Highgate Cemetery is one of London’s special places. It’s also a favorite haunt – excuse the pun – of satanists, witches, lunatics and vampire slayers. So I figured I’d fit right in.
The famed Egyptian Avenue at Highgate Cemetery
My tour of the grandiose gothic graveyard begun promptly at 4 pm, and no sooner had we began than our guide abruptly halted in mid step, succumbing to his curiosity and noticeably overtaken by anxiety. ‘What’s the book?’ he asked, noticeably agitated and ever so aware of my presence in the back of group.
I tried not to look any more mortified than I was as all eyes turned my way; camera in one hand, hardback book in the other. ‘You don’t want to know,’ I retorted nervously, trying to diffuse the confrontation with humor.
‘What’s the book called?’ the guide now demanded, sounding even more anxious than before.
‘Err, Sean Manchester is the author,’ I replied, trying hard not to humiliate myself by exposing the fact that I was harboring the 1985 horror classic, ‘The Highgate Vampire’.
Sean Manchester’s controversial book
‘Well, we aren’t going to be talking about all that today I can assure you,’ he extolled with some bravado, before adding; ‘Now let’s continue,’ as if I was somehow responsible for delaying the proceedings. The rest of the group looked on with disdain, and speculated about the implied perversion of my interest. ‘Not a good start,’ I mused.
Things soon improved, however, and the tour proved spectacular and our guide brilliant. Despite an awkward start, we developed a mutual respect, and he even went as far as to entertain the group while I went walkabout to photograph the famous tomb where Manchester, a priest who has dedicated himself to the mystery of the Highgate Vampire for nearly 40 years – most famously during the 1970’s – preformed his legendary exorcism of the Highgate Vampire.
The Circle of Lebanon, where Sean Manchester first attempted to exorcise the Highgate Vampire in August 1970, using the Latin Rite
For all his trouble, Manchester’s legacy remains a mixed bag. While many within the Friends of Highgate Cemetery (FoHC) revere his efforts, others, such as our guide, are less appreciative. ‘Banned for life,’ he extolled dryly. Harsh words, I thought, for a priest who dedicated himself to the safety and well-being of others for all those years. Then again, Manchester might get the last laugh, as two films inspired by his yarn are in various stages of development; one faithful to his 1970’s account and another set in modern times, but borrowing his well-branded title nevertheless. It remains to be seen if either will be filmed in Highgate Cemetery, as was the 1969 classic Hammer Horror film, ‘Taste of the Blood of Dracula’. In any case, Manchester’s book is brilliant, compelling and engaging and I recommend it highly.
A scene from the 1969 film, Taste of the Blood of Dracula
© David L Rattigan 2005
After the tour I walked the perimeter of the burial ground looking for evidence of nocturnal access, curious to discover which parts of the cemetery were of most interest to the various cults that conduct their rituals here as if it were some sort of ghoulish temple. And there, on the corner of the cemetery that borders Waterlow Park was the entrance I was looking for, and lo and behold, near the path leading to the ‘climb over’ was a freshly imprinted image in the ground of a stake, the likes of which I envisaged Manchester using in the past. All I needed was some garlic and a crucifix and I would have been convinced that the un-dead were alive and well in Highgate Cemetery, or at least that others believed they were!
Imprint of a stake in front of the eastern ‘climb over’ entrance to Highgate Cemetery
The presence of the stake just meters from the cemetery wall is no doubt coincidental, and reflective of my own active imagination; not the presence of vampire slayers. All the same, I for one am looking forward to next year’s feature films and hope that they do justice to the glorious memorial that is Highgate Cemetery. It would be a bloody shame if they did not.
Please note that Highgate Cemetery has a long history of abuse from Satanists, would-be vampire slayers and others, and thus is strictly supervised. Those who trespass will be prosecuted without exception.
