Morbid - Episode 502: The Highgate Vampire

Episode Date: October 12, 2023

When Muswell Hill resident David Farrant wrote to the letters section of the Hampstead and Highgate Express in February 1970, he had hoped to find others who’d witnessed any unusual or potentially supernatural happenings in London’s Highgate Cemetery. Instead, Farrant kicked off a moral panic over vampires, ghosts, and all manner of occult activities that featured prominently in the pages of British newspapers for years. Farrant’s letter received a few responses from others who claimed to have had their own supernatural experiences in Highgate Cemetery, but the story would likely have ended there had it not been for Sean Manchester. A self-proclaimed occultist and vampire hunter, Manchester claimed that what Farrant had seen at Highgate was in fact a vampire, and moreover, the cemetery itself was the site of ongoing black masses, vampire gatherings, and other dark practices. Soon, a rivalry developed between Farrant and Manchester over who had the power to eradicate the supernatural threat at Highgate and just weeks after Farrant sent his letter to the newspapers, Manchester led a large mob of Londoners into Highgate Cemetery intent on driving out the evil that supposedly swelled there.Throughout the early 1970s, the war of words between Farrant and Manchester frequently captured the public’s attention, thanks to the various news outlets that couldn’t resist the outrageous actions of the two men that ranged from benign and silly (a naked fire dance in an abandoned building) to gruesome and disrespectful (desecration of human remains). However, while the antics of the two men at the center of the story may elicit a smirk or an eyeroll, the public’s response to the supposed supernatural threat provides valuable insight into a phenomenon of moral panic that go on to fuel, among other things, the satanic panic that dominated the news throughout the 1980s and 90s. To learn more about ways to save our graves, go to https://www.saveourcemeteries.org. Thank you to the lovely David White, of Bring Me the Ax podcast, for research assistanceReferences: Cambridge Evening News. 1970. "Mr. Blood in hunt for vampire." Cambridge Evening News, March 14: 21.Ellis, Bill. 1993. "The Highgate Cemetery Vampire Hunt: The Anglo-American Connection in Satanic Cult Lore." Folklore (Taylor and Francis, Ltd.) 104 (1/2): 13-39.Evening Standard. 1970. "'Black magic' man tells of threats." Evening Standard, November 4: 17.—. 1968. "Coffins broken open at a witches' sabbath." Evening Standard, November 1: 23.—. 1974. "Naked witchcraft men in fire dance." Evening Standard, January 21: 5.—. 1974. "Wife tells of 'horror photos'." Evening Standard, June 20: 5.Farrant, David. 1970. "Letters: Ghostly walks in Highgate." Hampstead and Highgate Express, February 6: 26.Guardian Journal. 1970. "Vampire hunter is cleared by court." Guardian Journal, September 30: 7.—. 1968. "'Black magic' theory after coffins raid." Guiardian Journal, November 2: 1.Hampstead and Highgate Express. 1970. "Does a wampyr walk in Highgate?" Hampstead and Highgate Express, February 27: 1.Liverpool Daily Post. 1972. "Couple fined for churchyard ritual." Liverpool Daily Post, November 23: 18.Manchester Evening News. 1973. "100 join hunt for cemetery 'vampire'." Manchester Evening News, March 14: 5.Sunday Mirror. 1973. "'Sacrifice' witches in horror." Sunday Mirror, April 8: 11.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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where you can listen to even the royals exclusively and add free right now. Hey, weirdo, I'm Elena. I'm A. And this is morbid. We're on hinge today. We're on a different level today. Not even space level? No, like intergalactic. Intergalactic.

There you go. That's what I was looking for. I know. Yeah, we're eating lots of food. We're being lots of crazy. It's Thursday, but we got Fridays. Hey! Oh, look at that.

Have you guys had from Fridays? It's like the crispy rice, and they put a little avocadue on the top, and then put a little avocado on the top and then a tiny little jalapeno. It's really good. It is stupid good. It is, it's real good. I love sticky rice.

A little soy sauce on there. A little soy sauce. I prefer coconut aminos, but soy sauce will do. Excuse me. Yeah, look at this health and wellness journey. I know, it's bragsgs even so just look at that brag Just just give me soy sauce on everything. Here you go. Thank you. You're welcome Pre-skabre this way sauce. I did it. It was a match. I also have some ginger sending next

Wow, we got tattoos yesterday, so I don't know why that made us loopy, but it did. It did. Shout out to Matt and Ryan on the black mall. Oh, Matt and Ron. The black mall. Shop of Dread and Wanda. And you know what, it's okay that we're being so kooky.

We're gonna talk about vampires today. So vampires or lack thereof. Or lack thereof, which is even better. But two kooky crazy people. Ooh, I looked to them up just to see what they look like. I didn't want to know. I know nothing about this story. I know nothing.

But I know what they look like, and it made me even more excited to listen to this story. Yeah, they out in the streets, calls playing. Yeah. So, oh no. Oh, let me just tell you. We're talking about the, I'm like, go into it. We're going. And we're going We're talking about the high gate vampire story. It's a good one. You know, story story.

So it starts on November 1, 1968, when several London news outlets were reporting on an incident of pretty substantial vandalism at the Tottenham Park Cemetery. And it included, among other things, graves being dig dug up, being dig dug up, being digged all up. That's like not good. That's really, you know, a lot of people would say that's bad. Like who does that?

Yeah. Like you want to vandalize things. Ah, that's not cool. I'm not sure about that, but. But don't vandalize people's graves. What the fuck? Like just let them rest. They also had pride-open coffins,

and there was just like destroyed crosses everywhere. What the fuck? It was wild, and the cemetery is super-intended Reverend Lionel Phillips. He told reporters that he had never seen anything like it. He said, it isn't just ordinary vandalism. Everything has been carefully done and arranged according to some evil right.

There's more to this than meets the eye. And then the credits roll in the beginning of the movie happens. No, this is for realsies. So according to Reverend Phillips, when he arrived at the cemetery that morning, he was shocked to find the grounds, quote, strewn with dead flowers, inverted crosses and broken urns, which had literally been robbed from the graves. Not cool. And he told reporters everything had been arranged in a pattern that pointed to three recently buried gravesites, all of which had been dug out, coffins and all. Now Phillips himself had initially been alerted to the vandalism by the caretaker of the cemetery, William Daken, I believe, site site.

And William Daken told the press, press, there's definitely something strange going on here. The graveyard is supposed to be haunted, but this has been done by humans and it looks like black magic or something. I've never seen anything quite like it. Although coffins and graves have been disturbed here before. I always love when people go straight to this must be real black magic and like real satanic shit.

Yeah. Because it's like, you know that lots of people know what how to make something look like that so that your thought process immediately goes to that and it makes you not look at the actual thing that's happening precisely. And it's like it's weird to me that more people, especially like around this, you know, you know,

decades earlier than now. Right. Their immediate thought was to go to the very obvious instead of being like red herring, perhaps. Yeah. Well, we'll kind of talk about why they went there, like the current social climate, and that time, and kind of why their heads were going to Blackmagic and Satan-worship. Interesting.

Yeah. But the next day, Jake, and he was less tentative about his theories, about who was responsible for the Mandalism before. He was like, could be black magic. Maybe I don't know. But things have happened before. Also every time I say that, I just think black magic. Yep, that's true. That's a song.

But he told the Guardian Journal, this isn't just ordinary vandalism. Everything has been done carefully for some evil right. I believe some kind of black magic ceremony has been performed here. It was Halloween last night. Bum bum bum. Wow.

I didn't expect that, did you? I didn't, but I welcome it with open arms again. It's called dramatic effect. Look it up. It was lovely. So the official story from the police was that the vandals were most likely just youth celebrating Halloween. That's kind of what I thought most people would, but the incident did raise some concerns about whether

there were devil warship was lying among the ordinary Londoners. Well here's the thing, if it was just like a bunch of shit in there, like people, you know, they turned over some crosses and stuff and like, yeah, through some fight, even that would be, I'd be like, wow, that's some like, fucked up youth shit. Like, we didn't do that. Like a grave robbing? That's the thing. I'd be like, well, that's some fucked up youth shit. Like, we didn't do that. Like a grave robbing? That's the thing. I'd be like, and I'd even be a little like, oh, that's a lot for kids. Like, why are they going in a cemetery?

