant ripped at her clothes and touched her body 183 00:13:44,280 --> 00:13:49,400 Speaker 1: with cold claws. She recounted some local residents had rushed 184 00:13:49,400 --> 00:13:53,120 Speaker 1: to her aid, but the attacker was nowhere to be found. 185 00:13:54,400 --> 00:13:58,480 Speaker 1: The following day, occupants of a carriage witnessed a man 186 00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:01,880 Speaker 1: jumping into the road in front of them, causing their 187 00:14:01,960 --> 00:14:06,560 Speaker 1: driver to swerve and the carriage to crash. The man 188 00:14:06,720 --> 00:14:11,080 Speaker 1: jumped away over a nine foot wall, emitting a maniacal 189 00:14:11,200 --> 00:14:16,160 Speaker 1: laughter as he went. One foggy night during the last 190 00:14:16,200 --> 00:14:20,360 Speaker 1: week of December in eighteen thirty seven, a carpenter named 191 00:14:20,480 --> 00:14:25,440 Speaker 1: mister Jones was walking home along Cutthroat Lane in Ileworth, 192 00:14:25,680 --> 00:14:28,760 Speaker 1: West London, when he claimed to have been attacked by 193 00:14:28,800 --> 00:14:34,280 Speaker 1: a figure dressed in armor and wearing red shoes. Jones 194 00:14:34,360 --> 00:14:37,800 Speaker 1: said that when he fought back, two more ghosts, as 195 00:14:37,800 --> 00:14:41,680 Speaker 1: he called them, joined in the attack, leaving him badly 196 00:14:41,760 --> 00:14:53,720 Speaker 1: beaten and its clothes torn to shreds. The gothic atmosphere 197 00:14:53,760 --> 00:14:58,160 Speaker 1: of London streets, bathed in swirling fog and illuminated by 198 00:14:58,240 --> 00:15:02,160 Speaker 1: pockets of light from gas slaps, which only served to 199 00:15:02,200 --> 00:15:06,320 Speaker 1: emphasize the darkness around them, was the perfect place for 200 00:15:06,360 --> 00:15:10,960 Speaker 1: the attacks and fertile ground for the fearful imaginings of 201 00:15:11,000 --> 00:15:15,720 Speaker 1: the public. When the London newspapers began to print reports 202 00:15:15,800 --> 00:15:19,680 Speaker 1: of what was initially called the Suburban Ghost, they were 203 00:15:19,680 --> 00:15:24,680 Speaker 1: first skeptical, describing the sightings condescendingly as the sort of 204 00:15:24,760 --> 00:15:30,040 Speaker 1: rumours that inevitably circulate among servant girls. But after the 205 00:15:30,080 --> 00:15:33,160 Speaker 1: ghost was said to have made an appearance at Hampton 206 00:15:33,280 --> 00:15:37,640 Speaker 1: Court Palace, former home of King Henry the Eighth, the 207 00:15:37,680 --> 00:15:44,360 Speaker 1: press came up with another name for it, spring heeled Jack. However, 208 00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:49,160 Speaker 1: both local newspaper reporters and the police were struggling to 209 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:52,920 Speaker 1: find hard evidence that might lead to a genuine suspect 210 00:15:53,400 --> 00:15:57,680 Speaker 1: or an arrest, but as many newspapers of the time conceded, 211 00:15:58,480 --> 00:16:04,120 Speaker 1: something was caused the panic. Several favored the rumour that 212 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:07,440 Speaker 1: a gang of aristocrats were carrying out the attacks for 213 00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:12,120 Speaker 1: a bet. This rumor seemed to be substantiated when an 214 00:16:12,160 --> 00:16:16,080 Speaker 1: anonymous resident of Peckham in South London wrote to the 215 00:16:16,080 --> 00:16:19,320 Speaker 1: Lord Mayor of London stating that a man from the 216 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:22,160 Speaker 1: higher ranks of life, as he put it, laid a 217 00:16:22,200 --> 00:16:25,800 Speaker 1: wager with a mischievous and full hardy companion that he 218 00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:29,280 Speaker 1: would visit many of the villages near London in three 219 00:16:29,360 --> 00:16:35,040 Speaker 1: different disguises, a ghost, a bear, and a devil. The 220 00:16:35,040 --> 00:16:39,400 Speaker 1: man continued, the wager has been accepted, and the unmanly 221 00:16:39,480 --> 00:16:44,080 Speaker 1: villain has already succeeded in depriving seven women of their senses. 