The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Index

Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 1
Plot Synopsis ................................................................................................................................... 2
Listening .............................................................................................................................................. 3
The Characters ............................................................................................................................... 5
Dialogue 1 ........................................................................................................................................... 7
Dialogue 2 ............................................................................................................................................ 9
Dialogue 3 ........................................................................................................................................ 11
Pre-play activity 1 ............................................................................................................... 12
Pre-play activity 2 ................................................................................................................ 13
Pre-play activity 3 ................................................................................................................ 14
Post-play
Post-play
Post-play
Post-play
Post-play
Post-play
Post-play
Post-play

activity 1 TEACHERS PACK ................................................................................ 15

activity 2 TEACHERS PACK ............................................................................... 16
activity 3 TEACHERS PACK ................................................................................ 17
activity 4 TEACHERS PACK ................................................................................. 19
activity 1 STUDENTS PACK ................................................................................ 20
activity 2 STUDENTS PACK ................................................................................. 21
activity 3 STUDENTS PACK ................................................................................. 23
activity 4 STUDENTS PACK .................................................................................. 25

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Introduction
The primary purpose of the teachers pack is
to help both teachers and students alike to get
as much as possible out of their participation
in the Interactive performance of THE SECRET
DIARY OF JACK THE RIPPER.
The pack has been designed as a tool to
help students understand the play, learn the
new vocabulary and improve their listening
and speaking skills. Once they have done the
activities, students will better understand both
how the story develops and the lines the actors
deliver and so they will get more enjoyment out
of performance.

Both
the
introductory
material
and
the suggested activities may require the
corresponding audio material to make a better
use of them. In that case, we provide you with
the corresponding track number from the Audio
CD.
In order to help the teacher find and select
the audio activities, we list
below the track
numbers with its corresponding contents from
the play THE SECRET DIARY OF JACK THE RIPPER.

CD. AUDIO - THE SECRET

SECRET DIARY OF JACK THE
RIPPER (Track 30 to 34)
-Track-30- Listening.
Jack the
the ripper, the legend that
remains a mystery.
-Track-31- Meet the Characters.

This CD contains some introductory material

where youll find the corresponding texts to
the plot synopsis, meet the characters, and some
dialogues from the play.

Doctor Gull and Mary.

Mary.
-Track-32- Dialogue 1.
-Track-33- Dialogue 2 .
-Track-34- Dialogue 3.

Besides, youll find some suggested activities

we recommend you to do before the play, Preplay activities, and some Post-play activities
which have been designed to check if students
understood the play correctly and that they have
assimilated the vocabulary, expressions and
grammatical structures they work on. Pre-play
and post-play activities include instructions
for the teacher and the corresponding student
worksheets, as long as the activity requires
them.

We sincerely hope than both teachers and

students fully enjoy the play itself and
the activities which make up this teachers
pack. And that this prove to be a useful aid
in enhancing enjoyment of that Interactive
Theatre experience.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Plot synopsis
London, Sunday September 30th, the year of our
Lord, 1888... We are in the home of the prestigious
Doctor William Whitney Gull, now retired and named
baron by Queen Victoria of England. We are in the
so-called Autumn of Terror, since in the city of
London, and more specifically in the neighborhood
of Whitechapel, a series of atrocious murders are
still being committed and prostitutes are always
the victims; and Scotland Yard, more than trying
to solve the case, has just one clue, a slight lead.
To the home of Dr. Gull comes a new maid, named
Mary. A young girl - only twenty-one years old-,
attentive, and she has a good reference letter. The
conversation between the two flows, and allows
the doctor to find out details about Marys life,
like the fact that she lives in the neighborhood
of Whitechapel, is unmarried and the daughter of
a tailor. The Doctor is very friendly with her,
and he offers her a drink, so the conversation
stops being merely formal, The Doctor also speaks
of his father, who was a sailor, and how he ended
up being a Doctor to no less than Queen Victoria
of England.
Miss Mary is delighted to accept the maids
position in the house of Dr. Gull, and he so reveals
himself the same. The Doctor himself helps Mary
correctly put on the apron in order to work, and
takes advantage of the opportunity to ask her
why she no longer works in the previous house;
Mary tells of the fire that occurred at the home
and that it had caused the death of the owners. Dr.
Gull bereaved, changes the subject and she talks
about the Church, she attends every Sunday and
she tells of the sermon Father Thomas gives on
bad people and how to detect them: the brightness
of the eyes. Brightness that Mary herself said
she had seen once, a long time ago On August 31st
- the same night that the famous Jack the Ripper
murdered his first victim. Dr. Gull ends the chat
by telling Mary to exit and give a message to
the driver, but suddenly changed his mind and,
violently, asks her not to.