But they've done that before, kids do stupid shit. Of course. But like you're saying, when you're opening up coffins, that's when things do take, and I didn't take that into consideration, I'm afraid. That does take it into a different place. Entirely.

Like, we're not just setting up some flowers in a weird way in a cemetery and turning some crosses over. You're like really, I don't know where you're going, but you're not going anywhere good when you're opening people's coffins up. Not on a good path. No.

Like two roads diverged to a yellow wood and you chose the wrong ass wall. Yeah, and you just like dug straight chose the wrong ass wall. Yeah. And you just like dug straight into the earth's crust. Yeah, don't go there. So I, yeah, I can understand why they were a little more like what the fuck's happening here. I get it.

That's the thing. And here's the other thing. Given the evidence, it kind of seems like an irrational jump to make going from like rambunctious asshole youths to full blown double warshipers. For sure. But at the time modernday British people really weren't that far removed from, like, witchy satanic hysteria and just, like, panic in general.

Yeah. Because in the late 19th and early 20th century, similar concerns were actually raised publicly about this influential cult society called the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dom. Damn, that sounds awesome, but I bet it's not at all. No, it actually is. That's pretty awesome. Awesome. They literally had no association whatsoever with devil

worshipping or any kind of malevolent deity at all. They just practiced mystical traditions and magic as a spiritual practice, and everyone was really freaking out about it. They were like, the day of all. So Satanic panic is happening. Yeah, exactly. Now, the other thing was that the press and the public weren't familiar with the order's belief, so they just immediately labeled them dangerous people.

That's awesome. But they were basically just kind of like witches and warlocks. Yeah, that's my ass. You should do that when you don't understand something immediately labeled as dangerous. I think that's a great way to go about your life. There's a story in your book. And if you can't understand something immediately label it as dangerous. I think that's a great way to go about your life. There's a story group.

If you can't tell that was like the biggest heaping helping of sarcasm, just in case anybody took that for a serious thing. But some people might have, because there is a group of people in particular that really love to do that. Exactly. You know, so you want to make sure. Exactly. Now, while most of the Golden Dawn members spend a ton of their time trying to combat

the image of an evil secret society that had been placed upon them, one early member, you might know him. One Elastakrowly. Never heard of that guy. Yes, you have. Yes, you have. You have. He, like other people were like, okay, let's try to like show the public and these people in society that we were actually not what they think we are. Yeah.

Alistair was like, let's lean right the fuck into it. Hell yeah. And he embraced the whole thing and embraced the notoriety by, quote, implying that he was genuinely involved with devil worship. He's just like sure. And then there were other parts of his personal life, like his being bisexual, his drug use, and his social opinions that made him even more threatening to a very buttoned up British society. Now he had actually broke away from the Golden Dawn around 1900 and he traveled the world for a few years,

which is pretty cool. And after that, he actually formed his own esoteric society called Thalima. Now his celebrity and the occult beliefs of Thalima were so influential in a ton of social circles throughout the first half of the 20th century, so much so that El Ron Hubbard, future founder of Scientology, and then a whole last rocket engineer named Jack Parsons, they established a branch of Thalima in LA during the late 40s and early 50s, and people seem to be really inspired by the practices. So actually, a lot of new religious movements that emerged in the 60s were actually influenced directly by Philema.

Damn. And, of course, most Christians and Catholics looked at those unfamiliar spiritual practices as dangerous and evil. That's why to me, and this is just my opinion, like gathering like that into one society of something or other. Yeah. I don't feel like it ever ends up as a great as a great thing in the end. I don't know. I sure that we're supposed to. No, I think that's why I just like practice my own shit. Yeah, I'm like, you see, you know, have your little

little little group if you want, but I think what it gets too big, that's when things go awry. Yeah. You know? Now, those are all just like examples of reasons why the British society was a little freaked out by all these things going on. It was a little like quick on the draw here to be like, this is definitely Satan. This is definitely an ancient black magic right ritual that has been happening in this graveyard. Like, I, you know, their condition at this point.

Exactly. And they were like, you know, they're probably sacrificing things to some malevolent deity. I just like to go ahead and say that if there's no band called malevolent deity, that is pretty great. Band name I call it. Yeah. Hello, Cleveland. We are malevolent deity.

Wow. You make awesome shirts. I'm not musically inclined so you can have it. Like you, Cleveland. We are malevolent. And I would be able to make awesome shirts. I'm not musically inclined so you can have it like you listener. You, not just you're not musically inclined. You listening listener, you can have it. Take it. Sure. But listen, even though the Golden Dawn, Alistair Crowley and

Palimma were all active about like five decades earlier, like I was just saying, all of their influences would feed the fears of Satanism in witchcraft in 1970s London. So that's how we got here. Fun. And then those fears were also fed by the release of Rosemary's Baby.

The movie was released in June of 1968. And it was based on IRA 11's novel from the year before. And in case I'm not the only person that's never seen it, I've never seen it, I have. I feel like I'm gonna get attacked in the comments. You should see it, but I don't look at them. I'll have you. I know, I was like, you won't know.

I won't know. But in case I'm not the only person who's never seen it, Rosemary's Baby basically tells the story of a young woman named Rosemary Woodhouse, which is a beautiful name, who becomes the target of a Satan, or of a group of Satan worshipping witches that want to snatch her baby. So in the context of Satanic panic and mass hysteria,

the influence of Rose Mary's baby can't really be understated, like you gotta mention it. Of course. And then of course, the movie re-ignited Hollywood's interest in horror films, and at the same time, presented the public with an idea of witchcraft that was modern, insidious, and well-connected. So they were like,

which is walk among us because I saw it. Isn't me a Pharaoh in that movie? Yeah, I saw it. Meopherro experienced it. What's very strange. And that was, she's got a really cool, like, pixie cut. See, I know that because Tyra wanted to give that pixie cut

to everybody and she always was like, Rosemary's baby. And she wanted to give that pixie cut to that one girl who wouldn't cut it a half inch more to be that way and got kicked off. And I was like, you were all great with that care cut if it was real.

I know, honestly, there was probably many other reasons why she wanted to get the fuck out of that. You don't say. But that's for another day. That's for another day. But in all reality, William Daken and Reverend Phillips had no idea what a black magic ceremony entailed or what kind of mess or destruction it would leave behind, they were just like devil worshippers.

Buzzwords. Yes, exactly. But still, they were both almost entirely convinced that the vandalism at Tottenham Park Cemetery was the work of Satan worshipping witches who were conducting some sort of black mass. And then witches came into the picture and said, so what? They said, I don't give a fuck. Now their opinion on the matter wasn't the result of any kind of experience that they'd ever had.

No. They were just relying on the countless examples of modern day witches from Golden Dawn, Talistar Crowley, and then the new religious movements in Rosemary's Baby that they really thought this was a real threat to society. I think, again, I think that's a great way to go about life. It's to have no actual evidence,

nothing to go off of, no previous experience with something, and then just listen to something somebody might have said once and look at a Hollywood movie. Hollywood. And say, yeah, I got it. I know a lot about this now. I think that's an awesome way to go about things. Me too. Yeah, what? You know, heavy dose of sarcasm.

Enter sarcasm here. But while the hysteria and the occult groups in evil rights and London were rooted more in rumor and social anxiety than reality, it is worth noting that there were groups like the hermatic order of the Golden Dawn that existed to pursue an interest in the occult. Now, unlike the Golden Dawn, these groups didn't have any kind of formality or structure. It was more just groups of young people who were kind of pursuing a shared interest in the devil. That's good. I like it.

I love that. No, it's just like, you can, like, those, that's where I feel like it's like really hard to have any kind of gathering of people that have a shared interest in that way. Because even the ones that you're like, that's nice. Like you're just gathering together. You have this interest in like, magic as a spiritual practice and like, you know, you probably love nature and all that shit. Yeah. And you found a bunch of people that also feel that way and you feel like connected and like you're belonging to that. Like if that's something you need, then that's nice to have.

