No one’s hero

For the life of me, I cannot fathom the logic of the Guardian in running an obituary for the serial killer Peter Sutcliffe. As errors of judgement go, it’s right up there. Indeed, it’s up there with the Daily Mail which today has produced what appears to be a special souvenir pull out for its readers to keep, presumably alongside their royal family specials. What are they thinking about?

The Guardian’s obit covers what is almost an entire page. Admittedly, its is not exactly fawning in praise for the evil mass murderer but it just leaps out at you and makes you think: why did they produce a page for him? If he was in hell – and who wouldn’t want him to be, if such a place existed? – you can imagine Sutcliffe would be raising a glass in celebration.

The Mail’s effort is predictably crass, the purpose of which is to encourage people to buy this sagging organ. “Don’t forget to buy the Mail, Bert. There’s a Yorkshire Ripper special today.”

We don’t pretend Sutcliffe never existed. How could we given the carnage inflicted on so many women and their families? But there is a real danger of almost celebrating his sick life. The only thing we should be celebrating is his death.