222 00:16:45,080 --> 00:16:48,680 Speaker 1: The Lord Mayor was unconvinced, saying that the letter writer 223 00:16:49,200 --> 00:16:54,880 Speaker 1: had merely been frightened by burglars and wanted retribution. Several 224 00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:59,520 Speaker 1: vigilante groups disagreed, however, including one led by none other 225 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:03,800 Speaker 1: than the then seventy year old Duke of Wellington. Despite 226 00:17:03,840 --> 00:17:07,640 Speaker 1: having once led an army that defeated Napoleon, he failed 227 00:17:07,760 --> 00:17:17,920 Speaker 1: to accost the culprits. There's no record as to whether 228 00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:23,920 Speaker 1: the aristocratic wager was won, or even existed for that matter. Nonetheless, 229 00:17:24,160 --> 00:17:28,600 Speaker 1: the attacks continued unabated in and around London throughout early 230 00:17:28,760 --> 00:17:33,399 Speaker 1: eighteen thirty eight and on into February, the same month 231 00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:37,280 Speaker 1: that eighteen year old Jane Olsop was attacked outside her 232 00:17:37,320 --> 00:17:41,920 Speaker 1: home in old Ford. About the same time, a mile 233 00:17:42,040 --> 00:17:45,280 Speaker 1: to the west, a man in a cloak wrapped on 234 00:17:45,320 --> 00:17:48,399 Speaker 1: the door of a house in Turner Street and asked 235 00:17:48,440 --> 00:17:52,240 Speaker 1: to speak to the owner, mister Ashworth. But before the 236 00:17:52,359 --> 00:17:55,560 Speaker 1: servant boy who answered the door could fetch his master, 237 00:17:56,359 --> 00:17:59,679 Speaker 1: the caller threw back his cloak and revealed a sinister 238 00:17:59,720 --> 00:18:05,840 Speaker 1: of his liage and bizarre costume underneath. The frightened boy screamed 239 00:18:05,880 --> 00:18:09,280 Speaker 1: so loudly that the cloaked figure ran off, but not 240 00:18:09,440 --> 00:18:13,760 Speaker 1: before the boy noticed one intriguing detail on the cloak, 241 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:19,639 Speaker 1: an elaborate letter w embroidered on its hem. For some, 242 00:18:19,920 --> 00:18:23,960 Speaker 1: this w was a vital clue which sparked an entirely 243 00:18:24,040 --> 00:18:28,399 Speaker 1: new rumor centered around an Irish nobleman known as the 244 00:18:28,440 --> 00:18:35,560 Speaker 1: Marquis of Waterfort or alternatively as the Mad Marquis. Henry 245 00:18:35,560 --> 00:18:39,040 Speaker 1: Beresfort was never supposed to have been the third Marquis 246 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:43,240 Speaker 1: of Waterfort. Born in eighteen eleven, he was a second 247 00:18:43,320 --> 00:18:46,760 Speaker 1: son and should have slowly marched down the family order 248 00:18:46,800 --> 00:18:50,840 Speaker 1: of succession as his older brother George, married and had 249 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:55,480 Speaker 1: heirs of his own. But in eighteen twenty four, George 250 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:59,400 Speaker 1: contracted an inflammation of the bowels and died two days 251 00:18:59,480 --> 00:19:04,000 Speaker 1: later at the age of fourteen. Two years after that, 252 00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:09,399 Speaker 1: Henry's father died, and so Henry inherited the family title 253 00:19:09,880 --> 00:19:13,119 Speaker 1: and all its money at the age of just fifteen. 