The two characters leave the stage. Time

passes and a man appears half hidden moving
stealthily, but at the sound of someone coming
imminently gets nervous and drops a bloody rag
to the ground. Mary finds the rag, and when she
sees Doctor Gull instinctively hides it. The fact
that Mary is going to the press, allows Doctor
Gull to write in his diabolical diary, and the
true identity of the murderer is discovered. Mary
enters the scene nervous and worried, with a
newspaper in her hands, and loudly announcing
that the famous Jack the Ripper has killed again,
in this case two women.
The fact that Dr. Gull exits for dinner,
allows Mary discover his personal diary, and
after reading some of the content hides it and
leaves the scene. When Dr. Gull returns again and
searches for the diary he cannot find it, since
Mary has taken it.
Later, Mary tries to sneak out of the house
taking the diary, but is surprised by Dr. Gull,
who blocks her way to the street and forces her
to drink a substance that leaves her drugged. Now
the Doctors true identity is revealed as Jack the
Ripper and he explains why those killings were
carried out: it is all a plot to kill the women
who witnessed the secret wedding of Prince Victor
Albert, grandson of the Queen, and his union with
a woman named Anne Crock, had resulted in the
birth of a girl named Alice.
With Marys murder, Doctor Gull finishes with
all the women that were witness to the event and
with them the orders handed down by the senior
members.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Jack the ripper, the legend that remains a mystery
LISTENING
The legend of Jack the Ripper is 125 years
old. His mysterious crimes at Whitechapel
have made this cosmopolitan neighborhood
of east London a claim for curious tourists,
fascinated by the unknown prostitute
murderer.
Today there is a list of up to one hundred
and six suspects that have embodied the
famous criminal ranging from a counselor of
Queen Victoria and a painter obsessed with
prostitutes to a barbaric Polish surgeon,
who was actually responsible according to
detective Abberline who led the case in 1888.
He was not the first mass murderer, nor
the bloodiest, but his name is known to
everyone in the neighborhood by his actions,
and whatever the origin of these, from then
to now, has made Whitechapel an immigrant
area.
In 1888 this area of London was very
poor with a miserable history, and it had
merged eighty thousand people between poor,
unemployed, immigrants, orphans, criminals
and prostitutes.
Some brick facades of the time, along with
alleys that are still preferable to avoid in
the dark, were the places where Jack roamed
for his victims, all of which were prostitutes.
Although the police investigation saw up
to eleven crimes committed from April 1888 to
February 1891, the ripperologists (experts on
Jack the Ripper) attributed only five of them
to him because of their same modus operandi
strangulation of the victim, a slit throat

Cd track 30
and opening of the abdominal area.
The body of Mary Ann Nichols was the
first to meet all these requirements; this
is therefore the official first victim- when
she was discovered on Friday, August 31st at
3:40 am, in the back of what is the current
Whitechapel Metro Station.
The last person to see her, told Scotland
Yard agents that Mary Ann disappeared in
search of customers to sleep under a roof,
requiring between two and four pence, for the
two services.
Prostitutes charged three pence per
customer, an amount equivalent to the price
of a loaf of bread or a pint (600 milliliters)
of gin and tonic, some were well paid, and
all victims of Jack the Ripper had a known
alcohol addiction.
The second victim was Annie Chapman,
murdered on September 8, 1888 in a courtyard
of a house that, at present, is part of the
market.
When police found the body, they found
that it was missing the uterus and three
quarters of the bladder, a sign that Jacks
ferocity was in crescendo.
Meanwhile, some newspapers began to
publish letters allegedly sent by the Ripper,
which later proved false but gave him his
famous name and made him the first media
serial killer in history.
One of the journalists of the time, under
pressure from his manager later confessed
that he had wrote one of the more impacting

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

letters as it was the first time the name Jack
the Ripper appeared (the literal translation
would be John the Seam Ripper) and had been
signed.
For the first time, the British press-very
cheap and widespread even among the illiterate
population issued explicit drawings that
accompanied-full pages of murder, then very
common in Whitechapel, but on this occasion
impacted more for its excessive violence.
The
crime
shocked
the
battered
neighborhood on the night of the 30th of
September, when Jack did not kill one but two
prostitutes with an interval of 45 minutes in
between, in which the experts ripperologists
call the night of the double event.
Experts believe that the murderer was
interrupted while he slaughtered Elizabeth
Stride and so dissatisfied and bloodthirsty,
ran approximately 1.3 miles until he saw
Catherine Eddowes in a square in the City of
London.
With Eddowes he exacted all of the
violence that he could not on the first victim
of the night: Her face mutilated, intestines
arranged over one shoulder and removal of
the left kidney.
Half of the spoils, a bloodied apron was
found a few blocks away next to graffiti
which is one of the cornerstones of the most
popular theories though rejected by experts.
The Juwes are the men that will not
be blamed for nothing (The Jews are the
men that will not be blamed for anything),
strange grammatical construction in English,
as there is a double negative, prompting the
authorities to believe that the murderer
could be foreign.

Also seen as another error, the word Juwes,

which was interpreted as Jews in English,
is actually spelt Jews. Some people believe
that this is not a typo but suspect it is a
Masonic wink at that religious group.
Jacks peak arrived with his last victim,
Mary Jane Kelly, the only one he killed under
a roof. The girl was one of a few prostitutes
who had the privilege of occupying a room,
which gave the murderer privacy and time to
torment her.
Mary Kelly did not look human when
a neighbor found her: she was completely
disfigured, her ribs exposed after Jack had
removed all her organs and placed them on
the bedside table, also cutting her arms and
legs to leave the bones in plain sight.
It was the fifth and final goal of a
murderer that there is still nothing known
about with any certainty, not even why the
killing stopped. The police investigation
did not bring any definitive conclusions or
theories about his identity and did nothing
but multiply his popularity.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

The characters

Cd track 31

DR. GULL
Sir William Withey Gull was the son of a
Sailor who died of cholera, which left his
family in poverty. In spite of this, William
was lucky Mr. Harrison, secretary of the
Hospital Guy, took him under his protection.
He studied in the hospital mentioned and
graduated in medicine at the University
of London (1841), which allowed him achieve
his title in 1846. He lectured in natural
philosophy in the Hospital Guy from 1843
until 1847.
He was also a professor of comparative
anatomy between the years 1846 and 1856.
Received the title of professor and lecturer
in physiology and anatomy at the hospital
that would serve as physiognomist during
the rest of his life. Gull was named baron
in 1872, when he treated the Prince of Wales
typhoid fever. He was also Queen Victorias
physical therapist, the two patients who
over esteemed him as the most famous
physical therapist in England.
He was a member of the General Medical
Council and was appointed Dr. Juries Honor
in Oxford in 1868, Cambridge 1880 and in
Edinburgh in 1884. In 1887, he was appointed
to the physiognomist staff of the queen,
but, for health reasons, had to cease work
the following year. Actually it is difficult
to conceive of a more distinguished career
than this Doctors.
However, such merits did not prevent the
passage of time spreading the rumor that

