In "Vampires Drain David Dry", I discussed David's reluctance to discuss vampires on his blog, The Human Touch.
Well, it's good to see that he's been keeping that proud tradition alive. Take "Found Some Old Letters...", for instance:
I had receipts today from the London Agents for the British Library. All the University Libraries have now got copies. So now I can tell you what the title is (if you haven’t already found it on Amazon”. It is . . . DAVID FARRANT: IN THE SHADOW OF THE HIGHGATE VAMPIRE (Vol 1) and it costs ₤12.99.
It is indeed a good thing David eschews the dreaded "V" word, as found in such works like Beyond the Highgate Vampire (1991/1992/1997), The Vampyre Syndrome: The Truth Behind the Highgate Vampire Legend (2000), Return of the Vampire Hunter: An Exclusive Interview with Reclusive Vampire Hunter, David Farrant (2003) by Rob Milne, The Case of the Highgate Vampire, In Search of the Highgate Vampire or The Highgate Vampire Casebook Files.
I mean, we don't want the media to be associating him "ridiculous fanciful ‘vampires’", do we? Surely, it's their fault for quoting his own words! Like this ditty in from Marc Mullen's "Vampire Active Again, Says Occult Expert" (Ham & High, 02 September 2005):
The sighting of a tall, black figure in April on Swains Lane makes me think the vampire is active again.
However, if you want the real scoop on vampires from the President of the Highgate Vampire Society, then have a read of "Interview with the Real Vampire Hunter", Bite Me magazine:
As for my concept of a vampire, it is necessary to mention the existence of the incubus and succubus, male and female demons respectively (I prefer to call them psychic entities) that visit sleeping people by night and supposedly have sex with them.
Saucy stuff!
It seems an indirect response to a comment I made in "Ask a Bish"...The forum's URL (lordbishopmanchester) would also seem to indicate a rise through the ranks!
...has been responded to by Bishop Manchester himself!
Here's what he says in "Questions, Impersonations and Shadows" on The Cross and the Stake:
I am obliged to use "lordbishopmanchester" instead of my customary "bishopmanchester," "bishopseanmanchester" or "seanmanchester" due to an antipathetic individual by the name of Craig Adams of Muswell Hill, London, filching all my previous user names when MSN first announced the transfer to Multiply. He managed to pilfer all the accounts in my names.
Pilfering account names, eh? I know the feeling.
Speaking of pilfering, though, boy does that screencap look familiar...
In justification of using the "lordbishopmanchester" tag, Bishop Manchester also adds:
Most people, of course, will be aware that the title "Lord Bishop" is traditional usage and absolutely correct for those elevated to the episcopate within the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.
Fair enough, then.
Have a read of "Interview with a Vampirologist", which was conducted by David McNamee for a student-based journal named Cry Wolf, in 2002.
It is billed as "the last interview given by Bishop Manchester on the subject of vampires for a publication."
Indeed, the following question and its response highlighted the need to retreat from the spotlight:
Have any threats of injury or harm ever been made to you over information you possess or information you have attempted to make public?
I have been advised not to attempt to provide an answer to this question. There is a current criminal investigation for a pending case to be brought before the Director of Public Prosecutions. It is of the kind to which you allude.
It comes with the following purple addendum:
[That investigation resulted in an arrest, but the source of the problem still remains. Bishop Manchester ceased making media appearances in July 2002, and no longer gives interviews to anyone. His privacy is now paramount.]
Fast forward to the October 2008 issue of It's Fate.
A reproduction of the article can be found in "UK magazine features Seán Manchester", courtesy of katrinagarforth-bles1 (Katrina Garforth-Bles, National Secretary of the Vampire Research Society) on The Cross and the Stake.
I will start this post off with a disclaimer.Firstly, the stuff I'm about to discuss here is purely speculative in tone and of personal interest, in context. It shouldn't be taken as fact. After all, we're going to deal with body language, not solid proof.
So, here goes.
I recently watched a video on YouTube called "the Highgate Vampire" posted by a member named JaguarOFcomedy.
