Whitechapel (TV series)


Whitechapel is a British television drama series produced by Carnival Films and distributed by BBC Worldwide, in which detectives in London's Whitechapel district dealt with murders which replicated historical crimes. The first series was first broadcast in the UK on 2 February 2009 and depicted the search for a modern copycat killer replicating the murders of Jack the Ripper.
A second series was commissioned by ITV in September 2009 with the focus on the Kray twins. The first episode of this second series was broadcast on 11 October 2010.
A third series was commissioned by ITV in March 2011, which was extended to six episodes as three two-part stories.
The first and second series were broadcast in the United States on six consecutive Wednesday evenings beginning 26 October 2011 on the BBC America cable network. The third was broadcast in the US starting on Wednesday 28 March 2012, also on BBC America.
On 24 September 2012, ITV renewed Whitechapel for a fourth and final series consisting of six episodes. The first episode was broadcast on 4 September 2013.
On 16 November 2013, lead actor Rupert Penry-Jones confirmed that ITV had decided not to recommission the show.

Production

The first series was written by Ben Court and Caroline Ip. ITV Director of Drama Laura Mackie said "Whitechapel is a very modern take on the detective genre which combines the Victorian intrigue of the original case with the atmospheric backdrop of a contemporary East End of London. This is not simply about bloodthirstily recreating the Ripper murders, but rather focusing on the three main characters at the heart of the story and the black humour that binds the team together."

Reception

Whitechapel debuted on 2 February 2009 at 9pm with 8.13 million viewers on the overnight ratings. Series one received positive reviews, and holds a Metacritic score of 75 out of 100, indicating "generally favourable" reviews.
A review in the Leicester Mercury said that it was "Life on Mars, without the time-travel" adding "what Whitechapel lacked in originality, it more than made up for with atmosphere and enthusiasm." After Episode 2 was broadcast on 9 February, Andrew Billen in The Times said that he had warmed to it more and more, adding, "slowly, the show is making Ripperologists of us all, as Jack's 'canonical' murders are separated from the ones he actually committed. It is all in the worst possible taste and bloody good fun." However, The Daily Telegraph was less impressed, writing "The premise was feeble, the script imbecilic, the acting on autopilot, the direction lacking in any glimmer of tension."
Series two received favourable reviews, and holds a Metacritic score of 69 out of 100, indicating "generally favourable" reviews.

Main cast

Episode list

Series 1 (2009)

Guest starring;
Series one and two were broadcast as a single six-episode season on BBC America, and were subsequently released on DVD as such. For the BBC America DVD release, the two stories were given individual titles, with series one being entitled: The Walk of Terror respectively.
EpisodeTitleDirected byWritten byOriginal airdateViewers

Series 2 (2010)

Guest starring;
Series one and two were broadcast as a single six-episode season on BBC America, and were subsequently released on DVD as such. For the BBC America DVD release, the two stories was given individual titles, with series two being entitled: The Legend Rising respectively.
EpisodeTitleDirected byWritten byOriginal airdateViewing Figures
Sourced by BARB; figures include ITV1 HD

Series 3 (2012)

Whitechapel was commissioned for a third series in March 2011, but unlike the previous two series, which were each based on a single event, the new series was split into three separate two-part stories, which each focused on a different case. For the BBC America DVD releases, the three stories were given individual titles: The Murder in Darkness, The Hunger for Mercy and The Sins of Betrayal respectively.
EpisodeTitleDirected byWritten byOriginal airdateViewing Figures
Sourced by BARB; includes ITV1 HD and ITV1 +1

Series 4 (2013)

Whitechapel was commissioned for a fourth series in October 2012, and follows the same format as the third series, featuring three individual cases. For the BBC America DVD releases, the last three stories were given the titles The Real Enemy, The Force of Injustice and To This End, respectively.
EpisodeTitleDirected byWritten byOriginal airdateViewing figures
Sourced by BARB and Broadcast magazine; includes ITV HD and ITV +1