WAS THE RIPPER A BIRD?

An Australian scientist using swabs from letters supposedly written by Jack the Ripper has come to the conclusion that the killer could have been a woman. Ian Findlay, a professor of molecular and forensic diagnostics claims to have perfected a system that allows him to extract DNA from a single cell up to 160 years old. Conventional DNA methods require at least 200 cells.

Dr Findlay took swabs from the back of postage stamps and bloodstains - his best sample came from the Openshaw letter which is widely believed to be genuine in that it came from the actual killer. His finding led him to the conclusion that the killer may have been female - not so much Jack the Ripper but more Jill the Ripper.

It's certainly another interesting theory and of course Inspector Abberline, the detective in charge of the investigation, believed it may have been a woman.

You never know, I suppose.