The Highgate Vampire was a

media sensation Media circus is a colloquial metaphor, or idiom, describing a news event for which the level of media coverage—measured by such factors as the number of reporters at the scene and the amount of material broadcast or published—is perceived t ...

surrounding reports of supposed

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

activity at

Highgate Cemetery Highgate Cemetery is a place of burial in north London, England. There are approximately 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves across the West and East Cemeteries. Highgate Cemetery is notable both for some of the people buried there as ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, England, United Kingdom, in the 1970s. The most thorough account of the story is given by

folklorist Folklore studies, less often known as folkloristics, and occasionally tradition studies or folk life studies in the United Kingdom, is the branch of anthropology devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currenc ...

Bill Ellis in the journal ''Folklore'', published in 1993.

Initial publicity

On 31 October 1968, a group of young people interested in the

occult The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...

visited Tottenham Park Cemetery, at a time when it was being regularly vandalised by intruders. According to a report in the ''

London Evening News The ''London Evening News'' was a newspaper whose first issue was published on 14 August 1855. Usually, when people mention the ''London Evening News'', they are actually referring to '' The Evening News'', published in London from 1881 to 1980, ...

'' of 2 November 1968: Though the identities and motivations of those responsible were never ascertained, general consensus at the time linked the

desecration Desecration is the act of depriving something of its sacred character, or the disrespectful, contemptuous, or destructive treatment of that which is held to be sacred or holy by a group or individual. Detail Many consider acts of desecration to ...

to events surrounding the Highgate Vampire case. Then, in a letter to the ''

Hampstead and Highgate Express The Ham & High, officially the Hampstead & Highgate Express is a weekly paid newspaper published in the London Borough of Camden by Archant. The newspaper is priced at £1 and is published every Thursday. History Founded in 1860, from 1862 it ...

'' on 6 February 1970, David Farrant wrote that when passing

on 24 December 1969 he had glimpsed "a grey figure", which he considered to be

, and asked if others had seen anything similar. On the 13th, several people replied, describing a variety of

ghosts A ghost is the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that is believed to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to rea ...

said to haunt the cemetery or the adjoining Swains Lane. These ghosts were described as a tall man in a hat, a

spectral ''Spectral'' is a 2016 3D military science fiction, supernatural horror fantasy and action-adventure thriller war film directed by Nic Mathieu. Written by himself, Ian Fried, and George Nolfi from a story by Fried and Mathieu. The film stars ...

cyclist, a woman in white, a face glaring through the bars of a gate, a figure wading into a pond, a pale gliding form, bells ringing, and voices calling. Sean Manchester claimed Farrant's "grey figure" was a

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

and the media quickly latched on, embellishing the tale with stories of the vampire being a king of the vampires, or of practising

black magic Black magic, also known as dark magic, has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes, specifically the seven magical arts prohibited by canon law, as expounded by Johannes Hartlieb in 145 ...

March 1970 mob

The ensuing publicity was enhanced by a growing rivalry between Farrant and Manchester, each claiming that he could and would expel or destroy the spectre. Manchester declared he would hold an

exorcism Exorcism () is the religious or spiritual practice of evicting demons, jinns, or other malevolent spiritual entities from a person, or an area, that is believed to be possessed. Depending on the spiritual beliefs of the exorcist, this may be ...

on Friday 13 of March 1970.

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

conducted interviews with Manchester, Farrant, and others who claimed to have seen supernatural figures in the cemetery, which were transmitted early on the evening of the 13th; within two hours a mob of 'hunters' from all over London and beyond swarmed over gates and walls into the locked cemetery, despite police efforts to control them. Some months later, on 1 August 1970, the charred and headless remains of a woman's body were found not far from the

catacomb Catacombs are man-made subterranean passageways for religious practice. Any chamber used as a burial place is a catacomb, although the word is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire. Etymology and history The first place to be referred ...

. The police suspected that it had been used in black magic. Farrant was found by police in the churchyard beside the cemetery one night in August, carrying a

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

and a wooden stake. He was arrested, but when the case came to court it was dismissed. A few days later Manchester returned to Highgate Cemetery. He claims that this time he and his companions forced open the doors of a family vault (indicated by his psychic helper). He says he lifted the lid off one coffin, believing it to have been mysteriously transferred there from the previous catacomb. He was about to drive a stake through the body it contained when a companion persuaded him to desist. Reluctantly, he shut the coffin, leaving garlic and incense in the vault.

Aftermath

There was more publicity about Farrant and Manchester when rumours spread that they would meet in a "magicians' duel" on

Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (french: Colline du Parlement, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its Gothic revival suite of buildings, and their architectu ...

on Friday 13 April 1973, which never occurred. Farrant was jailed in 1974 for damaging memorials and interfering with dead remains in Highgate Cemetery—vandalism and desecration which he insisted had been caused by

Satanists Satanism is a group of ideological and philosophical beliefs based on Satan. Contemporary religious practice of Satanism began with the founding of the atheistic Church of Satan by Anton LaVey in the United States in 1966, although a few h ...

