 | |
| Mary Jane Kelly | |
| Aliases: | Mary Kelly Marie Jeanette Kelly |
| Notability: | Murder victim |
| Type: | Prostitute |
| Gender: | Female |
| Location: | Ireland Spitalfields; Whitechapel, London, England |
| Status: | Deceased |
| Born: | 1863 |
| Died: | November 9th, 1888 |
| First: | A Study in Terror |
| Actor: | Lysette Anthony Tushka Bergen Heather Graham |
Mary Jane Kelly was an actual murder victim who was born in Ireland but lived in the Whitechapel district of London, England in the late 19th century. She is considered to be the fifth and final verified victim of the mysterious serial murderer known as Jack the Ripper. As the story of Jack the Ripper has since grown into legend, many forms of media have constructed their own fictionalized accounts of what actually took place, and as such, versions of Mary Jane Kelly, sometimes with an alternate name attributed to her, have appeared in adapted media.
Biography[]
Mary Kely was born in County Limerick, Ireland sometime around the year 1863. Her family later moved to Wales, but Kelly ended up working as a domestic servant and then a prostitute in Whitechapel by the 1880s. By the year 1888, Mary Kelly was approximately 25 years old. Mary Kelly had cohabitating with a man she had met named Joseph Barnett and they rented a small room at 13 Miller's Court.
On the night of November 8th, Mary Kelly was seen at the Ten Bells public house where she shared a drink with a woman named Elizabeth Foster. Foster. Later that evening, Kelly was seen drinking with two acquaintances at the Horn of Plenty pub on Dorset Street.
On the morning of November 9th, 1888, Mary Jane Kelly's landlord, John McCarthy, sent his assistant, ex-soldier Thomas Bowyer, to collect the rent. Kelly was six weeks behind on her payments, owing 29 shillings. Shortly after 10:45 a.m., Bowyer knocked on her door but received no response. He then attempted to turn the handle, only to discover the door was locked. Bowyer then looked through the keyhole, but could not see anybody in the room. Pushing aside the clothing used to plug the broken windowpane and the muslin curtains which covered the windows, Bowyer peered inside the room—discovering Kelly's extensively mutilated corpse lying on the bed. She is believed to have died between three and nine hours before the discovery of her body. [1][2][3]
Notes & Trivia[]
- The other four verified victims of Jack the Ripper include Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes.
- Of the five canonical Ripper victims, it is said that Mary Jane Kelly's body suffered the most extensive injuries. She is also the only confirmed Ripper victim who was murdered within confined quarters, whereas the others had been killed in open area alleyways.
- Mary Jane Kelly's body was discovered by Thomas Bowyer, who was the assistant to landlord John McCarthy.
- Mary Jane Kelly was the youngest of the five canonical Ripper victims. The others were all in their forties.
- In the 1965 film A Study in Terror, director James Hill pits Jack the Ripper against infamous literary detective Sherlock Holmes. Actress Edina Ronay portrayed Mary Jane Kelly in the film.
- Another project that recaptured the Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper motif is the Canadian thriller Murder by Decree by Black Christmas director Bob Clark. Actress Susan Clark (no relation) played the role of Mary Jane Kelly.
- Actress Lysette Anthony portrayed Mary Jane Kelly in the 1988 British miniseries, Jack the Ripper, which aired to coincide with the 100-year anniversary of the Whitechapel murders.
- A more fictionalized account of the final fate of Mary Jane Kelly is presented in the 2003 film From Hell, where she was played by American actress Heather Graham. In the film, the fifth Ripper victim is mis-identified as Mary Jane Kelly due to the fact that the body, rendered unidentifiable due to the brutal nature of the murder, was discovered in Mary Jane Kelly's residence. The end of the film reveals that Mary Jane Kelly left London and returned to her home in Ireland with the infant son of Prince Albert.
- Actress Tushka Bergen played the ghost of Mary Jane Kelly in the "Don't Dream It's Over" episode of The Others in 2000.
Appearances[]
- A Study in Terror
- Murder by Decree
- From Hell
- Jack the Ripper (1988)
- The Others: Don't Dream It's Over