# Ripper Street (2012)

> A Victorian police drama following the detectives of H Division in the shadow of the Ripper murders in 1889 Whitechapel.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/42498

## Facts

- Seasons: 5
- Episodes: 36
- Episode runtime: 60 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: crime, drama, mystery
- Created by: Richard Warlow
- Network: BBC One, Prime Video
- Cast: Matthew Macfadyen, Adam Rothenberg, MyAnna Buring, Charlene McKenna, Amanda Hale, Jonathan Barnwell, Leanne Best, David Wilmot
- TMDB rating: 8.1/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2183641/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: brutal
- Tone: gritty, bleak, atmospheric, tense, melancholic

## What critics say

Viewers broadly regard Ripper Street as a superb, well-acted Victorian crime drama whose early seasons are its strongest, with later seasons seen as weaker.

## Synopsis

Ripper Street (2012-2016) is a British BBC period crime drama created by Richard Warlow for BBC One. Set in the East End of London in 1889, in the aftermath of the Ripper murders, the series follows the detectives of H Division, a police precinct the overview describes as the police precinct from hell. Detective Edmund Reid (Matthew Macfadyen) leads a team that includes Homer Jackson (Adam Rothenberg), Long Susan Hart (MyAnna Buring) and Rose Erskine (Charlene McKenna), all trying to recover from crimes that have altered their lives and the very fabric of their city. The engine of each episode is the chaotic, dangerous streets of Whitechapel, where the detectives work to bring a little light into a dark world. The show runs for five seasons, moving through a continuing story rather than a case-of-the-week format, and carries a grim, atmospheric tone of moral weariness and grit. Viewers who enjoy Peaky Blinders, Murdoch Mysteries and The Frankenstein Chronicles will find resonance in its gritty Victorian London setting and its layered police ensemble.

## Shows like Ripper Street

- [Whitechapel (2009)](https://ember.film/tv/16177)
- [The Shadow Line (2011)](https://ember.film/tv/34580)
- [Murder Rooms: Mysteries of the Real Sherlock Holmes (2001)](https://ember.film/tv/8975)
- [Babylon Berlin (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/58972)
- [In the Dark (2017)](https://ember.film/tv/63434)
- [Jack the Ripper (1988)](https://ember.film/tv/42830)
- [A Thousand Blows (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/130735)
- [The Alienist (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/62634)
- [The Vice (1999)](https://ember.film/tv/16472)
- [Prime Suspect (1991)](https://ember.film/tv/2455)

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