But even that will get turned. That's the thing. You just can't have a group of people that just wanna do some stuff. No, it always turns dark. And it always turns dark. Even if they have good intentions. And then sometimes I feel like a lot of times

it seems like there's like one or two people within that group that just loses themselves a little bit. People are tough, we're tough species. Yeah, we're like the worst species. We really shouldn't gather that much. It's not, it's really not a great idea. I think we should do our Nash. She's kind of free float.

Yeah, we do our Nash. Just be like those little pieces of dust in the air when you see a sun beam go down and you see all the dust floating in the air. Which I'll just be like that. I always wonder if it's actually dust or if it's like something else. Like what? Magic. I like that better than dust. For sure. It's better for my allergies. My old stepdad would say that like where somebody else is ants. Damn. So like what if where somebody else is dust? Cool. Wild. That's pretty awesome. Seat for thought. Nothing matters then. Nothing matters anyway. Have you ever seen

like the thing of like pictures of like the whole ass universe? Oh yeah. And it's like you are here crying in the shower and I'm like, yeah, yeah, okay. And like it doesn't actually matter. I'm like, it's on one day in the morgue when it was a particularly slow day and nothing was happening. We were just sitting in the office for hours on end. Somebody who was training me and I'm not going to like blow up, but he was great. Okay. But we were, I just don't know if he wants to be able to talk. Yeah, fair, fair.

But we were looking, he had found like some video that showed like in scale all the different planets and like the galaxies and all that and where we are. And we just sat there and kept replaying it and being like, why? Even in this office. What are we even doing? Like what's happening? By the end of it, we were having such an existential crisis.

We both left feeling subtype away. Because we're like, what matters? I was like, and we're in the morgue, so there's death around us, which added an element of what's going on. We're just surrounded by death, but look at how tiny we are and how nothing matters. It was so weird. Yeah, that's why.

I left there and just needed to be reprogrammed. Wow. Yeah, I should just wake up the next day. I don't know. I think we're both fine the next day. Good for you guys. Good for you guys. Listen up, babies. Hydration isn't just about the summer. It's not just about people training for championships or spooky girls and we need to be

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Real people, real flavor, real hydrating. Grab your liquid IV in bulk nation wide at Costco or you can get 20% off when you go to liquidiv.com and use code morbid at checkout. That's 20% off anything when you shop better hydration today using promo code morbid at liquidiv.com. This is 48 hours correspondent, Aaron Moriarty. My podcast, My Life of Crime, is delving into a new season

of true crime cases like no other. For a number of years, they thought they had committed the perfect crime. With decades of experience as a lawyer and reporter involved in murder cases, I'm taking on the most chilling investigations. This season, I'm looking into the labyrinth of crime and secrets within families. You are under arrest for murdering your mother. Do you know that I was kidnapped? Do you know that?

Join me in my journey to go beyond the scene of each crime behind Prism Walls and into the killer's inner thoughts. Enjoy my life of crime with Aaron Moriarty on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to my life of crime with Aaron Moriarty on the Wondry app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to my life of crime with Aaron Moriarty, add free on Wondry Plus. Get started with your free trial at Wondry.com slash plus. But so yeah, going back to the story and like these groups of people that gathered together in the late 60s, one of these groups that emerged from London's suburban haugate neighborhood, they called themselves the British Occult Society.

I'm out. I know, right? They were led by David Farron and Sean Manchester to Occult Enthusias who were in their early 20s at the time. Now, the group was said to quote, have grown out of a circle of friends who had been in the habit of visiting high-gate cemetery late at night in the 1960s.

And according to David, David Ference's wife, all the members shared an interest in the supernatural, but mostly participated quote, for a laugh and a joke, we would wander about, frighten ourselves to death and come out again. Sounds like fun to me. And David Ference, the guy who looks really cool. for a laugh and a joke, we would wander about frightened ourselves to death and come out again. Sounds like fun to me.

And David Farons, the guy who looks really cool. He does look really cool. And he does like all the pictures, you're like damn. He's a character. I know nothing about him. So I'm just saying totally based off aesthetics. I was like, you look cool. He does look cool.

And I think he was cool for like a minute. And like he had his moment and then it went a little too far. Cool. And we'll get to know. But by the late 60s, high-gate cemetery, the one where everything had gone down, and it seemed better days. It had been filled to capacity actually decades earlier.

But for some reason, they still tried to squeeze in new plots. So things were overcrowded, unsustainable, and sadly, the grounds were really poorly maintained. And then the situation was even further exacerbated by the bombings that were sustained during World War I and World War II, and that left many of the stones

and crypts just encrumbling disrepair. Oh. So this was all made even worse by mid-century neglect and overgrowth, like nobody was taking care of this place. So everything was overgrowing to the point where you couldn't even walk up half. Oh, and that's so sad.

I know, because it's people's final resting place. Yeah. I think cemeteries, personally, are beautiful. I love cemeteries. And they should be maintained. There's a whole foundation. I think it's called savor cemeteries. I will look it up just so we can link them,

because they take donations to help revitalize Like forgotten about cemeteries so that people can have like they've done a lot for like New Orleans cemeteries and stuff So we'll link it because it is an important organization. I think yeah, and definitely like super pertinent to this story Yeah, because they they do a lot of good work. Hell yeah Well, so listen by the time the British Occult Society started visiting the cemetery in the late 1960s, it was in peak shambles. Richard Altec wrote, to reach one grave requires from the path

through the brambles and burrs and hip high undergrowth and clinging vines that constantly trip up the explorer fresh from the London pavements. Damn. So basically he was like, you're gonna be waiting through overgrown shit, like clinging to brambles, probably getting cut by thorns, like it was gnarly.

So when Ferrin and the group started visiting high gate, their trips did involve some light vandalism, which that's the thing where I'm like, that's the bummer. Don't do that. Now what they did, I guess, wasn't really noticeable underneath the overgrowth in the ruin of the cemetery.

But during later visits in 1969, David Ferrent did notice obvious signs of vandalism that had not been done by the group, but by other nighttime visitors. He was like, we didn't do that. He would later tell reporters, vaults had been broken open, and coffins literally smashed apart.

Oh, that's awful. One vault near the top gate was wide open and one could see the remains of a skeleton where it had been wrenched from a coffin. Another vault on the main pathway had been thus entered and one of the coffins inside set a light. That's fucked up.

Like literally meaning somebody had lit a coffin on fire. You gotta be a special brand of fucked up. That's the up. Like literally meaning somebody had lit a coffin on fire. You got to be a special brand of fucked up. That's the thing. Yeah. Now, around this same time that David Ferrent is like telling people that this is going on, the police and highgate had actually started to receive reports of small groups of teenagers, vandalizing local cemeteries. So the police figured that the recent disturbances at highgate Cemetery were made by those same assholes.

But some people were not so sure that they were just dealing with teenagers. And some people thought everything going on at Highgate was because of something supernatural at work. Oh Now by December 1969 pharynx group had received two reports from locals claiming that they'd been walking in highgate cemetery when they encountered a tall, dark specter. This is a quote that temporarily hypnotized or paralyzed the bystander.

Whoa. So Ferent, for obvious reasons, was very intrigued by this report because he's in a cult enthusiast. Yeah. So he decided to see what he could see for himself and he made plans to say in the cemetery overnight on December 21st. Oh, shit.

So when he reached the gate and he was just about to climb over, he said he was stunned by what he thought to be a tall person walking through the cemetery grounds. Now, he stared through the bars trying to get a closer look, and he said he, quote, realize the shape was over seven feet tall and saw, quote, two eyes meeting mine, which were not human,

rather reflecting some alive presence. So in that moment, he was scared shitless and he figured he was in some kind of danger. So he was able to tear his gaze away from the specter. And he said, at that point, the figure just vanished. I love it. Iconic. Yeah.

