- "This girl, if she has been carved as has been described, Ripper or no, word will have spread. We will find the press, a mob, whipped into a fear and rage. This populace, still without a culprit, it is to our uniform that they direct their fury. So you stand strong, and you follow your sergeant."
- ―Detective Inspector Edmund Reid
| "I Need Light" | |
|---|---|
| |
| Air date | December 30th, 2012 (UK) January 19th, 2013 (US) |
| Writers | Richard Warlow |
| Director | Tom Shankland |
| Producers | Greg Brenman; Cait Collins; Will Gould; Ed Guiney; Polly Hill; Andrew Lowe; Katie McAleese; Stephen Smallwood; Simon Vaughan |
| Starring | Matthew Macfadyen; Jerome Flynn; Adam Rothenberg; David Wilmot; Jonathan Barnwell; MyAnna Buring; Amanda Hale; Lucy Cohu; David Dawson; Charlene McKenna |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous — |
Next "In My Protection" |
"I Need Light" is the first episode of season one of the British period drama Ripper Street. It was directed by Tom Shankland and written by Richard Warlow. It first aired on BBC One in the UK on Sunday, December 30th, 2012 and on BBC America in the United States on Saturday, January 19th, 2013.
It has been just over four months since 19th century London was last terrorized by the unidentified murderer known as Jack the Ripper. But now, another body is discovered over in Miller's Court - right near the exact location where the Ripper's previous victim was found. As "Ripper" fever sweeps through the East End, Detective Inspector Edmund Reid and Detective Sergeant Bennet Drake investigate the crime, while also trying to keep the public from descending into a frenzy of panic. Reluctantly, Inspector Reid is forced to call upon the services of an American surgeon named Captain Homer Jackson to help him solve the mystery.
Cast[]
Principal Cast[]
Guest Stars[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Clive Russell | Frederick Abberline |
| Steven Robertson | Christian Thwaites |
| Mark Dexter | Sir Arthur Donaldson |
| Geoff Bell | Cecil Smeaton |
| Julian Bleach | Creighton |
| Morgan C. Jones | Pornographer |
| Gary Mountaine | Tour guide |
| Sarah Gallagher | Maud Thwaites |
| Bush Moukarzel | Copper |
| Sean Duggan | Fight umpire |
| Ian Bannon | Police constable |
| Kristian Nairn | Barnaby Silver |
Notes & Trivia[]
"I'm Inspector Reid, and THIS is what I think of ya!"
- This episode is included on disc one of the Ripper Street: Series One DVD and Blu-ray collections.
- This episode had a viewership of 7.89 million people.
- The events of this episode take place in late March, 1889 , which is four months after the murder of Mary Jane Kelly - the last of the canonical Ripper murders in November, 1888.
- This is the first of five episodes of Ripper Street written by Richard Warlow. His next episode is "In My Protection".
- This is the first of four episodes of Ripper Street directed by Tom Shankland. His next episode is "In My Protection".
- Actor Morgan C. Jones is credited as Morgan Jones in this episode.
- Actor Ian Bannon is uncredited for his participation in this episode.
- Actor Kristian Nairn is uncredited for his participation in this episode.
- This is the first television work for actor Jonathan Barnwell.
- When Edmund Reid dips his finger into Creighton's photography solution and examines it, it appears as if he is extending the middle finger to the viewer. This is likely not intentional.
Allusions[]
- Jack the Ripper is the name attributed to an unidentified serial killer who claimed the lives of at least five women in the Whitechapel district of London, England in the Autumn of 1888. The five women who are considered canonical Ripper victims were all prostitutes working in London's East End and include Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride and Mary Jane Kelly. Several other victims who were murdered around this time have also been linked to Jack the Ripper, but there is not enough evidence to assertively link them to Jack the Ripper. The mystery surrounding the murders and the individual who committed them has sparked the public consciousness and debate rages to this day over the true identity of Jack the Ripper.
- Edmund John James Reid is an actual historical figure born in Canterbury, Kent, England on March 21st, 1846. He was the head of the Criminal Investigation Department in the Metropolitan Police Service's H Division at the time of the Whitechapel murders of Jack the Ripper in 1888. He passed away in Herne Bay, Kent on December 5th, 1917 at the age of 71.
- The real Frederick George Abberline was a Chief Inspector for the London Metropolitan Police and was a prominent police figure in the investigation into the Jack the Ripper murders of 1888. He was born in Blandford Forum, Dorset, England on January 8th, 1843. He passed away in Bournemouth on December 10th, 1929 at the age of 86.
- The Whitechapel tour guide makes reference to "Mister Gladstone" who "only last week found himself fitted for new boots". This is a reference to Sir Thomas Gladstone, 2nd Baronet, a Tory and a member of Parliament. He passed away on March 20th, 1889, which establishes the date in which this episode takes place.
- Miller's Court is the section of Spitalfields where Jack the Ripper murdered Mary Jane Kelly on November 9th, 1888. It is now known as Dorset Street. The exact location in Miller's Court where the victim from this episode is found is Norton Folgate.
- The words written on the wall at the murder scene, "Down on whores", is a reference to the infamous "From Hell" letter, allegedly authored by Jack the Ripper. In the letter, Jack admonishes the actions of women lacking virtue declaring, "I'm down on whores...". The scene from this episode is also a nod to the graffiti found on Goulston Street on September 30th, 1888, which was the night of the double-murder of Catherine Eddowes and Elizabeth Stride.
- Bennet Drake asks Edmund Reid if they are bringing the woman's body to Bagster Phillips. This is a reference to George Bagster Phillips, who served as the police surgeon for H Division of the Metropolitan Police during the time of the original Ripper murders.
- Actual autopsy photographs of Ripper victims Catherine Eddowes and Mary Ann Nichols can be seen on the bulletin board at the Metropolitan Police Service building when Edmund Reid first enters. A photograph of the fifth victim, Mary Jane Kelly can be seen in Reid's hand, along with the two others as they inspect the body in the jail cell.
- The Star is an actual London newspaper publication that was founded in 1888. The Star achieved early prominence and high circulation by sensationalising the Whitechapel murders of 1888–1891. Some suspect that it wrote the Dear Boss letter that gave Jack the Ripper his name to boost circulation numbers. This episode establishes that Fred Best wrote the "Down on whores" grafitti at the murder scene.
- A newspaper headline for The Star reads "John Pizer is Jack the Ripper". John Pizer was a Polish jew and was one of many unconfirmed suspects who was thought to have been Jack the Ripper at the time of the murders. This episode posits the notion that it may have been Fred Best who first fingered Pizer as the Ripper.
Quotes[]
- Bennet Drake: (after picking up an opponent's tooth) Yours, shitspade.
....
- Edmund Reid: Fighters, whores... if flesh is what you seek, there's no shortage in these parts.
....
- Edmund Reid: Money's right, he'll give you his mother and his sister too.
...
- Fred Best: These citizens need their questions answered, Mister Reid!
- Edmund Reid: No! They need their fears pacified!
...
- Long Susan: You cannot simply intrude here any time of your choosing.
- Edmund Reid: That this house thrives and that your girls are not walking the streets this night is at my whim and inulgence, Madam. Don't forget that.
....
- Homer Jackson: It's no wonder to me at all that you are a bachelor.
....
- Edmund Reid: (To Drake regarding Jackson) I know it's tempting, but try not to kill him.
...
- Edmund Reid: You spoke to Fred Abberline?
- Fred Best: Your boss as was? I have. Yes. And he, uhh... finds himself in agreement with me. Our friend is back.
....
- Edmund Reid: If I see this in print, I'll be back here for some "ripping" of my own.
See also[]
External Links[]