David Farnor | On 16, Dec 2020

“One of the most cunning killers they’ve ever had to trace…” That’s the sound of Netflix turning its true crime gaze to the Yorkshire Ripper in a new docuseries.

For five years, between 1975 to 1980, the Yorkshire Ripper murders cast a dark shadow over the lives of women in the North of England. 13 women were dead and the police seemed incapable of catching the killer. No one felt safe – and every man was a suspect.

Chronicling the twists and turns of the largest police manhunt in British police history, Netflix’s four part series re-examines the crimes within the context of England in the late 1970s: a time of radical change, de-industrialisation, poverty, masculinity and misogyny, all of which contributed to the Ripper evading capture for so long.

The series follows The Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story, the BBC Four documentary that we described as “a powerful, heartfelt, anger-inducing game-changer”. Can Netflix’s documentary live up to that? Find out on 16th December, when the series premieres online worldwide.

Here’s the trailer:

 

The Ripper is available on Netflix UK, as part of an £9.99 monthly subscription.

 

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