So the encounter with this specter at the cemetery gates was thrilling for him. Like he's been searching for this for a long time. Of course. For years he had hoped to have his own experience with the supernatural and now he just fucking had one. Oh yeah. So after telling the rest of the British occult society about the interaction, he became determined to find other people with similar experiences so he could learn more.

So he drafted a letter titled Ghostly Walks and Highgate that he submitted to the Hampstead and Highgate Express. On February 6, 1970, he wrote to them, and this is beautiful. Some nights I walk home past the gates of Highgate Cemetery. On three occasions I have seen what appeared to be a ghost-like figure inside the gates at the top of Swain's Lane. The first occasion was on Christmas Eve. I saw a grave figure for a few seconds

before it disappeared into the darkness. The second sighting a week later was also brief. Last week, the figure appeared only a few yards inside the gates. This time, it was there long enough for me to see it much more clearly. And now I can think of no other explanation than this apparition being supernatural. I have no knowledge in this field and I would be interested to hear if any other readers have seen anything of this nature. Good for him. So Farron's letter actually got a ton of responses and

four were actually printed by the paper the next week. Damn, they mostly confirmed the existence of the high-gate ghost. Now, one letter writer claimed the ghost had been appearing for years on a regular basis, quote, showing itself nightly for about a week at intervals of about a month. And then another letter writer claimed that there had long been stories, quote, about a tall man in a hat who would walk across Swain's lane and just disappears through a wall into the cemetery. I love this.

It's so much fun. So the response is to Ference Letter, elicited even more responses the next week. And this issue included a note from the editors actually asking readers to send their own accounts of supernatural experiences like in and around the cemetery. It's so much fun. Let's go. Now, in addition to the further sightings of the tall man, letters started explaining more of the folklore

surrounding the area. One letter writer wrote about a mysterious figure seen moving the headstones in the cemetery late at night. And another letter told of a ghostly bicycleist known to chase women down Swain's lane. Hate that. Yeah, I don't love that. Oh, like that guy.

I also just like immediately hear that, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did, did it, did it, did it, did it, did, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did it, did, did, with six letters. Some people described the tall man, other people told of a woman in white who could be seen in the cemetery late at night, and they said she was crying out loud for Hugo. Where are you Hugo? Hugo. Hugo. Right in. Tell us what's going on. Come on, man. Now among the final letters was one from David Farrant himself, telling his own story and expressing his, quote, relief that his ghostly experience had been corroborated by others. Now in a piece for folklore, writer Bill Ellis noted, quote, the most impressive detail about the letters to the paper is the sheer amorphousness of the high-gate traditions. Apart from the ghostly cyclist, hardly two informants gave the same story.

Yet all young people seemed compelled to walk by or even enter the cemetery with the idea that something is supposed to happen. So basically he was saying, even though all the letter shared different stories, they all kind of created this like shared mythology around high gate cemetery. I love that.

And kind of established it as a place known for supernatural encounters or hauntings. Yeah, so I like get me there ASAP. Let's go. kind of established it as a place known for supernatural encounters or hauntings. Yeah. Right, sons. Right, sons. Get me there ASAP. Let's go. Now, under normal circumstances, the letters published to the Hampstead and Hygate Express

might have been dismissed as, you know, like folklore and evite. Névite. Névite. Just like the way that UFO abduction stories and ghost encounters aren't taken very seriously. But like I said earlier, during the late 60s and early 70s, London was undergoing major cultural shifts. And older generations were paranoid about younger generations being interested in these dark things, like witchcraft and satanic shit and dark arts.

So these supposed hauntings in the High gate cemetery actually gave these older like fearful generations something to concentrate on. And it kind of seemed like they started projecting their anxieties that way. Yeah, because they're like, look, exactly. We were right all along, like Reverend Phil there and the cemetery keeper, William Dakin. I know what a cool name, right?

That's a, you should be a cemetery care worker. Yes. A caretaker, if your name is William Daykin. You just have to be, I don't mean to say a whole sentence. Or do I. I like, or do I. Now, Sean Manchester, if you remember, he was one of the leaders of the British Occult Society. But he split from the original British Occult Society in early 1970 and ended up founding his own faction, and he immediately

seized on these stories being published in the press. Now, unlike David Ferrent, who was essentially looking for validation, Sean Manchester came forward and told reporters that he didn't think this was a simple matter of a ghostly entity. Instead, he said that he believed something far more dangerous was at work. He claimed he was, quote, concerned by the numbers of carcasses of foxes and other large animals that were showing up with lacerations around the throat completely drained of blood. He thinks there's a vampire at work. So given the success of the previous round of these paranormal letters, the hamstead and high gate expressed leapt at the chance for more letters in this nature. Yeah, they probably saw this was like a big draw.

So they were like, let's go. They were like, they were like, they were ready. They were ready. All right. Vampires. So in late February, they published a front page article featuring Sean Manchester under the headline, does a vampire walk in high gate? I am obsessed with that.

Love it so much. So in the article, Manchester warned local residents that this was not any old ordinary vampire or vampire. Yeah, but more. He quote, speculated that it was a king vampire from, I think it's Wala Shia, that had been brought to England in a coffin by his supporters at the start of the 18th century.

That sounds fucking awesome. Why doesn't this happen more? I don't know. If someone told me a king vampire had arrived after being brought over in a coffin, I mean, come on. Like, we're calling out to work today, fellas. Like, let's go. Yeah.

Well, he went into detail. He said, quote, now that there is so much desecration of graves by Satanism, I'm convinced that this has been happening in high gate cemetery in an attempt by a body of Satanist who, excuse me, to resurrect the king vampire. We would like to exercise the vampire by the traditional and approved manner.

Drive a stake through his heart with one blow just after dawn between Friday and Saturday. Chop off his head with a grieve digger shovel and burn what remains. This is what happened centuries ago, but we'd be breaking the law today. So quick question. Sure. Between Friday and Saturday. I don't know why. So, they're like, I know everybody's gotta go to work.

Yeah. And I'm sure this vampire has a sweet ass nine to five. So props. We should wait until the weekend when his guard is down. Just after dawn. When he's had a nice bruski after work and then we can dust his ass only in these certain time periods. Like I really like that.

I'm obsessed with it. I think that might be what I'm like, okay, I was gonna be a question, but then I worked it out in my own head, so. There ain't no rest for the wicked. So that's why they continue their work on the weekends. Yeah, everybody's working for the weekend, you know? Everybody's working for the vampire.

And they have to chop off his head. Yeah, with a gravedigger shovel. So it's not like Buffy, where they just dust. No, it's a little different. It's close. That's so neat. Yeah, with a gravedigger shovel. So it's not like Buffy, where they just dust. No, it's a little different. It's close. Yeah, it's neat because it's just like poof and you're gone. And it's like you don't have to do anything else. You don't have to get rid of any body or just like I know that is true. You sweep him into a dust pan. I like it. But also Buffy's version is neat too because that's what I mean. Buffy's version is neat. Oh, that's what you're saying. It's like chopping his head off with a grave diverse,

digger shovel is not neat at all. And then you have to light a fire. Like, Buffy doesn't even have to light a fire. Yeah, no. Buffy's way is far and above the better way. By the way, go listen to the rewatcher. It's a favorite podcast. It's too pretty stupid.

It will, you know, one of our favorite podcasts. Yes, of course. But by the next day, Manchester's story had obviously gained some attention from people like us. At first, to be attention. To pull like us. At first, this is not just us.

The attention was mostly from people who appreciated his creativity, but absolutely dismissed the reality of vampires. Couldn't be us. But after the public sat with the story for about a week or so, and Manchester continued to push this narrative of vampires and Satanists in the press, some people started to wonder whether there might be some truth to what he was saying. After all, there had been an alarming rise in youth rebellion in recent years that coincided with increased drug use and an interest in the paranormal and the occult.