254 00:19:14,480 --> 00:19:17,560 Speaker 1: His first few years as a marquis was spent in 255 00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:24,200 Speaker 1: private school. Then came the revelry, Young and most likely 256 00:19:24,240 --> 00:19:27,359 Speaker 1: bereft at the death of his older brother, followed soon 257 00:19:27,400 --> 00:19:30,840 Speaker 1: after by his father. At a time of fairly strict 258 00:19:31,000 --> 00:19:35,679 Speaker 1: gender roles, he was without any male parental guidance and 259 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:43,000 Speaker 1: mind blowingly wealthy. The debauchery started almost immediately after. Somewhat 260 00:19:43,080 --> 00:19:46,359 Speaker 1: less than gentlemanly behavior on a trip to the U 261 00:19:46,480 --> 00:19:50,520 Speaker 1: s A With supposedly well to do friends, the Marquess 262 00:19:50,520 --> 00:19:54,199 Speaker 1: of Waterford began to make headlines back in England for 263 00:19:54,280 --> 00:19:58,919 Speaker 1: all the wrong reasons. In the late eighteen thirties, his 264 00:19:59,040 --> 00:20:03,840 Speaker 1: name came to be so anonymous with brutal jokes, vandalism, 265 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:08,439 Speaker 1: and misogyny. This was a man of whom, it was said, 266 00:20:08,960 --> 00:20:21,679 Speaker 1: would do anything for a bet. In eighteen thirty six, 267 00:20:22,040 --> 00:20:26,840 Speaker 1: on one occasion, the Marquess of Waterford smashed several windows. 268 00:20:27,560 --> 00:20:31,720 Speaker 1: On another he offered strangers money to fight him, and 269 00:20:31,840 --> 00:20:35,280 Speaker 1: another time got into an altercation with a man on 270 00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:38,919 Speaker 1: horseback when he demanded that he ignore the gate keeper 271 00:20:38,960 --> 00:20:42,119 Speaker 1: on a toll road and pay him the money instead. 272 00:20:43,280 --> 00:20:47,000 Speaker 1: But that was just a warm up. In April the 273 00:20:47,040 --> 00:20:50,359 Speaker 1: following year, the Marquis went to the races with a 274 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:54,720 Speaker 1: group of friends, after which began another night of debauchery. 275 00:20:55,760 --> 00:20:58,920 Speaker 1: They smashed the shutters of a toll gate, stole some 276 00:20:59,000 --> 00:21:02,480 Speaker 1: red paint, then walked to a nearby pub called the 277 00:21:02,560 --> 00:21:07,440 Speaker 1: Old White Swan. The Marquis was hoisted onto the shoulders 278 00:21:07,440 --> 00:21:11,159 Speaker 1: of his friends, where he proceeded to paint the Swan red. 279 00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:17,119 Speaker 1: The group continued overturning caravans, throwing signs into a canal, 280 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:22,560 Speaker 1: smashing lamps, and wrenching off door knockers, all while spreading 281 00:21:22,600 --> 00:21:25,920 Speaker 1: red paint in their wake. An escapade that is thought 282 00:21:25,960 --> 00:21:29,199 Speaker 1: to be the origin of the phrase to paint the 283 00:21:29,200 --> 00:21:34,720 Speaker 1: town red. The group were arrested and subsequently appeared before 284 00:21:34,760 --> 00:21:39,520 Speaker 1: the local magistrate wearing bare skin coats and large cravats. 285 00:21:40,800 --> 00:21:44,800 Speaker 1: Henry Beresford, the Marquis of Waterford, is known to have 286 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:47,760 Speaker 1: been present in the London area by the time the 287 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:53,160 Speaker 1: first apparent attacks by spring hiel Jack took place. Had 288 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:56,720 Speaker 1: he been spending his leisure time developing and indulging in 289 00:21:56,800 --> 00:22:00,399 Speaker 1: bizarre and elaborate pranks. Was he aided in a betted 290 00:22:00,400 --> 00:22:04,679 Speaker 1: by friends constructing some sort of apparatus that resulted in 291 00:22:04,760 --> 00:22:09,280 Speaker 1: spring heeled boots. Did he