Bit of a grim subject- but was anyone living in Leeds / Bradford at the time of the Yorkshire ripper?

Yes I was living between Halifax and Bradford and visiting Huddersfield to see friends regularly throughout the time you are interested in. Ripper murders took place in all of these places over a long time period.

It was very scary and we were given lots of warnings about not being alone outside after dark. There were far more visible police about than we ever see these days. I was stopped by a traffic policeman on the way home from a Girl Guide leaders meeting in Huddersfield on the night Helen Ritka was murdered there and my details were taken. Lots of colleagues had the same experiences.

At work (Inland Revenue, Bradford) we were visited by the murder squad police and they played the infamous "I'm Jack" tape to us all in case any of us might recognise the voice. No-one did but we were told that this was the Ripper -and believed it.

We were all conscious that "he" was on the prowl and that we had to be careful and it did inhibit social activities to some degree. Not wholly but certainly everyone was much more alert and careful about ensuring friends did not go home alone. In the early stages the police were saying that he was targeting prostitutes so that gave some, false as it transpired, reassurance to the rest of us. That reassurance vanished though as his killing became more indiscriminate.

It was a great relief, but rather a shock when Peter Sutcliffe was arrested as everyone still thought "I'm Jack" was the murderer.

My husband was often in Leeds at the time, he had a “Jason King moustache” so was pulled over twice by Police and questioned.

Remember it well it's was a very sad time ,we were advised not to go out alone ,where possible husbands accompanied wife's ,girlfriends to work ,I had workmates who were very frightened .

I remember it very well. Some of the murders were very close to home. On the day the Ripper was named a member of staff did not appear that morning. He had the same surname. Goodness we were so elated when he did appear later on in the day.

Cycling home in Sheffield one night the driver of a white van overtook me, jumped out and opened the back door of the van, offering me a lift. He did the three times before driving off. I was terrified, not least because we lived up a hill so steep that I couldn't cycle up it. Also we didn't have a phone. Got home, told my husband what had happened, and then went out to a call box and rang the police. I had memorised the van's registration number.

Next morning a young policeman knocked on our door and said they'd caught up with the driver who had told them he was "only joking"! So they'd let him go. This was at least a year before Sutcliffe was caught.

Nowadays I'd go absolutely ballistic with police in such a situation. It was rubbish policing. I suspect there was a lot more rubbish policing happening in Yorkshire at that time. We lived pretty close to the Hillsborough area of Sheffield. Look what happened there because of rubbish policing too.

We had a neighbour whose daughter was at Leeds University and I can remember how frightened she was and her insistence that her daughter return home....she didn't.
She was actually living very close to the Chapeltown district where I believe he killed.
I can remember talking to her once and her saying that students had been told they'd be fine because he only killed one specific group

What a really interesting thread.
Thank you for sharing your stories. Real life history

Sutcliffe was arrested in Broomhill, Sheffield in January 1981 by South Yorkshire police, having been found in a car with a prostitute. The car had false number plates which is why he was arrested. He was then transferred into the jurisdiction of West Yorkshire police. I fancy the prostitute had a lucky escape.

I was at Leeds uni at the time and lived near Headinley, off Cardigan road for those who know Leeds. The nearest murder was a mile away on Alma Road. We were careful to always go out in twos. I didn't follow the coverage as I wanted to keep calm about the situation and of course we didnt have a TV in student accommodation in those days. It must have been worrying for my parents but they barely mentioned it

Seems to me that there are far too many tv programmes about past horrific murders. Mostly these are of young women and children and I wonder how their families feel about the prurient interest in their loved ones, because it is not the past fir them. I think it’s rather tasteless with no thought to those still living and personally involved.
As for whether some may have been prostitutes , or not, that should be irrelevant.

I lived in Leeds through the seventies and don’t remember being especially concerned about my own safety, even though I recollect the police coming round to interview everyone. I think that was the naivety/optimism of youth, plus the message was that he was targeting prostitutes. My parents were in London and must have been concerned. It was a major factor for much of the time I lived there. At one point I worked next door to the police station in Pudsey (between Leeds and Bradford) who had a lot of extra personnel as a result and were invited to share our canteen. We knew better than to ask about their work but while everyone believed they were working on the case, I now wonder whether in fact they had been redeployed from central Leeds on more routine work.

