Serial Killers have been a part of society for a very long time. Without question the best known is Jack The Ripper, his reign of terror in 1888 London has been the source of many books and movies. No one really knows who he was, there are historians that claim he was part of the British Royal Family, and while the Queen did not condone his actions, she chose to ignore them.

Is this the truth? Here we are 120 years (plus) later and Jack The Ripper still remains an enigma. Who he actually was still is a subject of hot debate.

What we do know is that in the waning months of 1888 a number of prostitutes in the Whitechapel district of London were brutally murdered. The police were convinced that at least 5 of the killings were committed by the same hand, but that number is largely thought to be inaccurate and several other killings can be attributed to the same person.

The reign of terror stopped as abruptly as it started. It is very doubtful that Jack The Ripper was the first Serial Killer, but he has was the first to be well documented in modern history.

Serial Killers are never the less a fact of life. Modern society seems to have a morbid fascination for them, both fictional and factual. Since Jack The Ripper’s rampage in 1888 the world has seen many other maniacs at work. Here in the US we have had more than our fair share. Some of the most infamous include Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz (Son of Sam), John Wayne Gacey, Jeffery Dahmer, and Charles Manson, but this is in fact just the tip of the iceberg. I was online and did a Google search, while I do not generally use Wikipedia as a source of trustworthy information I did come across this interesting article. It very much puts the Serial Killer into a context that hits truly horrific proportions.

I recently read a great novel It’s In The Eyes by Charles Toftoy  that explores the world of a serial killer and his motivations and drive. Although fictional, Charles Toftoy did a great deal of research on the subject including talking to law enforcement personnel, even profilers. Charles and I have decided to collaborate on a project to investigate the subject of serial killers. In the coming weeks BNN will be publishing our findings.

We both have extensive contacts in a diverse number of disciplines, this will be a series that you will not want to miss.  We are also planning to hold some round table radio discussions with a number of experts.

Simon Barrett