Moors Murderer Ian Brady talks about Jack The Ripper

[AdamWalsh]

In a christmas card I received from him two years ago he mentions the then-recent "photo-fit" released of Jack (and what little he thought of the female profiler on the tv show about it) also - how the new interest in the Ripper possibly inspired the prostitute murders in Suffolk. I have scanned the relevant sections to show you all. Hope this isnt too off the mark for the "General Discussion" section. (Remember, Brady killed the same amount as attributed to Jack. 5.)

If you cant read it properly - he writes:

"The recent spate of gratuitous TV programmes on Jack The Ripper has inspired a copy cat who is also emulating the speed of production. Perhaps he's already sent half a kidney to Scotland Yard as well and they're keeping it quiet. The world goes on indifferently."

In a second section he continues:

"I found the Scotland Yard female profiler pathetic and predictably fashionable. According to a Scotsman article more females are interested in forensic psychology than men nowadays. Jack the Ripper the first serial killer? History is crowded with them - from Caligula to Gilles De Rais, from Judge Jeffries to Henry VIII. A bit of class distinction is prevailing, exempting the ruling class. You should see or read "The Ruling Class" - a satire with an Earl as Jack The Ripper giving his maiden speech in the Lords, on law and order. Peter O Toole starred in the film (1970's)."

[Mike Covell]

Thought provoking stuff, I don't suppose you could send him an Halloween Card and ask him to reveal if there any more bodies and where they are.

Perhaps he would reply with a lovely Guy Fawkes card.

[anna]

Hi Adam,
Wow!Thank you SO MUCH for sharing part of your Christmas card with us and Ian's thoughts on Jack!Pity you didn't get one from Myra aswell,eh?
As I understand it,the couple were Sadists.Master and Slave who took Sadism to the extreme...which has been done by followers of the Marquis in various forms throughout history!
Yes,it did involve kids,and the torture of a little girl....but wasn't Victoria tortured by her aunt and various mum's & dads/partners who torture and cigarette burn their kids...these are not serial killers,they just live in suburbia.
Of course it was horrendous,but it has happened throughout history and unfortunately will happen over and over again.
How people expected the couple to remember where they buried the kids astounds me,for goodness sake,we are talking about a huge expanse of Moor not a back garden!Which is heartbreaking for the families,but realistic if you think about it.
Just trying to look at it without emotion,as people who know me,know I get emotional about the C5,and trying to put a crime viewpoint on it instead.

[Ravenstone]

Well, they did take lots of photos on the Moor, and most of them were fairly cryptic clues as to where the bodies were buried. So I'd say there was a much better than average chance that they could at least have a vague recollection of where the bodies were.

It may be a huge expanse of Moor, but it was half a dozen kids. And each one was the highlight of Brady and Hindley's life to that point, each one representing their ultimate fantasy. Dunno about you, but I can remember my ultimate fantasies pretty well.

I haven't got a lot of time for Brady, to be honest. I read 'The Gates of Janus' out of sheer bloody-minded curiosity, but it just proved what I suspected - the old adage is wrong : you can't set a thief to catch a thief, not when it's serial murder.

[Glenn Lauritz Andersson]

Thanks for this very interesting stuff, Adam.

I never thought I'd say this, but I have to agree with at least Brady's second section. The e-fit was ludicrous and the profiler and others involved, were not only pathetic but also clearly hadn't done their homework on the Ripper.

All the best

[anna]

Excellent points Ravenstone.I suppose I was just trying to think logically,in relation to expanse of area.
I think I remember that when Myra went back to the Moor,they used photographs as a pointer.
I have read about Ian being an intelligent guy,although I haven't actually read the book.The crime never really interested me that much.
I could not comment on whether or not I would have time for him,as it is of little consequence to me,as I am only commenting on the crime and not the person.
By todays standards,with Dennis Neilsen(washing,dressing,talking to,chopping up and putting down drains bits of,I think it was 13? young gay guys),
and Peter Sutcliffe killing about the same number of prostitutes,hitting them over the head,and putting a screwdriver in the eye of an innocent young girl, who he thought was a prostitute.
Plus Victoria's torture and death and all the other little kiddies that have died a horrific death,in every day society.Had these murders happened after these events,would they have had the same effect as they did at a time of Doris Day and knitting patterns.
I find Neilsen the most horrific serial killer,if I'm honest.