the famous physician had taken a second

existence much darker, since under his
so dignified appearance was supposedly
hiding the worst British serial murderer
of the late XIX century: Jack the Ripper.
The emergence of Gull in this role was
due to the work of journalist and writer
Stephen Knight published in 1976 under the
title of Jack the Ripper: The Final Solution.
According to this story, the five Ripper
prostitute victims trying to blackmail
the British Crown after learning of the
semi-clandestine marriage of Prince Victor
Albert, Duke of Clarence, to a modest trade
worker Annie Crook who had a daughter by
the future King.
To this end, a conspiracy was verified
involving prominent members of the empire
(especially, some linked to Freemasonry),
and the official doctor of the royal
family would have to fulfill the orders
to exterminate the conjured blackmailers.
For the purposes of accomplishing such
an abominable task, the eminent surgeon
would have the assistance rendered by two
accomplices, namely: the coachman John
Netley and famed impressionist painter
Walter Richard Sickert.
Knights work was very impressive media,
but received almost unanimous rejection by
scholars of the case, due to its conspicuous
absence of evidence.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

MARY
Mary Jane Kelly (c. 1863 - November 9, 1888), also
known as Marie Jeanette Kelly, Fair Emma, Ginger
and Black Mary, is considered as the fifth and final
canonical famous unidentified victim of serial
murderer Jack the Ripper, who killed and mutilated
prostitutes in the Whitechapel area of London from
late August to early November 1888. Mary Jane Kelly
was born in Limerick, Ireland, sometime in 1863. At
the time of her death she was about 25 years old and
lived in poverty.
The real historical character, we made our own
version, that had become the personal servant of
Dr. Gull, but this is certainly license taken by
the author. Actually Mary Jane Kelly traveled to
the British capital in 1884, and served as luxury
prostitute in the West End. She later moved to France,
but soon returned to England, there residing in
East London where she lived in poverty and was
becoming addicted to alcohol.
When the crimes of Jack the Ripper were
happening (from 31 August to double crime of
September 30, 1888) she was very frightened, and
left her job with caution temporarily while living
with a Billingsgate market worker named Joseph
Barnett. Most of the few biographical details about
this victim came from the depositions made by the
man educated in the inquest after the death of his
companion.
On his death certificate Mary Jane Kelly was
registered on 17 November under the name Marie
Jeanette Kelly Davies. Mary Kelly was buried in
a public ceremony at St. Patricks Roman Catholic
Cemetery in Langthorne Road, Leytonstone E11, on
November 19, 1888. Her tomb was No. 66 in row 66, plot
10.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Dialogue 1 Cd track 32
We can hear the chimes of Big Ben closely
sounding five oclock. A young girl enters the
scene in an elegant dress and matching hat, she
is also carrying a small bag. We are inside the
kitchen of a Victorian house, with a table in
the center and with drawers holding kitchen
utensils.
V.O. Sunday September 30th. London, the
year of our lord, 1888. We are at number 137 on
a centrally located street, near Parliament
of the United Kingdom. Inside the home of the
eminent and prestigious Dr. William Withey Gull,
now retired but made a baron by Queen Victoria
of England. Dr. Gull is a man who is dedicated
to walking, reading and going to the General
Medical Council, of which he is an honorary
member. He leads a very quiet and peaceful life,
admired by all Londoners, who live deep in the
traditions of the Victorian era, in spite of the
fact that in all of them echoes the so-called
Autumn of Terror, a succession of horrible
murders being committed in the neighborhood
of Whitechapel, and which have not yet been
clarified by the police, who is the author of
the same, remains a mystery.

She stands up after waiting

waiting for a moment
while the voice speaks, then the girl decides
to sit and wait on a stool, she looks a little
nervous. And in that moment a man enters the
scene, Dr. Gull. He makes it so she does not see
him, until he speaks. He is a distinguishedlooking gentleman, wearing a dressing grown.

Mary. Dr. Gull. So... (To the man who just

entered) Doctor Gull.
Dr. Gull. Stand up, Miss...
Mary. Mary.
Dr. Gull. Do me a favor then, Miss Mary; you
are not going to sit there all afternoon, are
you? Especially today, Sunday.
Mary. No, of course not.
Dr. Gull. Mmmm.
Mary. (Giving a rolled up letter to Dr. Gull)
Sorry, here is my letter of reference.
Dr. Gull. (Reading it) Aha!, Miss Mary I see
you have worked in very remarkable homes and
with families of high esteem no doubt, I dare
say, your references are downright flawless.
Mary. Thank you sir.
Dr. Gull. Your age? If it is not an indiscretion
of course.
Mary. Twenty one, sir.
Dr. Gull. Lovely creature, only twenty one
years old. How beautiful life is when you are
twenty one! Is it not true?
Mary. I guess so.
Dr. Gull. However, at my age ... everything is
so different. How old do you think I am?
Mary. I do not know, doctor, Im very bad at
guessing such details.
Dr. Gull. Guessing? Im not talking about
guessing, my beautiful girl, but pure science.
Guessing undoubtedly corresponds to another
field. In any case, you have to examine the
contour of the eyes, forehead wrinkles, shake in
the hands, your own energy, and even your own
breath to know if you are in front of someone
young or not. And let us not mention if we were
able to get into the depths of the mind, but that
is something that we will not get into just now.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Mary. Of course not, Doctor Gull.
Dr. Gull. So ... How old am I?
Mary. I told you that I...
Dr. Gull. You are a shy, girl, and very discreet,
I see. Two virtues that most women suffer. My own
wife had both.
Mary. Did she? That means that ... Sorry, I
didnt know she had...
Dr. Gull. Poor Susan. I could do nothing to
save her. There is always a moment in the life
of a man in which forces falter, and I arrived
right at the moment in which she ... Anyway, lets
leave the memories for another time. I suppose
you have yours too. (He goes to serve)
Mary. Allow me, Dr. Gull.