It features an excerpt from the "Vampires" episode of True Horror with Anthony Head which was originally broadcast on the Discovery Chanel, on November 17, 2004.
We are shown the Case of the Highgate Vampire, as relayed by Bishop Seán Manchester, Elizabeth Wojdyla (via an old recording) and, most importantly, her ex, Keith Maclean.
It is his testimony that captured my attention, for a very specific reason.
If we view the 3:41-3:48 mark, we hear him say, "I believe it was a vampire, yes. [blinks twice, pause] I don't have any doubt about that." [blinks twice]
Even prior to this pronouncement, we notice him blink several times over the course of his interview, at certain intervals of his account.
But, to get to the pronouncement at hand, it's not so much in what he says, but what he does. Which is why I've made a notation of his actions during the cited statements.
Why my interest?
Well, according to some studies, blinking at a certain rate (or a certain amount of times) while giving a verbal account, is an tell-tale sign of someone lying. You can read more about this manifestation of body language in "Nonverbal Signs of Lying" over at Truth About Deception.
I should stress that I'm not saying Maclean lied during his account, but, in context of the above article, and other similar studies, it certainly strikes me as an interesting gesture.
Vampire Research Society
You can have a read of a timeline posted on www.Vampirewebsite.net, regarding the formation of the Vampire Research Society.
In contradiction of David's recent claims, the timeline establishes a link to the British Occult Society, allegedly founded in 1860.
The VRS also has a page covering its history, incorporating an article called "Lone Vampire Hunter Caught on the Moonlight Trail of Highgate Vampire" (The Sun, 19 August 1970), in which David Farrant's name has been censored. For some reason.
The Highgate Vampire Society
You can read about The Highgate Vampire Society on David's webpage. It is also given coverage by Marc Mullen in "Vampire Active Again, Claims Occult Expert" (Ham & High, 02 September 2005).
After writing my queries to David, I e-mailed him to let him know they were on my blog.
Here's his reply ("Re: From David". Friday, 20 February 2009 4:46:19 AM):
Hi Anthony,
That is all far too much to answer now but I'll get back to your essential points later which you can publish if you want.
The Society was originally formed in 1967 and called the British Occult Society. Manchester became a 'fringe member' in 1969 but was later expelled in 1970 for canvassing for the National Front and using the Society's name in the Press without our permission. The name of the Society was changed to the BPOS in 1983 because Manchester had embarked upon a vendetta against us following his expulsion.
This still continues,
For the moment,
David
I'll send you an interesting link (to the recent French TV thing) later.
He added this further response ("Re: From David. Friday, 20 February 2009 7:55:08 AM):
Following my email, here's something you may be able to have fun with in case you missed it.
It was on French TV on the Canal channel and televised last Sept. Don't know who put it on YouTube
Please let me know what you think. I'd be interested to know,
For now
David
http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&hl=en-GB&v=ezDZBOZZcVQ
The link he supplied me with, is one that I already covered in "Farrant on YouTube". In it, he is billed as an "Ancien gourou Lucifierien" (Former Luciferian guru). Of course, TFO went on to give coverage to the same video, in which he pinched my screencap and Babelfish-powered translation of the caption accorded to David. See: "Qui profane nos tombes?", British Occult Society.
TFO notes that:
Farrant also has no problem during this interview being described as a "Luciferian" and a "Satanist."
Elsewhere. of course, he has denied being a Satanist, or anything vaguely like one, and has also denied ever encountering a vampire.
This is interesting, in light of the information provided on David's own website ("FAQ"):
ARE YOU A SATANIST?
No. And I have always condemned their activities. Many of my articles and writings from the past can confirm this fact.
A HGH PRIEST IN WICCA?
Yes. Well, I used to be. I guess in one respect, I still am. Its rather like a priest in any Church. Just because he (or she) retires does not mean they are no longer an ordained Priest.
But now we have an interesting kettle of fish - namely, that David claims to have been the original founder of the British Occult Society.
