Owner of ‘Jack the Chipper’ fears restaurant may have to close after customers ‘boycotted it’ over name

A chip shop owner who runs a restaurant called ‘Jack the Chipper’ has said that he means no disrespect over the name of the establishment after customers began to boycott it – and he fears it may close down.

52-year-old Recep Turhan, who runs the chip shop in Greenwich, south-east London, told The Sun that “people shout abuse through the front door” and “think he hates women.”

Turhan previously had a shop with the same name in Whitechapel, east London, the location of the Jack the Ripper murders in the late 1800s. According to Turhan, the name didn’t cause any controversy in that location and has only sparked trouble since they moved to Greenwich, despite only being open for a handful of weeks.

Turhan claims that the boycott started on social media and has since spread and is now threatening the business. He added: “They were historical events. I wasn’t celebrating what he did. It’s a play on words. This boycott is ruining my business.”

“It’s not like this is a murderer from last year. It’s a name we chose and it’s a brand now.”

Appearing on ITV’s This Morning, Turhan along with his son Cagri, defended themselves and the name of their shop and have even offered a 50 per cent discount to their female customers. However, host Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford felt that the gesture might come across as patronising.

Holmes said: “You may mean well but I think your reputation may take a bit of battering over that reduction to women.” Langsford then wrapped up the interview by saying: “Some people may see that as a bit patronising. But listen, that’s your business and you’ve said that’s what you’re doing. Thank you both very much indeed for telling us about it this morning.”

Reacting to the segment on This Morning many felt that there had been a slight overreaction and that there were plenty of others shops with similar names.

Jack the Ripper killed at least five women who were sex workers in 1888 in the Whitechapel area. It remains one of the biggest unsolved murder cases in the UK but has since become a tourist attraction with guided tours now available to the public of the crime scenes.