The paranormal? The paranormal, that was a soul. And then there was the vandalism and the occult. See paranormal. Paranormal, that was a soul. And then there was the vandalism and the evidence of the quote unquote, evidence of witchcraft in local cemeteries and also church yards, which were followed by all the letters sent to the hamstead and high gate express about these paranormal happenings in high gate cemetery. So while it may have sounded outlandish at first, after giving it some thought, these people and high gates started to think maybe Sean Manchester was onto something and maybe they ought to do something about the evil that invaded their mother fucking neighborhood. I love this because it's a movie. It is. This is literally a movie. Like everybody's just like, we got to do something about

this evil. I guarantee you, this King vampire vampire. I guarantee you that they probably did make a movie about this. You should look that up because I need to look it up. So on March 13th, Ferent and Manchester, David Ferent and Sean Manchester, both appeared together in a news segment produced by ITV above a cemetery.

And standing in front of the cemetery gates, Ferent told a reporter that he had received, quote, threatening letters with black magic symbols on them, warning him to stay away from things he could not understand. Now Sean Manchester interrupted and kind of seemed to see an opportunity to undermine David Ferent. So he challenged Ferent's power and knowledge of the occult telling the reporter We feel he does not possess sufficient knowledge to exercise successfully Something as powerful or evil as this vampire and may well fall victim as a result He's like me on the other hand. I know what the fuck I'm doing me. I'm good. You not good He said I'm hot and you're not good. He said, I'm hot. And you're not. Top that.

So the program followed the interview with a segment on the ghostly apparitions seen in the park and included interviews with several neighborhood children who have also claimed to see this dark figure in Highgate Cemetery. So the new segment on ITV aired at 6 p.m. and within two hours there were nearly a hundred people who assembled at the gates of Highgate Cemetery for what the press later described as a vampire hunt. Wow. This is for realsies it happens.

I love it. I fucking love it. Look at it right. So while many residents were residents of this local London neighborhood, high gate, several others had actually driven pretty far to participate in this event. One of those people was Alan Blood. Hmm. I don't know if that's his real name or not.

I was just going to say, please tell me that's his real name. I mean, he's a self-described vampire expert, so like, I'd be willing to put money on the fact that he changed it, but I don't know his life. But he traveled, what I do know, is that he traveled more than 40 miles to participate in the hunt for what he described as an undead Satan-like being. You know what, get it.

I just sound like, you know, like just, if it makes you happy. Yeah. It can't be that bad. Cheryl said it. My girl, I love Cheryl. And blood told reporters. I met Mr. Ferent, that's his name.

So my blood told reporters. And he told reporters, I met Mr. Ferent in a pub, and we talked about his plans to stake the vampire. But this whole thing is timed wrongly. There were too many people around, which would disturb any undead spirit. Of course. He's like, if this were a pro-organized, I would have done it a little more, you know. There were too many people around which would disturb any undead spirit. Of course.

He's like, if this were a pro-organized, I would have done it a little more, you know. I would have understood the nuances here. Thank you, that's what I was looking for, the nuances. I was fine-tuned some of these details. I just, I really like that these people believe this so wholeheartedly. I love it. I really love it. I find this endearing.

It's fantastic. At one point, like an entire school of children, like descended upon this cemetery with like stakes and dogs and fucking and everything. I love it, I'm in. Now, some people who were there, like this happened a lot. Yeah, there's not a few times. So some people there seem to take farenc and mantrasters claim seriously, but a lot of people also just seem to be there to witness the spectacle. Me, in a pretzels. I know. Now, when they couldn't get through the gates, several would be vampire hunters climbed a A lot of people also just seem to be there to witness the spectacle. Me. In that process.

Now, when they couldn't get through the gates, several would-be vampire hunters climbed a 10-foot wall surrounding high-gate cemetery and just went in search of open graves looking for this king vamp here. Wow. It's for real, dog. Other people, though, refused to go very far into the cemetery, and they claimed that they had seen something moving beyond the gate. Ooh. And now a man named Anthony Robinson boring.

Sorry, Anthony. Sorry, Anthony. You're following up Mr. Blood. Yeah, exactly. He told reporters, I walked past this place twice and heard a high-pitched noise. Then I saw something gray moving slowly across the road. I'm sure there is something evil lurking here at Highgate. I love that the vampire's just was gray.

Yeah. Bigger. He's just like, I'm just gray. I'm just gray. I just let me go about my day. Look at it. I love it. I'm adorable.

That would be so cute. He's like, just let me know. But by 10 o'clock, the scene resembled what one onlooker described as a football crowd with tons of people carrying blunt objects that they were planning to use against any evil presence. And Sean Manchester later told a reporter, it was like the end of a Frankenstein film where the monster was chased. Yeah. People had weapons and looked as if they could turn nasty if they had seen a tall, lean

person in dark clothing. See, that's where it turns for me. Because when you're just like, oh, this person went in there by himself and was like, I'm gonna stake up my empire. I was like, that's delightful. Like, you do what you want to do. When it becomes an angry mob of people

like at the like at Beauty and the Beast, like if Gapstom is leading this whole thing. I'm not into it because it goes right back to my whole thing of like, you're gathering with a common interest. Just stay at home and get to work. Don't gather with a common interest because some of you are going to start getting crazy. And like this guy just said,

you're going to start beating on some poor tall drink of water. I knew it looks fine. Like John walks by and everybody starts beating the shit out of them. Like, it's not good. It's not good. out of him. Like that's, it's not good. It's not good. It's not turning good. No, it's not getting better. It's getting a little upset.

Luckily the police were also aware of that fact. Cool. And because the situation did have the potential like we were just pointing out to get pretty dangerous, they eventually were able to drive the crowds out of the sector before anybody got hurt. Do small patrols, you know? Yeah, exactly. Like, groups of five cemetery before anybody got hurt. Do small patrols, you know? Yeah, exactly. Like groups of people like the Scoob gang.

Right. But in the days and weeks that followed, high gate police had to contend with several smaller incidents of groups of teenagers or young adults breaking into the cemetery, stakes in hand in search of the paranormal. It's important. But nearly all of those individuals

actually hadn't even taken the claims of vampires seriously. They just wanted to be part of this, I guess. Yeah, everybody wants to be part of something. But then other people were like, no, there's some other fucking vampire in here and I'm gonna be the one to get him. That'd be her. But the press, on the other hand,

they kept presenting this story as though it were 100% fact. They actually usually cited Sean Manchester. I don't know what happened there. Yeah, the other person. David Sperrent. And even Alan Blood. Oh no! fact. They actually usually cited Sean Manchester, I don't know what happened there. David Sparant. And even Alan Blood. Oh no. As experts on vampirism. Alan Blood. Now Sean Manchester told a reporter from Hampstead and Highgate Express, it is too much to be the work of vandals. There are some black magic signs and symbols, limbs, and even entire bodies

missing from graves. It all points to something very evil. Yeah, I mean, again, that's not great. Body's missing from graves and shit. That's not cool. Yeah, that's the thing. School look for a vampire. Yeah, exactly. Don't worry about the people there. But what he's saying, he's like, keep looking for the vampire.

Yeah. Because the vampire is the one taking, like his followers are the ones taking these bodies and trying to resurrect King's either. That's not great. No way, that's not how you do it. No. But a few months after the vampire hunt and high gate, the story was revived, of course, in early August, when three young girls were walking through the cemetery

and discovered the headless charred remains of a woman's corpse lying on the ground outside of one of the cripples. Holy shit. A police spokesperson told the press we're working on the theory that this may be connected with black magic. The body could well have been used for that reason.

Damn. So people were taking this to another level. Way too far. And the discovery of the remains reignited the excitement surrounding the supposedly supernatural aspects of high gate cemetery. And once again, the press turned to the supposed experts for a quote instead of being like,

what group of asshole teenagers did this? Yeah, they're kind of what it is. Now they're leaning in a little bit. And Sean Manchester, I keep saying Manchester. What? Manchester. Manchester. Sean Manchester told the high gate and hymnst dead express, the same Satanist that desecrate

high gate cemetery are disciples of the evil one, like referring to the king vampire. Yeah. According to him, stealing a human skull brought the cultists one step closer to reviving the king vampire and increasing his number of followers. And in all the excitement over the discovery, few noticed the comments from Highgate's groundskeeper who told police he saw no signs of black magic and he just also chalked it up to ordinary vandalism.