Not only that, but that it was actually founded in 1967, rather than the earlier date mentioned by "Vampirologist" ("Genesis of the Vampire Research Society", Vampire Research Society):
The British Occult Society was originally formed as an umbrella organisation circa 1860 [of the Ghost Club Society -ed.]. Much of its activities in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century are shrouded in mystery. It came out of the closet, however, in the mid-twentieth century before finally disappearing in 1988. During that period it was presided over by Seán Manchester who placed emphasis on investigating the claims of the occult and the study and research of paranormal phenomena. Out of this history sprang the Vampire Research Society, founded by the president of the British Occult Society who first appeared on British television on 13 March 1970
Even more disturbingly, David claims that Manchester was a "'fringe' member" until he was booted out for canvassing for the National Front (a right-wing, British racist organisation) and using the BOS's name.
This, of course, completely contradicts Manchester's version ("The 1970 Television Interviews with David Farrant"):
David Farrant was not a member of the British Occult Society which, until its dissolution in August 1988, was strictly an organisation for the examination of alleged occult and paranormal phenomena. It did not countenance occult practices. Its president was an exorcist who, in later years, entered holy orders.
Dennis Crawford, International Secretary of the Vampire Research Society, also elaborates (Message 2, "Vampire Research Society", The Highgate Vampire):
The British Occult Society, prior to its dissolution on 08.08.88, was presided over by Seán Manchester who accepted the leadership on 21 June 1967. The BOS made its television debut on 13 March 1970 when its president featured on Today (Thames Television) to represent the Society’s investigation into reported happenings in and around Highgate Cemetery, London, which had been accumulating since early 1967.
So who's telling the truth?
Either way, I look forward to David providing answers to these and the other questions I posed him in previous entries.
David's account of the Highgate Vampire Case (reprinted in "Nicked at Highgate Cemetery") alludes to the ghostly figure said to inhabit the Cemetery:
In the late 60s there were voluminous reports about a ‘tall, dark figure’ that had been seen in and around London’s Highgate Cemetery.
However, what isn't mentioned, is the variety of other allegedly supernatural phenomena witnessed there. As the Case's Wikipedia article mentions:
On the 13th [of February, 1970 -ed.], several people replied [to Farrant's letter about supernatural sightings at the Cemetery -ed.], describing a variety of ghosts said to haunt the cemetery or the adjoining Swains Lane. These ghosts were described as a tall man in a hat, a spectral cyclist, a woman in white, a face glaring through the bars of a gate, a figure wading into a pond, a pale gliding form, bells ringing, and voices calling. Hardly two correspondents gave the same story.
Why not throw a vampire into the mix, eh?
Indeed, on February 27, 1970, the Hampstead and Highgate Express asked, "Does a Wampyr Walk in Highgate?" courtesy of a vampire theory supplied by one Sean Manchester.
To read the previous installment, click here.
The detective in charge said if I was willing to plead guilty to the charge next morning, the case would be over without any fuss, and I would only get a technical warning for trespass.
Does that mean you were aware of committing a felony, by virtue of trespassing?I took him at his word, and pleaded guilty. But as soon as I had entered my plea, this detective made a statement to the court involving statements that I was alleged to have given. He said the ‘accused’ had told him that I had intended to search through coffins in vaults in Highgate Cemetery, to look for the ‘King Vampire of the Undead’. When I found it, he added, I intended to drive a wooden stake through its heart and then ‘run away’. He went on to say that there had been unlimited serious vandalism at HC since these vampire stories had started, and he believed I was one of those people responsible for it.
That's interesting, considering the "King Vampire of the Undead" was a quote attributed to Manchester (or, more specifically, "a King Vampire from Wallachia").
Now, as to being one of the people responsible for the "vampire stories" being perpetuated, do you think there might be some merit in this? Again, consider the March 6, 1970 article.
Of course, in the succeeding months, the vampire connection to yourself would become even more explicit.
Now, ironically, as I had pleaded guilty to the offence, it is little wonder that all of this was being believed by the stipendiary magistrate, Mr. D. J. Purcell. It is also perhaps of little wonder that he remanded me in custody for medical reports, and remarked that I really ought to see a doctor.
I agree, that's not surprising. But that certainly doesn't explain your actions after said court case. I'll get onto those shortly.
