#Blogtour Jack the Ripper and Abraham Lincoln by Tony McMahon

It's an absolute pleasure to take part in the Blogtour Jack the Ripper and Abraham Lincoln: One man links the two greatest crimes of the 19th century by Tony McMahon.

About the Author

Tony McMahon is an experienced investigative journalist, news and features editor, and consultant to governments and NGOs on issues like countering violent extremism and counter terrorism. A former BBC producer and Sky News reporter before becoming a communications consultant working with government clients (Home Office, US State Department) on issues like radicalisation and extremism-related violence. 

For the last decade, he has been a regular contributor on TV history and science documentaries covering a wide range of issues and originating programme ideas. This includes multiple episodes/seasons of William Shatner’s The UnXplained (Prometheus/History), Secrets of the Royal Palaces (Viacom/Channel 5), Truthseekers (Big Media/History) and Forbidden History (LikeAShot/UKTV and Sky History).

The idea to investigate Francis Tumblety arose after being invited to talk about Jack the Ripper on Sky History’s 2022 documentary series: William Shatner’s The UnXplained. During the research process ahead of filming, the linkage between the Lincoln assassination and the Jack the Ripper murders emerged. 

He has written two biographies with black British themes – his biography of the late middleweight boxer Errol Christie – No Place To Hide (Aurum Press) was shortlisted for best sports biography of 2011 and long-listed for the William Hill prize.

Tony was born in Walthamstow, east London, and has been fascinated by the Jack the Ripper story all his life. The main protagonist, Francis Tumblety, was both LGBT and Irish heritage – like the author – but that is where the similarity ends! 

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 About the book

An astonishing connection between two of the 19th century’s greatest crimes.

A fraudulent doctor, Francis Tumblety, is implicated in both the 1865 assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and the 1888 Jack the Ripper killings. It seems incredible that Jack the Ripper could have been involved in killing President Lincoln, but the evidence is revealed in this book.

We delve into a murky underworld in America’s Gilded Age and the poverty ridden slums of London’s Whitechapel district following the murderous trail left by Tumblety. A flamboyant huckster, well known in the newspaper gossip columns, whose celebrity masked his homicidal tendencies.

Arrested over the Lincoln assassination then released while others were hanged on the scaffold. Put behind bars briefly by Scotland over the Jack the Ripper killings but then makes a daring escape. The proof is overwhelming that Tumblety was one of the most dangerous criminals of the 19th century.

Review

Having read the majority of books on the Ripper, and a lot of the theories on the identity of the person who has captivated the attention of many minds - this was a refreshing read. In fact it was a wee bit of a mind-boggle, but in a fact connecting captivating way.

Leaving aside the connection between two major historical events that arguably shaped the landscape of the people and countries they took place in, let's look at the end of the Ripper's reign for a moment. Given the web of connections and relationships the author draws between Dr Tumbelty, the deep-rooted ill feeling towards homosexuality, and powerful men with a tendency to enjoy deviancy hidden in plain sight - the pieces fit together in a way that makes sense.

A man who hates women, perhaps even a projection of self-hatred because his sexual attraction makes him a person many men have an irrational fear of - combined with a unhealthy fetish for samples of female anatomy. Displaced anger, and make no mistake the killings were uncontrolled frenzy and pure violence. It's interesting how many of the interconnecting characters have a baseline of violent tendencies towards women, children and men. Crimes that would carry a stigma and certain punishment nowadays, but seem to have been glossed over with and by the power of friends, family, status and money.

One could even go as far as to, as does the book, connect the dots and see the protection of a larger wider community with a common goal and a tendency towards inflicting pain and distress. Who best to protect the killer and sadist than others of said nature.

I found the read absolutely fascinating - it calls for a script and a tv series. I can't wait to recommend and discuss this book with other readers. It's certainly going to make you rethink what you have learnt about the Ripper, and of course Lincoln too. As with all things historical what we know is written for the majority by the victor, clouded by what those who wielded pen and paper want you to know. New interpretations of the same material allow for a variety of fresh eyes scenarios. Verifying it beyond a shadow of a doubt is another thing. It would still make a banging series though.

Buy Jack the Ripper and Abraham Lincoln at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher ‏: ‎Troubador Publishing; pub date 7 May 2024. Buy at Amazon com.