It is Mary who prepares the drink for Dr.

Gull.
Dr. Gull. You have a special gift for serving
drinks, it is more than evident. Where did you
acquire it?
Mary. Right here, sir, in London.
Dr. Gull. What neighborhood?
Mary. The neighborhood of Whitechapel.
Mary
Dr. Gull. The very heart of London, a
neighborhood so full of life, women, alcohol ...
Anyway, I meant where did this gift for serving
drinks come from?
Mary. I grew up in a house where I was the
only woman, and so I attended my father and my
three brothers. My father was a tailor.
Dr. Gull. My mother used to say: If I were a
tailor, I would put all my efforts into being the
best tailor in the world, if I was boilermaker or
a coppersmith no one would be able to straighten
a kettle like me.
Mary. A wise woman, no doubt.
Dr. Gull. Are you married, single, have
children...?

Mary. Single, sir, no boyfriend and no mood

to have one, if I may say so.
Dr. Gull. Sorry to smile, but when you are
speaking of men I have noticed a certain
mistrust.
Mary. Excuse me, Dr. Gull, if I was too euphoric.
No doubt I must learn to restrain my impulses.
Dr. Gull. Why? Are we going to let the
Victorian education take the spontaneity off of
us, and snatch the impulse and emotions which
are innate in human beings, just for the fact of
being human?
Mary. I did not mean that, its just...
Dr. Gull. Relax, Miss Mary, naturalness is
a virtue that every day the English people
suffer more. It is fair and necessary to have
education, that Ill never doubt, but from that
to repression is only a step. Do you feel like
a drink?
Mary. I must not, Dr. Gull, I...
Dr. Gull. Come on, come on, pour yourself a
glass, before you regret me having said it (She
does) Do you know what I would have been, if I
had not finally dedicated myself to medicine?

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Dialogue 2

Cd track 33

The time passes and clock in the Parliament

tower strikes eight, and then comes the arrival
of a carriage. A very cloaked figure enters
the scene, with coat and hat. The figure moves
stealthily, trying not to make any noise. He
uncovers a bloody knife and looks around for
something to clean it with, finally finding
a rag and cleans it. He hears sounds that
come from outside and leaves quietly without
anyones ever seeing, but the cloth falls to
the ground. Mary enters the scene with a tray
and various cooking vessels. She goes to the
table and leaves them down. She looks happy,
but then looks down and discovers the cloth
on the floor; she picks it up and sees the
remains of the blood on it. Dr. Gull enters the
scene in a dressing grown.

Dr. Gull. Smells good.

Mary. (With a fright) Dr. Gull.
Dr. Gull. Excuse me, I frightened you.
Mary tries to hide the cloth she has taken
from the floor without Dr. Gull seeing it.
Mary. No, you didnt. That damn clock
did it again. Its echo is so mournful; its
tolling seems to incite death.
Dr. Gull. If it were not absolutely
precise, I also hate that clock, but it is a
symbol.
Mary. I dont doubt it.
Finally Mary manages to hide the rag.
Mary. Wouldnt you rather wait in the
lounge? I myself can make dinner.

Dr. Gull. Does my presence here bother

you?
Mary. No, quite the opposite. Im just not
used to the master of the house being in
the kitchen with me.
Parliament clock tower sounds again,
which frightens Mary.
Mary. That damn clock continues to scare
me. Do you fancy dinner Dr. Gull?
Dr. Gull. Not before you read the press.
Mary. Of course. Want me to bring the
newspaper?
Dr. Gull. Would you do that for me?
Mary. Sure. Be right back.
Miss Mary takes off her apron and leaves the
scene. Surreptitiously takes the cloth with
the blood on it and carries it. While he is
alone, Dr. Gull takes out a small notebook
from his pocket, takes out a pen and starts to
write. We hear a voice that tells us what he
is writing.

V.O. As usual I have cold hands; I think my

heart is even colder. I am convinced that a
dark shadow is hovering over my house, it is
malignant. I am growing tired of people who
constantly worry about my health. True,
my head and arms are causing me pain.
The medicine does me good; in fact, I am
convinced that I can take more than any
other person alive. I have a clear mind to
discern what is right and what is wrong.
Still Im fighting a battle within me. My
desire for revenge is overwhelming, and
Abberline is still lost in his research.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Im tired, very tired. I long for peace, but
in the bottom of my heart I know I have to
continue. But the day is coming to an end,
and this pleases me greatly.
Mary enters with newspaper in hand, crying,
her face contorted. Dr. Gull hides his
little notebook quickly, and so as not to be
discovered, leaves it on the kitchen table
covered with a cloth.
Mary. It is frightening, frankly
appalling.
Dr. Gull. What is, Mary?
Mary. He has killed again, killed a ... a...
Dr. Gull. (To himself) A happy woman, no
doubt.
Mary. This time they were two victims:
Elizabeth Stride and Catharine Eddowes.
Dr. Gull. Are there clues as to who the
killer is?
Mary. The paper suggests that it was
again the famous Jack the Ripper.
Dr. Gull. And how do they know?
Mary. By the way the bodies appear.
Dr. Gull. Were the two mutilated?
Mary. (Awkwardly reading the newspaper)
The body of Miss Elizabeth Stride has been
found in Berner Street, up at number 40
and has no mutilations. The body of Miss
Catharine Eddowes, has been found and Mitre
Square, and is missing the uterus and left
kidney, and had V cuts on both cheeks.
Dr. Gull. So how does inspector Abberline
know that it has been the same murder?
Mary. Doctor, who else would be capable
of committing such an aberration? Thats

1 0

four women that monster has murdered. I

wish with all my might, that his identity
is discovered and that he ends up rotting
in prison.
Dr. Gull. I see you are really excited.
Mary. It is fear, Dr. Gull, forgive me, but
imagine in the hands of someone as aberrant
as that being ... it gives me a rage that ...
that...
Dr. Gull. You ... you would be able to kill
him yourself, right?
Mary. You can be very sure of it.
Dr. Gull. Then you would be no less a
criminal than the famous Jack the Ripper.