And it's like, did he cite a source for that? He's like the human skull. If you bring it to the King vampire, it's like it brings you closer and it's like, did anyone go, do you have a source for that? Or did you come up with that yourself? And that, they're in lies the problem. That's the problem.

Because they're just taking this man for face value. And they're like, well, he says he's an expert. Yeah, this is just fanfic. Everybody, they're just making it up as they go along. This is fanfic, you know? They're entirely. It was a headless corpse. Well, then, you know, that's a very coincidental because you need a human skull to get closer

to that. It's like they're just making it up as they go along. That's the thing. But of course, not wanting to be outdone by man-trusters, supposed expertise. David Ferrent took to Swains Lane and vowed to patrol the local cemeteries until he found those responsible. On August 17th, his buffy patrolling, though, came to an end when he was arrested in St. Michael's church yard and charged with trespassing.

Now, at the time of his arrest, he was carrying a large crucifix and a wooden stake. And in their statements to the press, highgate police claimed that Ferent had told them he had quote, gone to highgate to watch for a vampire raising from its grave. And he told them, according to the police, I would have entered the catacombs in my search, and upon finding the supernatural being, I would have driven my stake through its heart and then run away. I love that for you.

Now, later Ferent said that this statement was entirely fabricated and that he had not said that. He said he'd really gone to the cemetery with the British Occult Society to conduct a saience intended to establish a psychic link with the dark specter. Wow. He said, I wasn't gonna stab anyone. I was just holding a saience to talk. Yeah, don't make me out to be something else that I just want to chat.

I just wanted to talk. But because he had been charged with trespassing, he had to appear before a judge on September 30th, and he pleaded not guilty to the charge. Now his lawyer, Jeffrey Bayes, argued that the cemetery was, quote, not an enclosed area in the strict legal sense, so technically his client hadn't broken any laws. And then, Ferent told the judge,

I decided to go out and destroy it. I was aware of the power of the cross and went to the cemetery with a crucifix on which I had engraved a black magic emblem. So he's really going for it. He's taken this and run with it. But his lawyer explained that while it may not make sense to the courtroom, technically it's not an illegal activity

to go out hunting for vampires. And he told them, it is akin to people spending fortunes looking for the Loch Ness monster or some other supposed creature. And for some reason, the judge agreed, and the charges against Farant were dropped. Okay. He was like, you know what, fair point. He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? He's like, you know what? for all these trespassing charges, the other members of the British occult society were standing watch over the Cemetery's in high gate, like the Lida had told them to.

But just moments after the charges against him had been dropped, Farron gave her comment to reporters, telling them that he vowed to quote, continue his investigations and carry on trying to warn people that followers of this black magic cult were performing evil ceremonies at the cemetery.

Dun, dun, dun. Ah! It's like a Scooby-Doo episode. It really is. Like, I swear. It truly is. Somebody tagged me in something on TikTok that just made me think of this.

We need, like, the theme song. That somebody said that Ghost is just, like, Scooby-Doo music. Like, if you put it to certain songs to Scooby-Doo episodes, then, you put it to certain songs to Scooby-Doo episodes of them like running away. You should try that. There's a couple that there's one in particular

and I can't remember. I think it's Zombie Queen. I don't know if I know that one. It's very much like a sing it. Sing it. Sing it. Sing it. Sing it.

Sing it like the music that really, it actually worked. It's like not the words. I'm not offended and and I support this. I love Scooby Doo. And it just made me think of that song playing over this whole thing, and it actually works really well. Oh, now I need to listen to that song. I'm not like, play it for like the part for you

because you're gonna be like, wow. Yeah, please do that. That's actually very true. One time I just paid for a boomerang subscription only to watch Scooby Doo. I remember that, that was pretty great. It was money well spent. Yeah, I like that.

I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that.

I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that.

I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I like that. I little groovy. Wow. And that's gross. You know so many things. I love your hyperfixation on this band. Like genuinely, I love your hyperfixation on this. Because you have fun new, like the little fun facts every time.

I can always come up with something new, a while. But doesn't that work out really well? That does work. So be queen, they really do. Yeah. Scooby-Doo chase me. I really want to listen to that more now, because I like that. But David Ferrent and Shawn Manchester, there was no other way to go back to it. No. So Ferrent's arrest at St. Michael's Churchyard kicked off a new chapter

in this, basically at this point him and Shawn Manchester had a rivalry. And this whole thing kicked off a new chapter in that. The fact that this is like, it's like a rivalry about and kicked off a new chapter in that. The fact that this is like, it's like a rivalry about among the entire King. Yeah. Like this is a King vampire rivalry. A King vampire enthusiast rivalry among brothers. Just let that settle for like, that's the thing.

Like they belong to the same group on something they were like nevermind. Yeah, I mean, I'm for this. So in early November, just a month after a parent appeared in court, British Occult Society member, John, I believe it's British, was it reported to the police for assaulting Sean Manchester. Oh, shit.

Thanks to a term. According to John there, Sean Manchester threatened him and his family with black magic, unless he rescinded the bail money that he had put up to bail David Farrant out of jail following his arrest for trespassing. Damn. So appearing before a London court, British told the magistrates that Manchester had called

his wife and, quote, warned her that unless the bail was revoked, odd things will happen to you and your children. Odd things. That's what he said. Not even bad things, just odd things. It's going to be weird in here. But are you going to fuck around with that? No, it even bad things, just odd things. It's gonna be weird in here. But are you gonna fuck around with that? No, it's just like, it's actually,

it's such a gentle threat, sort of. It's not like fucked up things, you're gonna like bad things, you're gonna, it's like odd things. Some odd things. It's not even gentle, it's like menacing. Yeah, the gentle isn't the way to describe it. It's like a, yeah, it's just like kind of menacing.

It is, yeah. Now in just like kind of menacing. It is. Now in court, Manchester was quoted as saying, I believe in black magic, do you? I am an occult. Excuse me. And Dave said that he's gonna yell this at people whenever he's annoyed at them. I am an occult.

I love it. Somebody just disrespects you. And you're like, I'm an occult. I am an occult. I am an occult. I'm an actual occult. So, okay. So fuck off. That's Dave's way to deal with people he doesn't like

and I might steal it. But anyway, when British learns of the learned of these threats, he went to Manchester's home and an argument ensued. And apparently during the argument, Sean Manchester and a friend tried to forcibly remove John from their home, at which point Manchester was knocked to the ground and supposedly heard his leg.

Damn. So after hearing both sides of the argument, Magistrate William Hughes noted that British technically was guilty of assault, but under the circumstances, he dismissed the charges. He was like, this is all a little much. So, just out here just being like, this is a lot, guys. Like, knock it off.

I'm just gonna keep dismissing these charges until you all stop. So, Brady shouldn't get in trouble, but Manchester was placed on probation and find 200, I think it's pounds, with explicit instruction, instructions, not to have any more contact with John Brady. Should be probably smart.