practice fire breathing techniques in 292 00:22:09,400 --> 00:22:13,960 Speaker 1: order to increase the unnatural appearance of its character. It's 293 00:22:14,040 --> 00:22:17,040 Speaker 1: quite possible that he wasn't the only member of so 294 00:22:17,119 --> 00:22:22,199 Speaker 1: called high society acting up. Many members of the aristocracy 295 00:22:22,400 --> 00:22:28,440 Speaker 1: had the time, resources, and inclination to create convincing ghostly appearances, 296 00:22:28,920 --> 00:22:33,920 Speaker 1: then used their money and influence to avoid prosecution. Within 297 00:22:34,080 --> 00:22:36,640 Speaker 1: just a few days of the attack on Jane Alsop, 298 00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,840 Speaker 1: toward the end of February in eighteen thirty seven, Spring 299 00:22:40,920 --> 00:22:46,439 Speaker 1: Heeled Jack struck again. Eighteen year old Lucy Scales and 300 00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:50,280 Speaker 1: her sister were waylaid as they returned home from a 301 00:22:50,359 --> 00:22:54,399 Speaker 1: visit to their brother, one of many butchers that operated 302 00:22:54,440 --> 00:22:59,280 Speaker 1: in the Lmehouse area of London's Docklands. In the freezing 303 00:22:59,400 --> 00:23:02,600 Speaker 1: misty night. With a little light to guide their way, 304 00:23:03,440 --> 00:23:07,680 Speaker 1: the pair turned into the narrow, twisting passage of Green 305 00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:14,000 Speaker 1: Dragon Alley. There they spotted a thin cloaked stranger standing 306 00:23:14,040 --> 00:23:17,840 Speaker 1: a little further down the alleyway, As the young women 307 00:23:18,040 --> 00:23:22,120 Speaker 1: later recalled, when they approached the man, he suddenly threw 308 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:26,119 Speaker 1: open his cloak, displaying a strange lamp thing strapped to 309 00:23:26,200 --> 00:23:30,400 Speaker 1: his chest, and blew flames from his mouth straight into 310 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:35,439 Speaker 1: Lucy's face. Screaming in horror, Lucy fell to the ground, 311 00:23:35,880 --> 00:23:40,879 Speaker 1: temporarily blinded and in severe pain. She later described her 312 00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:46,920 Speaker 1: attacker as tall and thin and looking gentlemanly. She said 313 00:23:46,920 --> 00:23:49,760 Speaker 1: also that he wore a large cloak and what she 314 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:53,480 Speaker 1: described as some kind of head dress much like a bonnet. 315 00:23:54,720 --> 00:24:05,160 Speaker 1: There were no other witnesses to the assault. After Lucy 316 00:24:05,240 --> 00:24:08,880 Speaker 1: scales Is apparent attack, she was examined by a surgeon. 317 00:24:09,640 --> 00:24:13,720 Speaker 1: Her report made no mention of her having sustained any burns. 318 00:24:14,720 --> 00:24:18,359 Speaker 1: When Jane Alsop was examined after the incident in old Ford. 319 00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:22,400 Speaker 1: The report compiled by the police surgeon who conducted it 320 00:24:22,840 --> 00:24:27,280 Speaker 1: also failed to mention anything about burns, So where did 321 00:24:27,280 --> 00:24:32,560 Speaker 1: the alleged flames come from. Fire breathing involves spitting a 322 00:24:32,680 --> 00:24:37,480 Speaker 1: jet of flammable liquid into a blazing torch. For performers 323 00:24:37,600 --> 00:24:41,120 Speaker 1: using it in the carnival and circus trade, it's typically 324 00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:44,879 Speaker 1: the most dangerous part of their act. Things can go 325 00:24:45,040 --> 00:24:51,159 Speaker 1: badly wrong, especially if the feat is performed outdoors. In 326 00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:56,080 Speaker 1: his autobiography Memoirs of a Sword Swallower, the twentieth century 