The secret diary of

Jack the ripper

Dialogue 3

Cd track ??

We hear the sounds of the tower clock. Time

passes. Its dark. Mary sneaks, no longer wearing
the apron, but still dressed as a maid. She tries
to leave the house without a sound; carrying
the little notebook. When she is about to leave,
Dr. Gull enters carrying the briefcase.
Dr. Gull. Miss Mary!
Mary. Dr. Gull, what a surprise.
Dr. Gull. I called several times and you did
not come. I was waiting for dinner.
Mary. Im sorry, doctor, I was not well and
had to lie down for a moment.
Dr. Gull. Why did you not tell me? Im a doctor,
retired but still a doctor.
Mary. I did not want to bother you.
Dr. Gull. And where are you going now in the
night?
Mary. I thought I would pop out.
Dr. Gull. At this hour?
Mary. The Ten Bells Tavern closes very late,
sir.
Dr. Gull. Its situated in the Whitechapel
neighborhood right.
Mary. The very same, sir. If you dont mind, Id
like to have a drink there and...
Dr. Gull. ... And complete your day job, right?
Mary. Excuse me, I do not understand.
Dr. Gull. To my knowledge it is a place
famous for being somewhat dubious. Many of
the women who go there looking for money for
selling their bodies. I guess you are not one of
them, right?
Mary. No, sir, I never...
Dr. Gull. Never?
Mary. Could we discuss this issue another
time?

1 1

Miss Mary goes to the door, but Dr. Gull cuts her
off with his body.
Dr. Gull. You are in such a hurry all of a
sudden? And why is that?
Mary. They are waiting for me, doctor.
Dr. Gull. Are you not a woman men want to
know?
Mary. Im going to meet girlfriends, sir.
Dr. Gull. Friends??
Mary. Yes, we usually meet there.
Dr. Gull. So tonight you will take a drink
alone, Miss Polly Nichols, Annie Chapman,
Elizabeth Stride and Catharine Eddowes will
not be there.
Mary. How do you know that?
Dr. Gull. All will be revealed in good time.
Let me be the one to serve you a drink.
Dr. Gull prepares drink a for the two, but with
his back to her.
Mary. I am not thirsty.
Dr. Gull. I will not take no for answer. I am
the master of the house, is that not true? And
you, Miss Mary Kelly, are a mere servant.
Mary. Doctor, I do not want
Dr. Gull. (Offering the cup) Drink!
Mary. But...
Dr. Gull. DRINK!

Miss Mary drinks, while the doctor does too.

Mary. Can I go now??
Dr. Gull. The conversation has only just
begun. And I guess you will have many questions,
like Inspector Abberline.
Mary. Are you Jack the Ripper?

The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

Pre-play activity one
Listen to dialogue 1 (c.d. track ??). Answer the questions:
1.- What day does Mary arrive at Dr. Gulls?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
2.- What age is Mary?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
3.- How does Dr. Gull describe Mary?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
4.- What methods does Dr. Gull give as an example for Mary to
discover his age?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
5.- Dr. Gull says that Whitechapel is an area so full of.What?
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
6.- Where did Mary acquire her special gift?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
7.- What is the special gift Mary has?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
8.- Mary says, a wise woman, no doubt... Who is she talking about?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
9.- How many children does Mary have?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................
10.- What virtue does Dr. Gull say the English people suffer more
and more each day?
..............................................................................................................................................................................................

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The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

Pre-play activity two
Vocabulary
Shy

Euphoric

Don

Esteem

Spells

Flawless

Remarkable

Logic

After listening to the dialogue 2 (c.d. track

??), the student must repeat each of the
following words which will be played on
the audio cd.

Then they can have a go at the Alphabet

Soup.
Good luck my friends!!!!!!

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The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

their bodies. I guess you are not one of them,
right?
Mary. No, sir, I never...
Dr. Gull. Never?
Mary. Could we discuss this..(3) another
time?
Miss Mary goes to the door, but Dr. Gull cuts her
off with his body.
Dr. Gull. You are in such a hurry all of a
(4)? And why is that?

Pre-play activity three

Listen to dialogue 3 (track ??) and
complete the dialogue.
Third part.
We hear the sounds of the tower clock. Time
passes. Its dark. Mary sneaks, no longer wearing
the apron, but still dressed as a maid. She tries
to leave the house without a sound; carrying
the little notebook. When she is about to leave,
Dr. Gull enters carrying the briefcase.

Mary. They are waiting for me, doctor.

Dr. Gull. Are you not a woman men want to know?
Mary. Im going to meet girlfriends, sir.
Dr. Gull. Friends??
Mary. Yes, we usually meet there.
Dr. Gull. So tonight you will take a drink alone,
Miss Polly Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth
Stride and Catharine Eddowes will not be there.
Mary. How do you know that?
Dr. Gull. All will be.(5) in good time. Let me
be the one to serve you a drink.
Dr. Gull prepares drink a for the two, but with
his back to her.
Mary. I am not.(6).
Dr. Gull. I will not take no for answer. I am the
master of the house, is that not true? And you,
Miss Mary Kelly, are a mere(7).
Mary. Doctor, I do not want.
Dr. Gull. (Offering the cup) Drink!
Mary. But...
Dr. Gull. DRINK!
Miss Mary drinks, while the doctor does too.
Mary. Can I go now??
Dr. Gull. The(8) has only just(9). And I
guess you will have many questions, like..
(10) Abberline.
Mary. Are you Jack the Ripper?