Now in the weeks and months that followed, both Farant and Manchester did everything they could to stay in the spotlight and keep all these stories about black magic and occultists and vampires alive in the press while being careful to make sure that their antics didn't violate any more laws. Yeah, you know, just fun silliness. But they both maintained that devil worshipers

were still at work in the cemeteries. Ferent said that the British Occult Society had been attempting to exercise the evil spirits. And Manchester said that he was performing various rituals outside of the cemeteries to take care of this. Of course. Now in late October, BBC, the BBC program 24 hours, heard about the situation and actually traveled to high gate to cover the story. Wow. Now the story relied heavily on interviews with Sean Manchester and included what they referred to as a documentary reconstruction of Manchester's attempts to exercise the evil spirits from high gate

cemetery. I love that a lot. I want to see it personally. I want to watch that. I couldn't find it. But in the opening segment, the host told audiences, we have a film report of a secret and satanic ritual being practiced in Britain in October 1970. 24 hours is building up a case history of the occult. We've heard of ghost hunters, psychic researchers, covens of witches dancing naked around bonfires in the middle of winter, and even the odd black mass. Sometimes the fascination with the black arts leads its inherent to far more sinister rituals. Now, just as he had done with countless other media appearances,

Manchester used this appearance on 24 hours to continue building out his vampire narrative. In one instance, he said that he had actually come into contact with a young woman he referred to as Luisa, and he said that she was a London girl, supposedly possessed by demonic spirits. Ah. Spirits, excuse me. And according to Manchester, he followed Luisa to the crypts at high gate one evening, and that was when he discovered, quote, an extra coffin with no nameplate and opening

it to find a body which appeared neither dead or alive. So he said, jumping into action, he grabbed his stake and, quote, placed the point between the seventh and eighth rib on the left, grabbing my, grabbing my arm, one of my assistants pleaded with me to desist, saying that it would be sacrilege. If what lies before us as an undead, I replied, it would be an act of healing. Consternation grew among the group and the vault

and the consensus of opinion was that the stake remained unsoiled until at last proper permission had been obtained from the correct quarter. I just love this. So basically, he was like, I wanted to dust this motherfucker. Yeah. But all of my people were telling me that it's sacrilege. And the general consensus was that we should

leave the stake unsoiled, aka not stab things. You know, I think that's just like having a good team around you. Yeah. That you can trust. And tell you when you've gone a little too far, I think they like don't stab this person. But I want to know where you get the permission. Like, what's the correct quarter to ask the permission from? I mean, these are questions that probably have answers that I'm

sure they'll come up with in the moment. Yeah, I'd have to ask Sean. You would have to ask Sean manchester. But do you think that if you were this reporter, you'd be like, so did you ask anybody? And you'd go back and be like, my next question would be, who do you ask? Do you want me to come with you? Should we go do that right now? That's the thing, like, Diane Sawyer, got a case. Nobody's doing a good job with the follow up questions here.

Ash is a really good interviewer. I feel like Ash would be really good at this. Oh my God. You would have the like perfect follow up questions. Thank you so much. That's because I'm inquisitive. You are. And I like it.

Thank you. Whenever we have interviews, I'm like, girl, take it over. Oh my God, thank you so much. I am very nervous. If I think to ask a follow up question in an interview, I always go, I asked. I love that. I didn't ask the question.

I asked it. I asked the question. Wow, that's hot. Yeah. So one of the members of the group stopped Manchester here from going through with the staking. He said he did the next best thing. And he filled the coffin with holy water, garlic, and salt,

and left the door to the crypt open to let sunlight take care of the rest. And then he added some chicken tenderloin, and he sauteed it. Get the holy water out of there there and I'll eat that. But the segment on the Hygate Vampire that appeared on 24 hours turned out to be one of the last big stories

to feature Sean Manchester and David Ferrent that took their claim seriously. This was partially because the public's attention had moved on to new stories. It had been a while and they were like, yeah, we still haven't seen it, so I don't know. We're like, nats, we can't focus on something for that long. No, but more importantly, the more progress the police made

towards stopping the vandalization, the less inclined Londoners were to believe in the existence of King vampires and black masses. And in July 1973, Highgate Police did arrest a group of teenagers who invaded the cemetery. And at that point, they learned, since the original claims in 1970, these local kids had actually made a habit of going, quote,

unquote, adventuring in local cemeteries, looking for supernatural phenomenon. Makes sense. So this, the locals realized, was a far more plausible explanation for the disturbances than vampires and demons. I love that it took the police being like, hey, you see this group of youths?

They say that youths have been doing this for a while and going in there because cemeteries are spooky and kids are gullible. And everybody was like, wow, I wish someone told us that before. We went on a vampire hunt. And it's like, that's what it took everybody? It's like at the end of the spoof.

Like nobody do that when they take the mask off. And you're like, oh, it was just that creepy old guy. We shouldn't have done that. We don't have that. It's always a creepy old guy who just admonishes them for being youths. Exactly. Yeah. Now it was the youths admonishing people for not being youths.

Yes. I don't know. I don't know. Or like admonishing them for believing in something supernatural because they were like, yeah, we haven't found it. I just love that that was clearly the case the whole time. Like I could have told you, I told you that in the beginning actually. And then it's like we get here and all of a sudden they're like, everybody wants a little

more theater. I mean, I do too, for sure. Yeah. Like I'm into it. I'm into it, yeah. I think it just got too far. But listen, we got two characters still to do to hear about. What's up with them? So despite the decline in public interest, David Ferrin and Sean Manchester kept up their

act in the decades that followed. They wanted to keep this alive. Good for them. Manchester stayed real flashy and he maintained his theatrical appearance that really belonged in some kind of gothic horror story. Like, you've seen it. Hell yeah. He's got, oh yeah.

He's got what the kids I believe call drip. Oh, is that what that means? Yeah, I think drip is when your outfit's good. So I have a question, this is gonna sound so long. I might not know, because I just found that out. I'm gonna become a relic. What's that? What is Riz?

I've heard that word. Do you know what's so upset about me? Do you know what's so upsetting to me? You don't know. I don't know. That makes me happy. And I used to be the one to tell you what these things meant. But I did hear a child say the other day that somebody had Riz.

Is that like you have stout? Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. what is it? If you want to Riz someone, you want to flirt with or charm them. So how do you have Riz? You have charm? Oh, it drags from the word charisma

or a special magnetic charm or appeal. Oh, okay, so it's like you have Riz. Like you get a little something. You know what? Sometimes I don't like these stupid things that like you'd say, but I like Riz. I hate it a lot. I think it's such a bad word. I think it's, I would much rather someone tell me

that I have charisma. You move from nerve and talent. You have charisma. You've spun because you've got a magnetic about you. You know what I mean? If somebody said you have Riz, I'd be like, fuck you, no, I don't. No, I don't. It kind of feels like 20s to me. Like, oh, you have Riz, I'd be like, fuck you, no I don't. No I don't.

It kind of feels like 20s to me, like, oh, you got a Riz kid. Yeah. Like I feel like, it feels clunky, it's not a, no, I feel like it doesn't clunky. It's a drip to me is clunky. I mean, that's, like if you, yeah. If you tell me, because I think they say you're dripping,

and I'm like, that's gross. That's not dripping. Yeah, no, that's offensive. I have, like like people in my days that swag. Swag. I like swag. I, I think we just said like, you look cool.

No, you guys said that. You definitely had something. You must have. No. We didn't have things for like, like, we didn't have like swag or riz or anything like that. We're just like cool. I'm trying to think, I guess you're right. Yeah, we really didn't. like swag or riz or anything like that. We're just like cool.

I'm trying to think, I guess you're right. Yeah, we really didn't. That was, you know what it was, that became a thing when the internet became a thing. So when the internet was just a baby, it was not a thing. But then I think about like people like that are my mom's age and she used to tell me like the things that they would say, like, like zingers or something like that. We're like, stoners. Oh, no, that was only, I won't say what it is. It was only a group of people.

No, it was only here. Okay, gotcha. So I don't even think I said the right word. You didn't. So I'm not going to say the actual word because it's very specific to our high school. Ah, I didn't know that. Yeah.

Well, no, they gone. How did we even get here? Oh, he had Riz, I guess. Technically, because he's theatrical. He had Riz, and I'm looking at them right now. They do indeed have Riz. They have Riz and Drew. Both of them do.

Well, so yeah. Ferent, he stuck to his nightly patrols, his rituals and exorcisms, and in time authorities actually kind of grew weary of the antics of both men, and that led to a very strained relationship between the police and the occult groups. Now, even though the public interest in the supernatural specifically regarding the high-gate vampire had waned considerably by mid to late 1970s, Ferent and Manchester and their respective occult groups remained very active.

And actually, in late 1972, Ferent and his girlfriend, Victoria Jarvis, were arrested and high-gate cemetery on a charge of indecent behavior. Oh, when the two were discovered in a private cemetery, conducting a ritual to contact the spirit of a long dead pirate, while a whelmsly. I'm sorry they were in a cemetery in the cemetery a ritual and high gate cemetery to bring forth a long dead pirate. Yeah, Thomas Womens let them go let them live let them live now. Awesome.