[George Hutchinson]

Hi Anna.

I fully appreciate that Nilsen could strike you as the most abhorrent of serial killers - the ones that live with the product of their crimes, but Christie was worse. Fundamentally, they were very similar. The difference is that Nilsen admitted it right away and Christie lied so much he made an innocent man hang.

Some people here know that I was in touch with Des Nilsen for some years (though I've only had one letter in the last two years, so I guess we're not well acquainted anymore). In spite of his crimes, he is not the same person he was quarter of a century ago when he was arrested. He does not expect parole, nor does he think he deserves it. He has a wicked sense of humour in his letters and is fairly generous, though I am pretty sure he's told me some whopping lies, thinking I'm perhaps not as astute as I actually am, and he does moan about prison conditions a great deal.

Adam Walsh has also been in touch with him for some time and I presume he will back me up.

PHILIP

[anna]

Hi Philip,
How interesting.I had read that he was an intelligent witty person.It always fascinates me to wonder what goes on in their minds when they commit such acts,knowing the consequences of their actions.
I have been cautious in my posts to keep them neutral,focussing on the crime than on the person behind it,as you have probably noticed.
I am about to read a book on Dennis's crime...have seen one at the library.
The only reason I said that I found it the most horrific,is that he kept them around him as corpses before disposing of them.A tad different that your "run of the mill" serial killer!!!!!
What I failed to say was, that that fact alone,makes him the most interesting aswell,awakens the curiosity somewhat.

[anna]

P.S.You say "the ones that live with the product of their crime"...by that do you mean that there have been others that have lived with corpses around them before disposal?
It made me laugh that he was always complaining about prison conditions, when the pre-conceived notion is that lifers live in comfort.
Sorry,I don't know about Christie,have only heard the name,have to look him up on Google,and have a read.
Anna.

[sdreid]

We don't need any "advice" from Brady. **** him!!

[AdamWalsh]

We don't need any "advice" from Brady. **** him!!

I fully understand your feelings, just thought I'd post it as it mentions specifically the person we are all here to talk about.

[AdamWalsh]

Hi Anna.

I fully appreciate that Nilsen could strike you as the most abhorrent of serial killers - the ones that live with the product of their crimes, but Christie was worse. Fundamentally, they were very similar. The difference is that Nilsen admitted it right away and Christie lied so much he made an innocent man hang.

Some people here know that I was in touch with Des Nilsen for some years (though I've only had one letter in the last two years, so I guess we're not well acquainted anymore). In spite of his crimes, he is not the same person he was quarter of a century ago when he was arrested. He does not expect parole, nor does he think he deserves it. He has a wicked sense of humour in his letters and is fairly generous, though I am pretty sure he's told me some whopping lies, thinking I'm perhaps not as astute as I actually am, and he does moan about prison conditions a great deal.

Adam Walsh has also been in touch with him for some time and I presume he will back me up.

PHILIP

Funnily enough he hasnt written to me for about 2 years either....maybe he has finally run out of pens

[anna]

Actually I DON'T understand that point of view.Sensationalism belongs in the press.I was hoping it would remain there.
As I have already said, if compared to later crimes and events,the crime that concerned Ian and Myra,is nowhere near as horrific as other latter events.
I have not used surnames either during my posts,another trick used by the press.
I must have read Adam's post wrongly,as I thought I read Ian's thoughts on Jack....don't think I read about "advice".
Whatever!.....

[Limehouse]

Brady sounds very arrogant to me. He also sounds as if he's got a superiority complex.

With reference to how easy it would be to locate the remaining body on Saddleworth Moor, Brady and Hindley did indeed take photographs of the places where bodies were buried and in fact they took photographs of one or other of them standing on the very spots smiling broadly. They have narrowed the area where it is believed Keith Bennett still lies buried but have been unable to locate the body. I believe Brady could easily help the police find this boy, but he wants to hold on to the last victim for several reasons which I will not go into. However, when and if he feels he's close to death, he will probably leave some map or notes somewhere that can be found after his death. In his mind, that way, everybody wins.

[George Hutchinson]

Hi Anna.

Des Nilsen will not be the first or the last to live with the bodies of his victims in his own house.

Crippen, Gacy, Fred & Rose West, Amelia Dyer... these are just off the top of my head.

PHILIP