Dr. Gull. Miss Mary!

Mary. Dr. Gull, what a surprise.
Dr. Gull. I called several times and you did not
come. I was waiting for dinner.
Mary. Im sorry, doctor, I was not well and had to
lie down for a moment.
Dr. Gull. Why did you not tell me? Im a doctor,
(1) but still a doctor.
Mary. I did not want to bother you.
Dr. Gull. And where are you going now in the
night?
Mary. I thought I would pop out.
Dr. Gull. At this hour?
Mary. The Ten Bells..(2) closes very late, sir.
Dr. Gull. Its situated in the Whitechapel
neighborhood right.
Mary. The very same, sir. If you dont mind, Id
like to have a drink there and...
Dr. Gull
Gull. ... And complete your day job, right?
Mary. Excuse me, I do not understand.
Dr. Gull. To my knowledge it is a place famous
for being somewhat dubious. Many of the women
who go there looking for money for selling

1 4

The secret diary of

Teachers pack

Jack the ripper

Post-play activity one
Mark the statements true (T) or false (F), if
it is false, write the correct form.
1.- Dr. Gull enters the scene wearing a
rain coat and holding an umbrella. (F)
2.- Whitechapel is a rich upper class
neighborhood of London. (F)
3.- Mary is a single woman with no
interest in having a boyfriend. (T)
4.- Mary says the Reverend Thomas claims
to have a foolproof tactic to detect
bad people, when asked what it is, she
tells Dr. Gull it is the heart . (F)
5.- Dr. Gull brutally murders Mary in his
own home. (T)
6.- Mary is a very sophisticated and well
educated woman but she hates poetry.
(F)
7.- Dr. Gull loves churches and visits
them frequently. (T)
8.- When Dr. Gull is talking about what
he would have been if he had not been
a Doctor, he tells Mary he would have
been a Seaman (T)

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The secret diary of

Teachers pack

Jack the ripper

B. Put the word
words
s in order.

Post-play activity two

1. reference/ my / sorry/ is/ Here/ of/ letter.

2. why/ understand/ did/ So/ become/ a/ I/ you/
dont/ doctor?.

Choose the correct tense:

A. Complete the dialogues
dialogues wi
with,
th, Present Simple,
Present Continuous, Past simple, Past
Continuous, Past perfect, Future (going to)
and passive.

1.- Mary HAD BEEN (is, be) setting the table

3. The/ Whitechapel/neighborhood/ of.

4. more/ You/ a/ gift/ special/ evident/ for/ have/
drinks,/ it/ is/ than/ serving.

5. doubt/ wise/ A/ woman/, no.

6. - a /could /person /What /drive /man/ to/
defenseless /kill /a?

when she found the blood soaked cloth. (Past

perfect continuous)

7. - made/ William/ Queen/ Gull,/ now/ Withey/ but/

2.- Mary CANT (negative, can) tie the ties on

her apron. Dr. Gull ASKS (to ask) Mary if he

8. beautiful/ is/ How/ one!/ when/ you/ life/ are/

can help her as it looks difficult.(Present

simple)

9. gentleman,/ is/ distinguished-looking/ a/ He/

retired/ a/ baron/ by/ Dr./ Victoria.

twenty
grown/ wearing/ a/ dressing.

3.- In the play Dr. Gull DESCRIBES (describe)

10. I/ you/ hurt/ me, /beg/ Do/ not.

his ideas about God. (Present simple)

4.- Dr. Gull IS GOING (be, go) to murder Mary.

(Future)

5.- Mary HAS BEEN (is, be) working in very

remarkable homes and with families of high
esteem. (Past Perfect)

6.- Dr. Gull WAS (is) raised by the Rector Harrison,

and Dr. Gull THOUGHT (think) that he NEEDED
(need) to follow in his footsteps and study
medicine. (Passive -Past Simple)

7.- Dr. Gull WANTS (want) Mary to have a drink

SOLUTIONS.
1. - Sorry here is my letter of reference.

2. So why did you become a doctor. I dont understand?.

3. The neighborhood of Whitechapel.
4. You have a special gift for serving drinks, it is
more than evident.

5. A wise woman, no doubt.

6. What could drive a man to kill a defenseless person?
7. - Dr. William Withey Gull, now retired but made a baron

with him. (Present Simple)

by Queen Victoria,

8.- What WAS (is) Mary DOING (do) before Dr. Gull
enters the scene in the beginning of the
play? (Past continuous).

9.- Mary IS (is) twenty one. (Present Simple).

8. - How beautiful life is when you are twenty one!

9. - He is a distinguished-looking gentleman, wearing a
dressing grown.

10. - Do not hurt me I beg you.

10.- Dr. Gull IS (is) SPOKEN TO (speak to) by

Mary. (Passive - Past perfect).

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The secret diary of

Teachers pack

Jack the ripper

Post-play activity three

VOCABULARY

A) Choose the correct word, from the box, for each definition:
1. Indiscretion.

