It seems like every cable network out there is getting into the business of original programming. Hell, even Netflix is becoming home to several original shows, so it should be no real surprise that nets like BBC America want a piece of the action. BBCA announced last week that they were coming aboard as co-producers of the period drama Ripper Street. As you might suspect, the eight-part series revolves around the infamous Jack the Ripper murders in London's East End. The show is set in 1899, in the aftermath of the Ripper's crime spree, and centers on the detectives of "H Division," who were tasked with solving the murders. Of course, Jack the Ripper was never actually caught, so it will be interesting to see how the show wraps things up...
RadioTimes has posted the first official shot of Ripper Street's cast, which you can see below. The show stars Matthew Macfadyen (The Three Musketeers), Jerome Flynn (Game of Thrones), and Adam Rothberg (most recently seen in an ep of Alcatraz) as the men of H Division. The show was created by Richard Warlow, who has worked on British series such as Waking the Dead and Mistresses.
Jack the Ripper is a subject that has been done to death in both films and TV, so Ripper Street has some work ahead of it if it's going to stand out amongst what has come before. We'll have to wait until the fall to see what it has to offer.