Ferrin ended up telling the court, I really believed it possible that it could have appeared. If it had, it would have been the means I used. It would have appeared within the circle. Now, ultimately, they were given a small fine and they were told to get the fuck out of the cemetery and stay out of it. Now, Farant and Manchester again made headlines

in early 1973 when the two announced their plan for an occult duel to the death at Parliament Hill at London. In preparation, they literally plastered London's urban area with posters announcing the duel, claiming the ceremony would involve naked witches, Damon raising, Damon raising, and the slaughter of a cat. Oh, I hate that.

Which I really don't like. Yeah, no. But it does sound like an interesting version of Musk versus Zuckerberg. Oh, yeah. Like, like, previously. Yep. Absolutely. Absolutely. That's the cat slaughter. Minus the cat slaughter. Why do we have to bring cat slaughter into it? Well, that's the thing because actually the announcement caused a shit ton of outrage among the public, mostly because they had said that they would slaughter a cat. Because of the cat. Like, if you just like, if you want to just do all,

like in your own a cult way, just like we would all be like, that sounds fun. Like making witches, demon raising, go ahead. Yeah, like go ahead and slaughter a cat. Don't kill an animal. Stop, exactly. Now, so people were mad that they said that they were gonna slaughter a cat,

but also because of a myriad of other claims made by both sides. Manchester told the Sunday Mirror, my opponent intends to raise a demon to destroy me by killing a cat. I will be relying solely on divine power. So he was like, this guy's an animal cruelty guy. I got the power. So who was it that said he wasn't gonna?

Manchester. So Manchester said I'm not gonna kill a cat. Yes, so I'm voting for him. All right, I'm gonna have to be on his side for that one. Exactly. Yeah. I'm gonna get the jerseys. Yes, so I'm voting for him. All right, I'm gonna have to be on his side for that one. Exactly. Yeah. And even though he had actually put up nearly a thousand posters announcing the duel, Manchester told the mirror, I advise people not to attend.

They may easily be horrified. I mean, don't tell me, don't attend because you will easily be horrified because I'm gonna be putting my shoes on precisely. I think he knew that. And that's why he's saying it. That's an amazing way to get people there. Now in response, Ferent shoulder porters blood must be spilled,

but the cat will be anesthetized. But to which I say seek help. Yeah, I don't care if the cat is anesthetized. I don't care about any of that. Exactly. No, thank you. It's unclear whether the duel ever actually happened, but if it did, it didn't result in the death of either one. If it happened, they were both winners.

They left, so. But the arrest and disruptions only continued in the years that followed. In early 1974, David Ferrent and several members of the British Occult Society were arrested for lighting a fire in a derelict building in London. Oh. And in their report, the police said

that they received a call about the fire from a neighbor. And when they searched the home, they discovered Ferent and the others engaged in quote, a witchcraft ceremony involving two men printing naked around a fire. You know, just not a legal. That's not a legal at all.

You can do it. I mean, going into a building is legal. Yeah. But Ferent and the others were charged with arson and appeared in a court a short time later. And Ferent told the judge he had lit the fire because it was cold. Cause an effect. He's not trying to burn down the buildings.

So technically is it arson? He was just trying to warm up. But Ferent was arrested again a few months later. This time for breaking into the crypts in Kencil Rise Cemetery, where several coffins were disturbed and bodies exposed. And that's where I mean, he lost it. Yeah, he's lost it.

And he liked the whole cat thing. Like, I'm like, you're going down a dark path. Lost the plot. Now, at his trial, his estranged wife, Mary Farant, told the court that she had been shown photos of the broken crypts and bodies just after Farant returned home from the cemetery. She told the court,

I cannot remember the sex or age of the corpse. All I can remember is that it was black inside. I was shaken and horrified. Yeah, same. So that's what I mean, where like it started off like... It's like fun, like silliness. Into the occult, but he like really took it to another place.

Yeah, way too far. Now unlike the previous arrests for petty crimes, Farron's arrest for the desecration of human remains was far more serious than he seemed to understand. He went on trial in early June and was charged with body snatching and witness intimidation. Damn. After he sent several voodoo dolls to witnesses in an attempt to prevent them from testifying against him. Holy shit. Now under oath, he claimed that he and his followers had nothing to do with demons or vampires, but we're simply misunderstood

adherence of an often maligned spiritual belief system. All right. But it's like, yeah, you do embed stuff. You can definitely be among that group of people that are misunderstood. But if you're breaking into corpse, it breaking into crypts and like disturbing human remains, nobody's ever going to get that. No. No one's ever going to be on inside of that one. You should get that either.

No, he was actually ultimately acquitted of a very serious charge of body snatching when the actual grave robber came forward and admitted that he and several of his friends had broken into the crypt and vandalized the graves, quote unquote, for a laugh. Oh my God, Ponceca, I am the chin, please. Now, while Ferrent may have dodged the most serious charges, he was still found guilty of vandalizing memorials in the cemetery and witness tampering, and he was sentenced to four years

in eight months in prison. Damn. A sentence that according to Bill Ellis, quote, even the normally hostile honorary journal characterized as unnecessarily harsh. Wow. Or excuse me, Hornsey Journal. Now, Ferrin ended up appealing that sentence,

and he was evaluated by a psychiatrist who did deem him saying, quote, but in need of guidance, because there was a possibility of his beliefs taking him into a condition of a mental disorder. I wondered that. He was really teetering online there. Now, despite the psychological evaluation,

Ference Appeal was actually denied and he ended up serving two years of his sentence before he got out on parole. Now, once out of jail, he pretty much kind of disappeared from the public view, which is probably a good thing. Just like he's faded out a little bit. And he really only ever came up in discussions

that were remembering the high gate vampire and the occult panic of the 70s. And he died in April 2019 at the age of 73. Oh wow, he's doing. Yeah, I know. Now his arrest served as kind of a wake-up call for Sean Manchester, who further toned down his antics and rhetoric following David Ferrance trial. And in the years that followed, Manchester's public persona became increasingly oriented around vampires, and so did his branch of the British occult society about like he had started. He continued to appear in the news articles and TV whenever a so-called vampire expert was needed. But by the early 1990s, he had mostly abandoned his kind of a cult persona, and he claimed to have been ordained

as a bishop of the old Catholic church. I saw pictures of him and I was like, what's happening here? But I thought you didn't see that coming. I didn't see that coming. From a cultist to the Catholic church. Yeah, I didn't see it. What a path.

Yeah. But they continued to trade barbs with each other and insults in the press until David Ferent passed away in 2019. Wow, that was like a blood feud. A blood feud. That was until the end. Truly, they got real pissed at each other.

Yeah. But what an interesting story. That is a fascinating tale. Like multiple, multiple times, huge groups of people ran to high gate cemetery in in search of a vampire, a king vamp here. I love that that happened. I do as well, and I'm glad that, like, mostly nobody was hurt. That's when I'm glad that no one was murdered. There wasn't any, like, you know, I'm glad that there was,

but I'm really bummed for all those graves that got disturbed. Because it's like, that sucks. I know, I feel like they need to do something or like, obviously they wouldn't have done it back then, but they needed to do something like more like technical to get into a cemetery. You know what I mean? Like a passcode or something.

Yeah, but damn. What a fucking story, right? What a tale. Very interesting. What an aesthetic, an aesthetic aesthetic. So yeah, thanks for listening. Yeah, we hope you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird. But also really you destroy people's graves because what the fuck is wrong with you if you're out there doing that? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, I'm not sure if I can get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get a chance to get Hey, Prime Members!

You can listen to Morvid, Early, and Add Free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today, or you can listen Add Free with Wondery Plus and Apple podcasts. Before you go, tell us about yourself by completing a short survey at Wondery.com slash survey. the Wondery Plus and Apple podcasts. Before you go, tell us about yourself by completing a short survey at Wondery.com slash survey.