2. Falter.

3. Discreet.

5. Precedes.

6. Misfortune. 7. Eagerness.

9. Embroidered.

10. Refuge.

4. Acquire.
8. A Seaman.

1. When there is lack of caution or a lack of prudence, an

unwise or heedless action
2. A word used to describe an act of pausing uncertainly.
3. - When someone is being cautious or sensible.
4. To acquire something is to gain something by your own
efforts,
5. Something that comes, exists, or occurs before in time.
6. - The condition resulting from bad fortune or ill luck.
7. - A positive feeling of wanting to push ahead with something,
showing keen interest or intense desire.
8. - A person skilled in seamanship who assists in the sailing
and navigating of a vessel.
9. - To produce
needlework.

or

decorate

something

with

ornamental

10. The word given to a place providing protection or shelter.

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The secret diary of

Teachers pack

Jack the ripper

B) From the box in activity A, complete the
sentences:
1.- Your age? If it is not an INDISCRETION of
course.
2.- Poor Susan. I could do nothing to save her.
There is always a moment in the life of a
man in which forces FALTER, and I arrived
right at the moment in which she ... Anyway,
lets leave the memories for another time.
I suppose you have yours too.
3.- You are a shy, girl, and very DISCREET, I
see. Two virtues that most women suffer.
My own wife had both.
4.- You have a special gift for serving drinks,
it is more than evident. Where did you
ACQUIRE it?
5.-

Do not worry, Dr. Gull, for me it is a

pleasure to listen to you. It is true that
your reputation PRECEDES you, but I am
convinced you have hundreds of friends
not to mention admirers.

6.- Why did he let this man be corrupted to

such an extent that he must live with his
own MISFORTUNE? Miss Mary, not everything
that God has made is impressive, also in
his writing there are crooked lines and
just a few have been the chosen ones
and called on to channel those lines.
Virginia.

7.- Dr. Gull offers Mary a dress and she leaves

the stage, ready to change. While Dr.
Gull speaks he takes advantage of her
absence to look inside her bag, and takes
out a small book, it is a book of poetry,
with a dedication, a compact, a key and
an embroidered handkerchief, which he
smells with some EAGERNESS.
8.- Sailor, as my father was, and of course my
fathers father. When we were together in
the barge I repeated to myself, I hope
that when I grow up, I like to work in the
water. God willing, I would like to be a
SEAMAN.
9.- While Dr. Gull speaks he takes advantage
of her absence to look inside her bag, and
takes out a small book, it is a book of
poetry, with a dedication, a compact, a key
and an EMBROIDERED handkerchief,
10.- Thats why I usually take REFUGE in the
kitchen at night and ... Im sorry, Miss
Mary, I should not tell you my sorrows.
Youre only going to be my new maid.

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The secret diary of

Teachers pack

Jack the ripper

Post-play activity four
6.- The Bethlem Royal Psychiatric Hospital
is commonly known as

Read the sentences and choose the correct

word from A,B or C:

a) Bethlahem
b) Bedlam
c) Bendelen

1.- Dr. Gull says Mary has two virtues that

most women suffer
a)
a)You
are an overt girl, and very open.
b) You are a shy girl, and very discreet.
c)You are a shy girl, and very open.
c)

7.- Before coming to work for Dr. Gull, Mary

worked for the...
a) Granthams.
b) Greenings.
c) Grandonis.

2.- Mary is ...

a) 19 years old.
b) 20 years old.
c) 21 years old.

8.- The name Dr. Gull prefers to jack the

Ripper is...

3.- When Orlando was alone, he heard a voice,

he thought it was...

a) Jack the Righteous...

b) Jack the Awesome.
c) Jack the Mighty.

a) Low esteem.
b) High esteem.
c) No esteem.

9.- The clock is called..

a) Big Tom.
b) Big Dell.
c) Big Ben.

4.- Gull is a
a) Teacher.
b) Artist.
c) Doctor.

10.- The name of the tavern Mary is meeting

her friends at is called

5.- Dr. Gull is the attending physician of

a) The Eleven Hells.

b) The Ten Bells.
c) The Twelve Hens.

a) Queen Anne.
b) Queen Mary.
c) Queen Victoria.

SOLUTIONS 1.B. 2.C 3.B. 4.C. 5.C. 6.B. 7.A 8.A. 9.C. 10.B.

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The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

5.- Dr. Gull brutally murders Mary in his own

Post-play activity one

home.
..............................................................................................
...............................................................................................

Mark the statements true (T) or false (F), if

it is false, write the correct form.

6.- Mary is a very sophisticated and well

1.- Dr. Gull enters the scene wearing a rain

educated woman but she hates poetry.

coat and holding an umbrella.

..............................................................................................

..............................................................................................

...............................................................................................

...............................................................................................
2.- Whitechapel

is

rich

upper

7.- Dr. Gull loves churches and visits them

class

frequently.

neighborhood of London.

..............................................................................................

..............................................................................................

...............................................................................................

...............................................................................................

8.- When Dr Gull is talking about what he

3.- Mary is a single woman with no interest

would have been if he had not been a

in having a boyfriend.

Doctor, he tells Mary he would have been

..............................................................................................

a Seaman.

...............................................................................................

..............................................................................................

4.- Mary says the Reverend Thomas claims

...............................................................................................

to have a foolproof tactic to detect bad

people, when asked what it is, she tells
Dr. Gull it is the heart .
..............................................................................................
...............................................................................................

2 0

The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

Post-play activity two
Choose the correct tense:
A) Complete the dialogues with, Present Simple, Present Continuous, Past
simple, Past Continuous, Past perfect, Future (going to) and passive.
1.- Mary ................ (is be) setting the table when she found the blood
soaked cloth. (Past perfect continuous)
2.- Mary ....................... (negative, can) tie the ties on her apron. Dr. Gull
.................... (to ask) Mary if he can help her as it looks difficult.
(Present simple)
3.- In the play Dr. Gull ..................... (describe) his ideas about God. (Present
Simple)
4.- Dr. Gull IS .................... (be, go) to murder Mary. (Future)
5.- Mary ........................ (is,be) working in very remarkable homes and with
families of high esteem. (Past Perfect)
6.- Dr. Gull .................. (is) raised by the Rector Harrison, and Dr. Gull
...................... ( think) that he ............ (need) to follow in his footsteps and
study medicine. (Passive -Past Simple)
7.- Dr. Gull ................. (want) Mary to have a drink with him. (Present simple)
8.- What ..................... (is) Mary ..................... (do) before Dr. Gull enters the scene
in the beginning of the play?. (Past continuous)
9.- Mary .................... (is) twenty one. (Present simple).
10.- Dr. Gull IS (is)........................ (speak to) by Mary. (Passive- Past perfect)

