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The Highgate Vampire was a supernatural being that allegedly haunted Highgate Cemetery in London, England.

A contemporary vampire case

Over the past 36 years, many popular books on ghosts have mentioned a vampire which allegedly haunted Highgate Cemetery up until the early 1970s. The fullest account is given by Sean Manchester who initiated an investigation in the late 1960s. Peter Underwood has also covered the case in its early stages in two of his books.

Vampire History

"I became convinced that, more than anyone else, the president of the Vampire Research Society knew the full story of the Highgate Vampire." — Peter Underwood, President of the Ghost Club Society

In 1990, Peter Underwood retold the events of the Highgate Vampire case (up to the first discovery of the suspect tomb in Highgate Cemetery) in his book Exorcism! He commented in chapter six:

"The Hon Ralph Shirley told me in the 1940s that he had studied the subject in some depth, sifted through the evidence and concluded that vampirism was by no means as dead as many people supposed; more likely, he thought, the facts were concealed.... My old friend Montague Summers has, to his own satisfaction, at least, traced back 'the dark tradition of the vampire' until it is 'lost amid the ages of a dateless antiquity.'"

In his anthology, The Vampire's Bedside Companion (1975) which contains a chapter with photographic evidence from the Vampire Research Society, written and contributed by VRS founder and president Seán Manchester, Peter Underwood wrote:

"Alleged sightings of a vampire-like creature - a grey spectre - lurking among the graves and tombstones have resulted in many vampire hunts.... In 1968, I heard first-hand evidence of such a sighting and my informant maintained that he and his companion had secreted themselves in one of the vaults and watched a dark figure flit among the catacombs and disappear into a huge vault from which the vampire ... did not reappear. Subsequent search revealed no trace inside the vault but I was told that a trail of drops of blood stopped at an area of massive coffins which could have hidden a dozen vampires."

In the previous year, two schoolgirls had reported seeing the spectre rise from its tomb. One of these would be interviewed by Seán Manchester. The case of the Highgate Vampire was about to open.

The reason why Seán Manchester initially wrote his bestselling book (The Highgate Vampire) was due to so many people contacting him to ask what really happened. Letters ran into hundreds, and this accumulated following the commission from Peter Underwood and his publisher, Leslie Frewin Books, to give an account of events up to and including the spoken exorcism attempt of August 1970. Seán Manchester thought this might stem the flow, but the case itself was yet to be solved, and reports of unsavoury incidents continued to filter into the columns of local newspapers. Hence the complete and unexpurgated account first published in 1985. A more intimate account was given in a special edition published by Gothic Press in 1991 where the rear fly on the dust jacket states:

" recognises the immense public interest in the Highgate Vampire case which is why he has written the present volume as a final comment on what, in his own words, is 'hopefully the last frenzied flutterings of a force so dight with fearful fascination that even legend could not contain it'."

It was never Seán Manchester's intention to try and convince anyone of the existence of the supernatural, yet still he receives correspondence asking him to do precisely that. Nor was it his wish to stimulate undue interest in these matters; though he accepts this has been an unintentional by-product. By writing a comprehensive recounting of those events surrounding the mystery, he merely sought to provide a record of his unearthly experience for those who wanted to read about it.

In the wake of his book, and personal appearances where he discussed its contents, some individuals were not slow to engage in shameless exploitation of his work. The majority of enthusiastic readers of Seán Manchester's work, however, have shown immense sympathy and encouragement.

The Vampire Research Society still has members living in the vicinity of Highgate Cemetery and they know of no recent sighting from any credible witness. No latter-day witnesses have been identified whose testimony can be checked. Not one person has independently come forward to verify the claim - a claim that still remains totally unsubstantiated.

The Vampire Research Society, though informally a specialist unit within the British Occult Society (BOS) from 1967, became autonomous in February 1970. On 13 March 1970, Seán Manchester made a transmission for Thames Television as the head of that organisation, and its parent BOS, where he warned against lone "vampire hunting" by amateurs. Manchester reiterated his disapproval on 15 October 1970 for a BBC television documentary that also included brief footage of one such amateur brandishing a home-made stake and cross.

Seán Manchester's Books on The Highgate Vampire

• The Highgate Vampire: The World of the Undead Unearthed at London’s Highgate Cemetery
• The Vampire Hunter’s Handbook: A Concise Vampirological Guide
• Carmel: A Vampire Tale

Forums that discuss The Highgate Vampire

• British Occult Society
• The Cross and the Stake
• The Highgate Vampire
• The Highgate Vampire
• Vampire Research Society

References

• Manchester, Seán. 'Carmel: A Vampire Tale', (2000).
• Manchester, Seán. 'The Vampire Hunter's Handbook', (1997).
• Manchester, Seán. The Highgate Vampire (1985; revised ed., 1991).
• Underwood, Peter. 'Exorcism!' (1990).
• Underwood, Peter. 'The Vampire's Bedside Companion' (1975; revised ed., 1976).

See also

• Dracula
• English folklore
• Urban legends
• Vampires

• English folklore
• Culture in London
• Cemeteries
• Vampires