Gemma Collins 'ecstatic' after uncovering 'family link to Jack the Ripper'

It’s the greatest unsolved mystery in Britain’s history... until now.

Towie star (and part-time detective) Gemma Collins believes she has unmasked Jack the Ripper, with a little help from the BBC ’s Who Do You Think You Are?

In an upcoming episode, Gemma learns she had ancestors who lived on a street where the notorious serial killer struck.

And she believes her own great-great-grandad, William Williams, could have been the Ripper. She says: “It’s probably just my luck that he was one of my relatives! I’m ecstatic! The macabre of it – I just think it’s a hilarious story.

“Obviously, the murders were terrible, and I get that, but how could it be that my family were on the same street as Jack the Ripper’s victim. You just couldn’t make it up.”

Gemma’s great-great-grandparents lived in a house on Dorset Street in Spitalfields, East London, with 33 other people.

Seance

The mutilated body of Mary Jane Kelly, was found in November 1888 in a property on the street. She is believed to have been the last of the Ripper’s five victims.

Gemma, 43, was born and bred in Romford, Essex. Her mum, Joan, was fostered as a child, and the BBC show tracked down her biological relatives. She says: “I always knew there was more to me and my family.

“I think I’ll have to do a seance now and speak to Jack the Ripper. It was such a famous street because that’s where all the cloak and daggery would go on.”

Gemma thinks the discovery could open doors for her. “I’m proud to call myself an EastEnder now,” she said. “I’m always saying, please can you get me on EastEnders?”

Mum Joan learned on the show that her biological mother was very young and was probably forced to give her up. Gemma says: “She grew up not feeling wanted but she was very much wanted and I think she had a great outcome.”

• Who Do You Think You Are, BBC1, 9pm, September 26.