327 00:24:56,119 --> 00:25:01,000 Speaker 1: carnival artist Dan Mannix describes how one night, early on 328 00:25:01,080 --> 00:25:05,080 Speaker 1: in his career, he watched as America's leading fire eater 329 00:25:05,160 --> 00:25:09,200 Speaker 1: at the time, prepared for his act. Holding a flaming 330 00:25:09,240 --> 00:25:12,720 Speaker 1: torch well away from his body. The performer took a 331 00:25:12,760 --> 00:25:16,840 Speaker 1: mouthful from a glass of petrol and stood waiting for 332 00:25:16,880 --> 00:25:20,600 Speaker 1: the breeze to die down. Then a small trickle of 333 00:25:20,640 --> 00:25:24,960 Speaker 1: petrol accidentally leaked from the corner of the performer's mouth, 334 00:25:25,600 --> 00:25:28,439 Speaker 1: and an errant spark from the torch, blown by a 335 00:25:28,480 --> 00:25:33,040 Speaker 1: sudden gust of wind, leapt through the air, igniting the petrol. 336 00:25:33,920 --> 00:25:37,040 Speaker 1: There was a blinding flash of light as flame o'ed 337 00:25:37,040 --> 00:25:41,399 Speaker 1: the grate as he was known, erupted in flames, his 338 00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:46,080 Speaker 1: whole face on fire at the sinister Spring Heeled Jack. 339 00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:52,120 Speaker 1: Whoever or whatever they were, employed something similar. Either way, 340 00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:56,720 Speaker 1: there are no substantiated reports of him breathing fire after 341 00:25:56,760 --> 00:26:01,000 Speaker 1: the attack on Lucy Scales. By this time all of 342 00:26:01,040 --> 00:26:05,639 Speaker 1: London was aware of spring Heeled Jack, and imitators seemed 343 00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:09,320 Speaker 1: to be cropping up in his wake. In early eighteen 344 00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:13,320 Speaker 1: thirty eight, a smartly dressed man called in at the 345 00:26:13,359 --> 00:26:16,680 Speaker 1: White Lion Pub in vere Street and coolly told the 346 00:26:16,760 --> 00:26:21,360 Speaker 1: landlady that he was spring Heeled Jack. He pulled out 347 00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:24,439 Speaker 1: a club and aimed a vicious strike at the woman, 348 00:26:24,920 --> 00:26:29,520 Speaker 1: who managed to dodge the blow just in time. In March, 349 00:26:29,920 --> 00:26:34,320 Speaker 1: two tall men in black cloaks, their faces smeared with okra, 350 00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:39,919 Speaker 1: terrified a boy in Westmoreland Muse, while a youth named 351 00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:44,520 Speaker 1: Daniel Granville was caught in Kentish Town wearing a mask 352 00:26:44,680 --> 00:26:48,840 Speaker 1: with blue glazed paper at the mouth to simulate Jack's 353 00:26:48,920 --> 00:26:54,679 Speaker 1: fiery breath. Meanwhile, a man named James Painter was fined 354 00:26:54,800 --> 00:26:58,680 Speaker 1: four pounds for his exploits in the Kilburn area. Where 355 00:26:58,720 --> 00:27:02,639 Speaker 1: he assaulted women while wearing a fake beard and a 356 00:27:02,680 --> 00:27:13,880 Speaker 1: sheet all In all, the many sightings of supposed ghosts 357 00:27:14,160 --> 00:27:18,680 Speaker 1: and tall men lurking in alleyways, though terrifying for the public, 358 00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:23,800 Speaker 1: were rarely taken seriously by city officials. But the assault 359 00:27:23,880 --> 00:27:28,080 Speaker 1: on Jane Allsop was different, partly because the Allsops were 360 00:27:28,119 --> 00:27:31,879 Speaker 1: a family of significant means, but also because of the 361 00:27:31,960 --> 00:27:36,240 Speaker 1: testimony that Jane made at the Lambeth Street Police Office 362 00:27:36,440 --> 00:27:40,240 Speaker 1: the day after the attack, along with a surgeon's description 363 00:27:40,440 --> 00:27:44,240 Speaker 1: of her injuries, which was printed in many London newspapers. 