I was at Bradford Uni 75 - 76 which is in the area frequented by the Ripper, and lived in Bradford until 1980. Our house was a mile away from where it was subsequently discovered that Sutcliffe lived.
Always fairly wary when going out with female friends, and it was a restrictive time for women, who were advised to stay in at night (not the men of course). Can’t really say we lived in fear, we were young and invincible then!

^ I was stopped by a traffic policeman on the way home from a Girl Guide leaders meeting in Huddersfield on the night Helen Ritka was murdered there and my details were taken.^

Shouldn't they have been concentrating on getting details from males wandering about at night?

silverlining48

Seems to me that there are far too many tv programmes about past horrific murders. Mostly these are of young women and children and I wonder how their families feel about the prurient interest in their loved ones, because it is not the past fir them. I think it’s rather tasteless with no thought to those still living and personally involved.
As for whether some may have been prostitutes , or not, that should be irrelevant.

This is a really interesting comment and something I was recently discussing with a colleague - we work in criminal justice and over the years, have had involvement, to some degree, in very 'high media profile' cases.

Some families do want cases kept in the public eye, for various reasons i.e a change in policy / process, to ensure the perpetrator/s remain in custody, as a remembrance of what someone suffered.
Others find it upsetting and intrusive in the extreme, especially when falsehoods are in the media or it's a re - examination of the victims life.

There was an excellent documentary shown recently about Dennis Nilsen when instead of the focus being on him, it was about the men and boys abused and killed by him. They were given names and identities...although it's tragic that some remain unknown.

It's very telling isn't it that while people can name killers - how many can name their victims?

I was in my mid teens and lived near Huddersfield. It certainly made me wary of being out on my own after dark at the time, though I wasn't old enough to be doing that late at night anyway.

I wasn't in the area but I remember it being in the News. I have recently watched The Ripper on Netflix about it. The policing was very poor.

I was doing my nurse training at St James hospital Leeds and regularly had to walk between two hospitals late at night. I remember feeling very spooked, and having to be being very alert at the time . Also I have two friends husbands that were questioned by the police.
One of the girls killed has got the same name as me ?

You are right about victims silverlining and Dee.
I will never forget the well publicised comment the prosecution counsel Sir Michael Havers made about victims at Sutcliffe’s trial. Some were prostitutes but perhaps the saddest part of the case is that some were not. The last six were on totally respectable women.
This must have been so hard for victim’s families to have to bear, not only bereavement but that their loved ones didn’t count as much.
I like to think this would never happen today, but the way some of the press report still tends to characterise women in a similar fashion. Calling Sutcliffe The Ripper also plays into this narrative.

We were in the Midlands nowhere near Yorkshire but I do remember being scared at the time.

It’s my earliest news memory (apart the death of Elvis)
I was eight. I vividly remember seeing his face on the front page of a friend’s parents newspaper.

You are but a youngster Fanny

There was a thread on here some time ago about someone who had written about a true crime in a sensationalist way. The poster's aunt had been murdered and she was unhappy about it. We had an interesting and thoughtful discussion, and I hope the poster found it helpful.

I tend not to read or watch 'true crime' because I find it upsetting, but I do see that in the right hands it can be a vehicle for justice.

My dad was questioned over this.
He was born in Roker, Sunderland in the North East but met my mum after the war when they were both at a
'Help out on the land Scheme'
( somewhere rural in the midlands)
They were both 17 years old.
Mum is from Portsmouth and they had been living near Portsmouth, married for over 25 years, when the police called.
Apparently they were wanting to talk to all men who would have a certain accent.
Well. Dad didn't have a north eastern accent anymore, and they wanted to know why. Was he faking his southern accent !!!

I was further north but we were still all worried. My mother and her friends went around in groups and husbands took turns to pick them up if they had been out.
I know it shouldn't have but I think the worry intensified when it was realised he was not just targeting prostitutes.
Fanny is certainly a youngster I think Elvis died just after I was married.