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The secret diary of

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Jack the ripper

B) Put the words in order.
1.- reference/ my / sorry/ is/ Here/ of/ letter.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
2.- why/ understand/ did/ So/ become/ a/ I/ you/ dont/ doctor?.
.........................................................................................................................................................................
3.- The/ Whitechapel/neighborhood/ of.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
4.- more/ You/ a/ gift/ special/ evident/ for/ have/ drinks,/it/
is/ than/ serving.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
5.- doubt/ wise/ A/ woman/, no.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
6.- a /could /person /What /drive /man/ to/ defenseless /kill
/a?
...........................................................................................................................................................................
7.- made/ William/ Queen/ Gull,/ now/ Withey/ but/ retired/ a/
baron/ by/ Dr./ Victoria.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
8.- beautiful/ is/ How/ one!/when/ you/ life/ are/ twenty
...........................................................................................................................................................................
9.- gentleman,/

is/

distinguished-looking/

a/

He/

grown/

wearing/ a/ dressing.
...........................................................................................................................................................................
10.- I/ you/ hurt/ me, /beg/ Do/ not.
...........................................................................................................................................................................

2 2

The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

Post-play activity three

VOCABULARY

A) Choose the correct word, from the box, for each definition:
1. Indiscretion.

2. Falter.

3. Discreet.

5. Precedes.

6. Misfortune. 7. Eagerness.

9. Embroidered.

10. Refuge.

4. Acquire.
8. A Seaman.

1. When there is lack of caution or a lack of prudence, an unwise

or heedless action. ..................................
2. A word used to describe an act of pausing uncertainly.
..................................
3. - When someone is being cautious or sensible. ..................................
4. To acquire something is to gain something by your own efforts,
..................................
5. Something that comes, exists, or occurs before in time.

..................................
6. - The condition resulting from bad fortune or ill luck.

..................................
7. - A positive feeling of wanting to push ahead with something,
showing keen interest or intense desire. ..................................
8. - A person skilled in seamanship who assists in the sailing and
navigating of a vessel. ..................................
9. - To produce or decorate something with ornamental needlework.

..................................
10. The word given to a place providing protection or shelter.

..................................

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The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

B) From the box in activity A, complete the
sentences:
1.-

Your age? If it is not an .......................... of

course.

2.- Poor Susan. I could do nothing to save her.

There is always a moment in the life of a
man in which forces .................., and I arrived
right at the moment in which she ... Anyway,
lets leave the memories for another time.
I suppose you have yours too.
3.- You are a shy, girl, and very ......................, I
see. Two virtues that most women suffer.
My own wife had both.
4.- You have a special gift for serving drinks,
it is more than evident. Where did you
...................... it?
5.-

Do not worry, Dr. Gull, for me it is a

pleasure to listen to you. It is true that
your reputation ............................... you, but I am
convinced you have hundreds of friends
not to mention admirers.

6.- Why did he let this man be corrupted to such

an extent that he must live with his own
..................................? Miss Mary, not everything
that God has made is impressive, also
in his writing there are crooked lines
and just a few have been the chosen ones
and called on to channel those lines.
Virginia.

7.- Dr. Gull offers Mary a dress and she leaves

the stage, ready to change. While Dr.
Gull speaks he takes advantage of her
absence to look inside her bag, and takes
out a small book, it is a book of poetry,
with a dedication, a compact, a key and
an embroidered handkerchief, which he
smells with some ........................................ .
8.- Sailor, as my father was, and of course my
fathers father. When we were together in
the barge I repeated to myself, I hope
that when I grow up, I like to work in the
water. God willing, I would like to be a ..
...................................... .
9.- While Dr. Gull speaks he takes advantage
of her absence to look inside her bag,
and takes out a small book, it is a book
of poetry, with a dedication, a compact, a
key and an ....................................... handkerchief,
10.- Thats why I usually take .................................... in
the kitchen at night and ... Im sorry, Miss
Mary, I should not tell you my sorrows.
Youre only going to be my new maid.

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The secret diary of

Studentss pack

Jack the ripper

POST-PLAY ACTIVITY FOUR
Read the sentences and choose the correct
word from A,B or C:
1.- Dr. Gull says Mary has two virtues that
most women suffer

6.- The Bethlem Royal Psychiatric Hospital

is commonly known as
a) Bethlahem
b) Bedlam
c) Bendelen

a)
a)You
are an overt girl, and very open.
b) You are a shy girl, and very discreet.
c)You are a shy girl, and very open.
c)
2.- Mary is ...

7.- Before coming to work for Dr. Gull, Mary

worked for the...

a) 19 years old.
b) 20 years old.
c) 21 years old.
3.- When Orlando was alone, he heard a voice,
he thought it was...

a) Granthams.
b) Greenings.
c) Grandonis.
8.- The name Dr. Gull prefers to jack the
Ripper is...

a) Low esteem.
b) High esteem.
c) No esteem.

a) Jack the Righteous...

b) Jack the Awesome.
c) Jack the Mighty.

4.- Gull is a
9.- The clock is called..
a) Teacher.
b) Artist.
c) Doctor.

a) Big Tom.
b) Big Dell.
c) Big Ben.

5.- Dr. Gull is the attending physician of

a) Queen Anne.
b) Queen Mary.
c) Queen Victoria.

10.- The name of the tavern Mary is meeting

her friends at is called
a) The Eleven Hells.
b) The Ten Bells.
c) The Twelve Hens.

2 5