As soon as I realized (in fact within half an hour) that the police had attempted to ‘frame me’ by entering a plea of guilty, I immediately changed my plea and decided to fight the case. Unfortunately, this was too late to prevent newspapers from picking up the story, whose reporters had been present in court, and apparently been granted free licence to ‘quote the police evidence’. (Please remember, my own evidence had not even been heard at this stage.) Subsequently, I became known as a ‘vampire hunter’ by the press, and this label has somehow always ‘stuck’.
It would be fine to blame the media for your association to the vampire hunter tag...were it not for your own collaboration to this label.
As proof, I cite your television interview with Laurence Picethly for 24 Hours (October 15, 1970). Picethly asks you, "Have you seen this vampire?" And your response? "I have seen it, yes. I saw it last February, and saw it on two occasions."
Footage from the same interview shows you removing a cross and stake from your belt and stalking about the cemetery. Indeed, the voiceover says, "On August the seventeenth, Allan Farrant decided to pay a midnight visit to the cemetery to combat the vampire once and for all." (note: this is one of the false names you were known by)
So here we have you claiming to witness a vampire. And reconstructing a vampire hunt for television. Couple that with your arrest, in possession of a stake, and then we have your "vigil" with Barrie Simmons for "Midnight Date with Highgate's Vampire" (Evening News, October 16, 1970), in which you...yep...stalked about Highgate Cemetery with a stake and a makeshift cross.
And even as late as 2003, you collaborated with Rob Milne for a book called, wait for it, Return of the Vampire Hunter: An Exclusive Interview with Reclusive Vampire Hunter, David Farrant.
So, I ask you David, could this label have stuck due to your own co-operation?
In reality, after entering a plea of not guilty, I was given bail and went back to court determined to fight the case. It was adjourned twice more (on the second occasion it was heard by Magistrate Christopher Lea!) but finally heard on September 30th 1970. I informed the court that the police evidence had been untrue, that the stake had not been intended to ‘force open’ any coffins, and that in any event it was just as akin to ‘hunt vampires’ (which was the essence of the charge) as it was for some to spend small fortunes hunting out the Loch Ness Monster.
Strange that you would defend the notion of hunting for vampires as akin to people spending money looking for the Loch Ness Monster. Indeed, this connection is attributed to your legal representative, Mr Jeffrey Bays.
The point is, why would you want to defend the connection, if you weren't actually hunting vampires in the first place? Especially as you continued to give demos of vampire-hunting only a couple of weeks after this trial?
When he had heard all the evidence, the magistrate (D. J. Purcell again), stated that he was quite satisfied that my intention had not been to damage or open coffins. Had he though otherwise, he added, he would have treated the matter much more seriously by issuing a custodial sentence. He also added at the end, that in any event, the cemetery was not even an ‘enclosed area’ in the strict legal sense.
I see that not only was he satisfied with your testimony, but he also let you off on a technicality.
So, again, why did you go ahead and conduct vampire hunting vigils after your case was dismissed?
I was formally acquitted, the court having not believed the original police evidence.
End of story really, everyone, it is only some people with seemingly desperate intentions who try to make the facts seem otherwise.
The police evidence, from what you have cited thus far, was declaring your intent to hunt vampires...nothing about graveyard desecration. Not much damage you could do with a cross and wooden stake after all. Unless, of course, you encountered a vampire...
Lastly, with that case dismissed, how exactly did you get put in the clink for graveyard desecration a scant two years later?
It's been some time since I mentioned that David's say on the Highgate Vampire Case "certainly raises some questions, which I'll raise in a future post." ("Nicked at Highgate Cemetery")
Time to raise them here. I address you, David, and certain portions of your previous response:
This is not just for you personally, Overseer, but to set the record straight over all the confusion that might have occurred about this original Court case; the one which mainly contributed to the story that a ‘blood-sucking vampire’ really lurked in London’s Highgate Cemetery, and which saw myself at the centre of the whole affair.