, not him. Farrant and Manchester wrote and spoke repeatedly about the Highgate Vampire, each stressing his own role to the exclusion of the other. Each attempted to control the narrative around the vampire, resulting in ongoing animosity and rivalry between the two. Their feud continued for decades, marked by insults and vindictiveness, until Farrant's death in April 2019.

In popular culture

*According to author Bill Ellis, the

Hammer Horror Hammer Film Productions Ltd. is a British film production company based in London. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic horror and fantasy films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Many of these involve classi ...

film ''

Dracula AD 1972 ''Dracula A.D. 1972'' is a 1972 British horror film, directed by Alan Gibson and produced by Hammer Film Productions. It was written by Don Houghton and stars Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Stephanie Beacham. Unlike earlier films in Hamme ...

'', starring

Christopher Lee Sir Christopher Frank Carandini Lee (27 May 1922 – 7 June 2015) was an English actor and singer. In a long career spanning more than 60 years, Lee often portrayed villains, and appeared as Count Dracula in seven Hammer Horror films, ultimat ...

and

Peter Cushing Peter Wilton Cushing (26 May 1913 – 11 August 1994) was an English actor. His acting career spanned over six decades and included appearances in more than 100 films, as well as many television, stage, and radio roles. He achieved recognition ...

, was inspired by the Highgate Vampire. *The Highgate Vampire appears as a villain in the

Dark Horse comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...

series ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine'' is a comic book series published by Dark Horse Comics from 2011 to 2013. It is the sequel to the '' Season Eight'' comic book series, a canonical continuation of the television series ''Buffy the Vampire Sl ...

''. The Highgate Vampire is revealed to be, not a vampire, but an insectoid demon that feeds off its victims' emotional trauma.

Rupert Giles Rupert Giles is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. The character is portrayed by Anthony Stewart Head. He serves as Buffy Summers' mentor and surrogate father figure. The characte ...

had nearly been killed by the creature in 1972. The Highgate Vampire became a minion of

Drusilla Drusilla is a female given name deriving from the Roman cognomen Drusilla. History The name has its origin from the Latin cognomen (and later praenomen) ''Drusus'' which itself derived from the Greek ''drosos'' (dew). The diminutive "illa" t ...

when it returned in the 2010s. *''Il vampiro di Highgate'' (Highgate Vampire) is the title of 45th issue of Italian horror comic book series ''Dampyr''. *The Highgate Vampire was covered on episode 388 of The Last Podcast On The Left.

References

'' "Zzzzz London;Z is for...;A-Z;London Life" Section: Features; Page 31. * Beresford, Matthew. ''From Demons to Dracula: The Creation of the Modern Vampire Myth'' (London: Reaktion Books, 2008), 175-92. * Campbell, Ramsey. "The Strange Case of Seán Manchester" in ''Ramsey Campbell, Probably'' (PS Publishing, 2002, ). The essay is expanded in the revised edition of the book ({{ISBN, 978-1-848639-11-9). *Ellis, Bill. "The Highgate Cemetery Vampire Hunt", ''Folklore'' 104 (1993), 13-39. This journal can be read online via the JStor site. * Ellis, Bill. (1993) ''

Folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

'' The Highgate Cemetery vampire hunt: the Anglo-American connection in satanic cult lore"Volume 104; Issue 1/2; Page 13. *Farrant, David. ''Beyond the Highgate Vampire'' (London: British Psychic and Occult Society, 1991). *Farrant, David. ''In the Shadow of the Highgate Vampire: An Autobiography Volume 1" (London: British Psychic and Occult Society, 2011) *Farrant, David. ''Out of the Shadows: An Autobiography Volume 2" (London: British Psychic and Occult Society, 2011) *Manchester, Sean. ''The Highgate Vampire'' (London: British Occult Society Gothic Press, 1985) *Manchester, Sean. ''From Satan To Christ'' (London: Holy Grail, 1988) *Manchester, Sean. ''The Vampire Hunter's Handbook'' (London: Gothic Press, 1997) * ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

'' (27 April 1988) ''Observer: Missing Manchester'' Page 22. * Holly, Donald H Jr; Cordy, Casey E; (Summer 2007) ''

Journal of American Folklore The ''Journal of American Folklore'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the American Folklore Society. Since 2003, this has been done on its behalf by the University of Illinois Press. The journal has been published since the society' ...

'
"What's In a Coin? Reading the Material Culture of Legend Tripping and Other Activities"
Volume 120, Number 477, pp. 335–354. *Underwood, Peter. ''The Vampire's Bedside Companion'' (1975; revised ed., 1976). * McKay, Sinclair. (6 May 2006) ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' "The loved ones of London Sinclair McKay is beguiled by an account of how the capital once dealt with its dead" Section: Books; Page 5. * Page, Carol, "Blood Lust: Conversations with Real Vampires, (HarperCollins, 1991, Dell, 1992, Warner, ULK, 1993) * Simpson, Jacqueline. (1 April 2003) ''

'
"Raising the Devil: Satanism, New Religions, and the Media"
Volume 114; Issue 1; Page 123.

External links

* ''The Highgate Vampire'

Archive ''

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