364 00:27:45,560 --> 00:27:49,040 Speaker 1: On the second of March eighteen thirty eight, the national 365 00:27:49,080 --> 00:27:53,040 Speaker 1: newspaper The Times ran the story under the heading the 366 00:27:53,119 --> 00:27:58,960 Speaker 1: late Outrage at old Ford. It prompted two investigations, the 367 00:27:59,040 --> 00:28:04,520 Speaker 1: first conducted by the recently established London Metropolitan Police. The 368 00:28:04,600 --> 00:28:09,400 Speaker 1: second was overseen by the much revered officer James Lee. 369 00:28:10,720 --> 00:28:13,760 Speaker 1: Lee was employed by the Lambeth Street Police Office to 370 00:28:13,840 --> 00:28:18,480 Speaker 1: investigate cases that came before the local court. Reputed to 371 00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:22,000 Speaker 1: have been the best detective in London during the eighteen thirties, 372 00:28:22,560 --> 00:28:26,840 Speaker 1: Lee had a decade of investigative experience. He was perhaps 373 00:28:26,920 --> 00:28:30,120 Speaker 1: best known for the part he played in solving one 374 00:28:30,160 --> 00:28:34,320 Speaker 1: of the most sensational British crimes of the early eighteen hundreds, 375 00:28:35,040 --> 00:28:39,640 Speaker 1: the murder at the Red Barn. Though many doubted Jane 376 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:44,320 Speaker 1: Lsop's account of her terrifying encounter, John Lee had no 377 00:28:44,440 --> 00:28:48,600 Speaker 1: doubt she was telling the truth. In fact, the same 378 00:28:48,680 --> 00:28:51,880 Speaker 1: day that Jane, along with her father and older sister, 379 00:28:52,200 --> 00:28:55,480 Speaker 1: gave evidence of the attack to the Lambeth Street Magistrate, 380 00:28:55,960 --> 00:29:00,520 Speaker 1: Lee was already beginning his investigation. He was determined to 381 00:29:00,600 --> 00:29:05,040 Speaker 1: catch the attacker. But can you even catch a ghost? 382 00:29:07,000 --> 00:29:11,840 Speaker 1: You've been listening to Unexplained Season seven, episode five, Jumping 383 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:16,080 Speaker 1: Jack's Part one of two. The second and final part 384 00:29:16,200 --> 00:29:22,040 Speaker 1: will be released next Friday, September fifteenth. This episode was 385 00:29:22,080 --> 00:29:26,320 Speaker 1: written by Diane Hope and produced by Richard McLain smith. 386 00:29:27,880 --> 00:29:32,160 Speaker 1: Unexplained is an Avy Club Productions podcast created by Richard 387 00:29:32,200 --> 00:29:36,320 Speaker 1: McClain smith. All other elements of the podcast, including the music, 388 00:29:36,760 --> 00:29:41,280 Speaker 1: are also produced by me Richard McClain smith. Unexplained. The 389 00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:45,000 Speaker 1: book and audiobook, with stories never before featured on the show, 390 00:29:45,440 --> 00:29:49,520 Speaker 1: is now available to buy worldwide. You can purchase from Amazon, 391 00:29:49,800 --> 00:29:54,640 Speaker 1: Barnes and Noble, Waterstones and other bookstores. Please subscribe to 392 00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:57,920 Speaker 1: and rate the show wherever you get your podcasts, and 393 00:29:57,960 --> 00:30:00,280 Speaker 1: feel free to get in touch with any thought or 394 00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:04,040 Speaker 1: ideas regarding the stories you've heard on the show. Perhaps 395 00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:06,600 Speaker 1: you have an explanation of your own you'd like to share. 396 00:30:07,240 --> 00:30:10,720 Speaker 1: You can find out more at Unexplained podcast dot com 397 00:30:10,760 --> 00:30:14,480 Speaker 1: and reach us online through Twitter at Unexplained Pod and 398 00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:19,360 Speaker 1: Facebook at Facebook dot com, Forward slash Unexplained Podcast