Wasn't Sean Manchester also central to the case, considering that he seems to have coined the vampire hypothesis, in the first place? Indeed, the one you agreed with in "Why do the foxes die?" (Hampstead and Highgate Express, March 6, 1970):
"Several other foxes have also been found dead in the cemetery," he said at his home in Priestwood Mansions, Archway Road, Highgate. "The odd thing is there was no outward sign of how they died. Much remains unexplained, but what I have recently learnt all points to the vampire theory being the most likely answer. Should this be so, I for one am prepared to pursue it, taking whatever means might be necessary so that we can all rest."
Would these "means" include wandering the cemetery grounds with a cross and a stake, by chance?
In the late 60s there were voluminous reports about a ‘tall, dark figure’ that had been seen in and around London’s Highgate Cemetery. With the British Psychic and Occult Society (BPOS), I decided to launch an investigation into all these accounts to see if there might be any foundation for them.
According to your "The British Psychic & Occult Society" page, the group was formed in the "mid-1960's".
Firstly, if that is indeed the case, why are there are no contemporary references to the BPOS? There certainly is for the British Occult Society (which is alleged to have been founded in 1860), but seemingly nothing for the BPOS, despite your interviews with the media of the time.
Not only that, but in a letter that appeared in the February 6, 1970 edition of the Hamstead and Highgate Express, you wrote:
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 Swains Lane. The first occasion was on Christmas Eve. I saw a grey 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 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. [my emphasis]
Am I to believe that you founded a group in the "mid-1960's" called the British Psychic & Occult Society, with "no knowledge in the field" approximately 5 years after its formation?
Indeed, the "Highgate Vampire" Wikipedia article states that, "On 21 December 1969 one of their members, David Farrant, spent the night there, according to his account written in 1991." [my emphasis]
Why did it take 21 years for a mention of the BPOS to appear in correlation with the Highgate Vampire Case?
Also, how do you explain its similarity of name to the extant British Occult Society?
December, 1969, I visited the cemetery alone in an attempt to see if there might be any logical explanation behind these reports. That same evening, I actually witnessed a tall dark shape just inside the top gate of Highgate Cemetery. After this, the Society had members stationed in the cemetery by night to see if we might be able to obtain some photographic evidence of the entity’s appearances.
After your first sighting you had members of the BPOS stationed at the Cemetery?
Well, according to your previously-cited letter, there's no mention of this or any other members at the Cemetery. This is even after you claimed to see it twice. Why did you not give any mention to this investigation at the time?
Oh, and by the way, did you end up getting any photographic evidence of the "entity" you sighted?
Then, in August 1970, a group of five of us eventually visited Highgate Cemetery (with a psychic medium) with the intention of holding a séance. For this purpose, we had with us several ‘magical implements’, including small Celtic crosses, cameras, candles, incense, and a tape recorder. The area chosen to perform the séance was a flat area of ground above the ‘Circle of Lebanon’, a Victorian circle of tombs not far from the back gate of the cemetery.
Yet, according to the Daily Express, August 19, 1970, your intention was to: "search out the supernatural being and destroy it by plunging the stake in its heart."
Let's buy that you had "magical implements" on your person for use in your investigation. This is despite mentions of only a stake and a cross. What became of them, and, again, why are there no contemporary references to these items - by yourself, or anyone else?
Also, why was someone with "no knowledge in the field" (yourself, as you claimed) equipped with such occultic items in the first place?
Unfortunately this was interrupted by the police, who had been keeping a watch on HC because of serious vandalism in months prior to this.
As the police approached, the four other people headed back towards the front of the cemetery, where they had two cars parked. I decided to leave via the back garden of a house which backed on to the cemetery, situated in South Grove. I knew the people who lived there, and therefore felt quite confident should I have been spotted in their garden. I discarded some of the paraphernalia I was carrying, but was shortly afterwards apprehended by the police.
If you were aware of the police keeping a watch on Highgate Cemetery, which is also implied by your pre-conceived escape route, then why'd you do it? Why'd you take the risk? And why did you feel the need to discard the paraphernalia in the first place?
I was taken to Hornsey Road police station, and the police had obviously found the discarded items, as they were lined up on a desk. These included a wooden cross, a wooden stake with a piece of string attached to it, some candles, my portable tape recorder, and a small camera.
