The London Vampire Panic
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What sparked the London Vampire Panic?
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The mob is growing larger by the minute. More dangerous, too. You stand your ground, but secretly you're terrified. You and your men are woefully outnumbered by this crowd of lunatics. Suddenly, as though reading your mind, the mob surges forward. A wild-eyed man wielding a wooden stake is heading straight for you. You tackle him, pinning him to the ground with your baton, but you can't stop the rest of them. Dozens of people are already swarming past you, scaling the high fence surrounding the graveyard. This is madness, you tell yourself. These people have been whipped into a frenzy over something that can't possibly be true. Surely they don't believe the rumors, or do they? You look into the eyes of the man under your baton, and there you find your answer. He absolutely believes in. All of these people do, with every fiber of their being. And in that moment, a horrifying thought occurs to you, taking root in your mind. What if these people aren't crazy at all? What if they're right? What if there actually is a vampire in Highgate Cemetery?
Who is David Ferrant and what does he believe?
It's the night of December 21st, 1969. In North London, the historic Highgate Cemetery sits dark and completely silent. It'll be months before hysteria grips the city as the public becomes aware of what's really happening here. So tonight, there's no mob. In fact, there's only one living soul on the premises. A young man named David Ferrant. Walking among the century-old headstones and gothic mausoleums, Ferrant struggles to keep warm. His teeth begin to chatter. He zips his heavy coat all the way up to his chin. But Ferrant has no plans to leave the cemetery before dawn. Not until he catches sight of the apparition. Ferrant is the owner of a tobacco shop, but his true passion lies in the paranormal.
A self-described Wiccan priest, Ferrant founded the British Psychological and Occult Society two years prior. The Society hasn't had much to investigate since its formation. Well, until tonight. In recent weeks, Ferrant's Society has received an inexplicable surge in attention. Multiple people from the community have come out of the woodwork with stories about strange happenings in and around Highgate Cemetery. The first to approach Ferent is a middle-aged accountant, a well-respected professional in the community, and certainly not the type to believe in mystical nonsense. He explains to Ferent that on his way home late one evening, he had cut through the graveyard and gotten lost. As he made his way through the cemetery's winding overgrown pathways, he heard a clanging bell. The accountant followed the noise, hoping it would lead him to a recognizable landmark.
What sightings led to increased attention at Highgate Cemetery?
Yet instead, he felt a chill descend, and suddenly floating before him was a seven-foot-tall figure, shrouded in darkness. The accountant tried to move, but discovered that he couldn't. He was rooted to the spot. A moment later, the figure disappeared into the night. The accountant gradually recovered his mobility, but he was left feeling drained, sapped of his energy. Ferentz, intrigued by the accountant's claim, but doesn't see the need to take action. Well, that is, until a second person comes to him, and reports a strikingly similar encounter. This time, the witness is an elderly woman. She tells Ferentz how she'd been out walking her dog, when she too felt the temperature drop. Next thing she knew, a floating shape was drifting towards her through the mist. The woman describes the creature as tall, with glowing eyes. These two independent accounts are too similar for Farron to ignore, and so he decides to spend a night in the cemetery and see for himself. Tonight is that night.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
What sparked the London Vampire Panic?
0:00–2:16
2
Who is David Ferrant and what does he believe?
2:16–4:07
3
What sightings led to increased attention at Highgate Cemetery?
4:07–23:07
4
What are the claims made by Sean Manchester?
23:07–27:09
5
How did the media react to the vampire claims?
27:09–34:49
6
What tensions arose between Ferrant and Manchester?
34:49–39:05