Cult Spy: The story of 'Buffy' spin-off 'Ripper' Part Two

Following the first part of our look at the history of proposed Buffy spin-off Ripper, Cult Spy looks at the more recent developments that have propelled the project towards finally reaching the screen in the near future. Touch wood.

Despite Joss Whedon's busy diary being seen as the reason behind the delays to Ripper, the cancellation of Angel in early 2004 didn’t lead to Rupert Giles moving any closer to making a return. For Whedon soon became immersed in crafting a script for a proposed Wonder Woman film and taking Firefly to the big screen in a movie entitled Serenity.

Meanwhile, Anthony Head was moving further away from the iconic Watcher by carving out a recurring role as the Prime Minister in the highly successful Little Britain series, whilst racking up guest appearances in the likes of Doctor Who, Monarch of the Glen and Hotel Babylon. He was firmly in demand following his career renaissance resulting from Buffy, which helped shed the stereotype attached to him following his famous coffee advertisements throughout the 1980s and '90s. Could he ever be lured back to reprise a role that he'd played for seven consecutive years?

After a long period of silence and the Ripper project seemingly aborted, some sudden news stunned and elated the cult community in July 2007. Joss Whedon announced at Comic Con in San Diego that talks were nearing completion with the BBC for a 90 minute TV movie that will see Head reprise his iconic role.

The following month, the Daily Star announced that the show had been green-lit and would shortly enter production for broadcast the following year. However, the veracity of the story was made slightly dubious by their suggestion that Pete Doherty was in the frame to play a vampire.

Countless fingers across the globe are crossed that the Buffyverse will soon have a new show to follow in the esteemed footsteps of Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel. The omens are good, but don’t breathe a sigh of relief until the cameras start rolling. We’ll keep you up to date with the latest developments!