Son of Yorkshire Ripper victim's heartbreaking complaint about The Long Shadow

02 October 2023 , 19:30

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Son of Yorkshire Ripper victim's heartbreaking complaint about The Long Shadow

It has been 46 years since mum-of-three Emily Jackson was horrifically murdered by serial killer Peter Sutcliffe on an industrial estate, after he picked her up in a car outside a pub and offered her money in exchange for sex. Sutcliffe pretended the engine had failed and Emily volunteered to hold a light as he opened the bonnet, moments before he battered her to death with a hammer.

The 42-year-old became the second victim of the Yorkshire Ripper in January 1976 and left behind her grieving husband and three kids. Her eldest son, Neil Jackson, now 65, has spoken out about ITV's new drama The Long Shadow, which tells the tragic tales of the Ripper's victims, and the one heartbreaking complaint he has about the series.

Neil Jackson, the son of murdered Emily Jackson, who was killed by the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Sutcliffe (Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)

In the programme, hard-up Emily suggests the idea of becoming a sex worker to her husband, telling him she could earn £5 for having sex for five minutes. Her son Neil, from Leeds, is full of praise for Katherine Kelly, who plays his mum but is upset about their version of events. He told the Mirror that it was wrongly suggested it was his mum's idea to become a sex worker - when it was actually his dad's.

"It makes my dad look far more innocent than he was. I just want to protect my mam's memory because she was a joyful woman who would do anything for anybody," he explained. "She's an amazing actress. She's got a similar face and similar hairstyle and the same smile. But there's a scene where she hits my dad Sydney, played by Daniel Mays. I had to laugh at that because she gives him a good slap but that used to be the other way round. And it wasn't her idea to go on the game - it was dad who forced her."

Neil said he could see the pain of having to go out on the streets of Leeds in his mum's eyes. "It was because of the financial times we were in and there was a bill that came in, a gas or electric bill. There were three of us kids at the time and times were hard," he continued. "But it was dad's idea to go on the game. But in the show it's the other way round. I want to make sure the record is correct."

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Neil was disappointed with how the decision for his mum to become a sex worker was portrayed (Julian Hamilton/Daily Mirror)

About the drama overall, he said: "Some of it was horrible to watch but it was amazing and it did take me back in time." He recalled how his dad, Sydney, was a roofer who went out most nights with his wife. "I didn't realise what she was doing until years after. She was out six nights a week with dad. I thought they were out having a drink," he remembers.

"They always went together. That's why I think it was his idea. If he was in one of his moods you'd keep away. He didn't hit me but he did hit mam. I think they've painted him a little bit too nice. I was the oldest so I saw more than most. The rows I remember were always about money. He'd slap her. She was a lovely mam and I wish she was here now."

Emily Jackson was murdered in Leeds in 1979 by serial killer Peter Sutcliffe (Mirrorpix)

The Yorkshire Ripper was convicted of killing 13 women between 1975 and 1980 (Getty Images)

He was 17 when the police knocked on the door several months after his mum had become a sex worker. "I was due to go to work, I worked for dad. I just thought mam had gone to pick one of the lads up to drive the van. Dad hated driving, didn't have the patience for it," he said. "But the police came and told us to sit down and told us mam had been murdered. They then took dad down to the police station and myself down to Millgarth police station. We were there for the biggest part of the day. I was really shocked at the time. Dad was on one floor and he was on another being asked questions. I think we were both under suspicion."

After her death, Neil recalls how his relationship with his dad deteriorated and the family was torn apart. His younger sister, who was five, went to live with an aunt, while his brother, aged around nine at the time, stayed with his dad. Neil joined the army two months later. "Dad was even more bad tempered over it. He went into a depression," he said. "As I always say about Sutcliffe, he didn't just kill mam, he killed the whole family. It left me arguing with dad, me not speaking to my brother and sister. Sadly, 45 years on and the damage is still there."

Sydney died in 2007. Sutcliffe, a lorry driver from Bradford, was finally arrested on January 2, 1981. He was sentenced to 20 life sentences for murdering 13 women and the attempted murder of seven more. He died in November 2020 aged 74 after catching Covid behind bars.

The Long Shadow airs on ITV1 at 9pm tonight

Lucy Thornton