In your previous list of implements you carried on your person at Highgate, you didn't mention a "wooden stake with a piece of string attached to it". Where did this stake come from?
What was it for?
And, in light of your mentioning of pursuing a vampire by "whatever means might be necessary" in March, 1970, don't you think carrying a stake in an allegedly vampire-haunted cemetery might have come across as a tad suspicious?
I was questioned extensively by the police, who had already heard stories of a ‘vampire’ that lurked within the cemetery. I told them virtually nothing, except to say our presence was due to a serious psychic investigation into this phenomenon. To protect other members of the society from unwanted publicity, I refused to disclose their names. I also gave them a false name, and refused to give them my address in Highgate (which in fact is why some newspapers quoted me as being of ‘no fixed address’).
Could they have heard the stories by your (unintentional or otherwise) co-operation with the media? Again, take note of the March 6, 1970 article.
I suppose I can understand the desire to protect the other members of the Society from "unwanted publicity" - obviously, something that wasn't a concern to yourself - but giving the police a fake name? Refusing to give your address? What was the deal with that?
To be continued...
Well, it looks like he's down, but not out.
In "Ecker's Take", I mentioned that Don Ecker's board had been shut down.
Well, according to "Hello world!" (Dark Matters Radio), it wasn't just the site's forum that went offline:
Hello internet! After a number of months the Dark Matters Radio website is back. The old DMR website went down after the producer of Dark Matters Radio had some health issues. The show went “dark” and finally he pulled down the website. A bit of time passed while I debated whether I wished to re-start the site but this being the 21st Century I decided to put it back up.
Fortuitously enough, his latest blog entry, "Vampires & Nasties PLUS! British "NANCY-Boys"", discusses his involvement with the Highgate Vampire Case.
Rob Brautigam's "The "Vampire" of Highgate Cemetery" page over at Shroudeater, discusses the mass of material he's collected on the Case:
And for way too many years I have just been sitting here staring at those bookshelves and folders and boxes, not knowing where to start. Alright then, just like all the people who were involved in this case, I am not getting any younger. I think that the time has come for action !
However, you'll have to stay tuned for his report. He has this to say on its readiness:
Probably not before the end of this year [2008]. Well, if it is going to take a little longer, then it's simply going to be later than that. Like everything else in this world it is all in the hands of the Gods. We are only human. All that we can do is do our worst and see what happens...
If you'd like to read some of Rob's other thoughts on the Case, click here.
The latest post on TFO's new blog, Vampire Research Society, would seem to indicate as much.
In strangely referring to itself as an "Advisory Service on Vampires and Vampirism", it fails to mention that its (so far only) post cribs a sizable chunk of Dennis Crawford's ("DennisCrawford1") message 1 on "The British Occult Society & The Ghost Club Society" thread from the British Occult Society MSN Group.
Has a mere Sean Manchester sympathiser (which TFO bills himself to be) set himself as a representative of the VRS? It should be noted that Dennis Crawford is the organisation's International Secretary. (See: Vampire Research Society homepage).
That's not the only thing the homepage reveals.
For some unknown reason, the VRS has decided to incorporate TFO's plagiaristic blog, Journal of a Vampirologist, into its menu. So, obviously TFO must be "speaking" with some air of authority on the VRS's behalf.
The plot thickens when we take into account Dennis' Oct 1, '06 criticism of my use of the username, "The Overseer", in association with my MSN Group:
I nevertheless refer you to the first nine words of St Paul's First letter to Timothy (3: 2-7) which describes qualities required of an Overseer: "An overseer, then, or bishop, must be above reproach ..." The Revised English Bible uses the word "bishop" whereas the New American Standard Bible employs "overseer." An overseer in ecclesial terms is a bishop.
Yet, strangely, Dennis took a completely different, much more tolerant view of TFO ripping-off my own username, for his own purposes:
The manager of Did A Vampire Walk In Highgate? took to employing the pseudonym The Overseer in protest against Hogg's misuse of the title.
"Misuse"?
I fail to see how ripping-off my username "in protest", then using it to repetitively plagiarise VRS and other sources, warrants such acts of social justice. I'd hardly call that action "above reproach".
If TFO is indeed Dennis Crawford, then he's got a lot to answer for.
For one thing, it is fairly indicting of the International Secretary of the VRS, when he engages in the game of publicly revealing personal information (i.e., my real name) of people who use the VRS website, all the while hiding behind a username - one adopted from myself, no less - to carry out a vendetta against myself. This is one in a catalogue of shady tactics.
I'd call for his resignation.
But does Dennis Crawford even speak on his own behalf?
Craig Adams, a former member of Don Ecker's Dark Matters forum, alleged that the following usernames all emanated from Sean Manchester's IP:
+Seán (Superior General)
+Seán Manchester
Albé
Bishop's Chaplain
Bishop's PR Secretary
Bishop Seán Manchester
Chairman
Crusader
Crusader Knight
DennisCrawford1
FoBSM Administration
KatrinaGarforth-Bles1
Old Catholic Church
Sangreal
The Apostle
The Author
The Informative One
The Overseer
The last belongs to TFO aka "Gothic" aka "Vampirologist".
Interestingly, it wouldn't be the first time such pseudonyms have been used.
Can you read Catalan?
Me either.
However, if you've got the ability to do so, then check out Jordi Ardanuy's "Retorn a Highgate" in L'Upir No. 6 (Octubre-Desembre 2005), pp. 53-81.
You can download the entire issue here.
If you're handy with French (I'm not), then check out "Spécial investigation - Qui profane nos tombes, partie 3" over at YouTube.David, billed as an "Ancien gourou Lucifierien" (Former Luciferian guru) discusses the Highgate Vampire case (voiced over in French). Yes, the one he doesn't like talking about.
He's probably standing outside the gates, because, as he says, "I am not really welcomed at the cemetery, but I am not barred as such." (qtd. in Marc Mullen, "Highgate Vampire at it again!!", Pentacle Magazine, Thursday, September 22, 2005 - 02:58 PM)
Poor David. The author of Beyond the Highgate Vampire (1991; 1992; 1997), The Vampyre Syndrome (2000) and interview subject of Return of the Vampire Hunter (2003), among others, has had it with vampires! He expresses his frustration with the subject in his latest blog entry, "That's All I Really Have to Say":I have said it before, and I’ll say it again: This Blog is not intended to be about ridiculous fanciful ‘vampires’; although I have said it is OK to discuss ‘ghost cases’ here and the paranormal here if anybody wants to. But NOT talk about bloody stupid vampires or their so-called ‘creators’!
Amusingly, the following screencap reveals the name of his previous blog entry. Serendipity?:
Of course, that doesn't stop things like this ("Talk Went Well"):
Anyway, it was well received. Almost an empathy between the audience and myself. It was only in a religious Community hall but there were quite a few people there. I only ‘skimped over’ matters relating to vampires. How can you talk about things that you know don’t even exist – although I am expected to do so, so often. And I said so!
And this ("The Film Was On..."):
The film was on the whole history of the Highgate/Muswell Hill areas and, perhaps needless to say, my part involved talking about the so-called Highgate vampire.
And so forth.
Yep, the same guy (who also happens to be the President of the Highgate Vampire Society) who's also been quoted as saying, "The sighting of a tall, black figure in April on Swains Lane makes me think the vampire is active again." has had enough!
Ah well. I guess it's best to let him use his blog to get back to the more important stuff. Like, uh, well, like this ("To Return to the Boring Stuff"):
I went up to the town centre yesterday (not far away) and on the way back, I passed a house that had just been cleared out. There was a perfect piece of wood by the skip, and I thought it would be just right to replace the one I have been using as a ‘coffee table’. Problem was, it was very, very heavy. So heavy, in fact, I had to keep resting down the road in order to carry it. When I could, I kept resting it on a wall to take the weight, then carry on some minutes later.
Exciting!
I last gave mention to Don Ecker in "Where You Might Find Me".
Unfortunately, his forum, where much discussion on the Highgate Vampire Case took place, was shut down.
However, you can still read about his "investigation" into the case here and here over at The Paracast with Gene Steinberg and David Biedny forum.
