Press Release

Kirklees Vampire To Appear At York Dungeon

Yorkshire's own vampire is to get a starring role in the latest horror show at macabre tourist attraction The York Dungeon.

The new exhibition, Vampires: Fact or Fiction, will examine the legend of the infamous Kirklees Vampire... a dark figure of a woman allegedly sighted many times at the Kirklees Priory.

There's even a Robin Hood connection. The dark woman is supposedly Robin's prioress cousin who bled him to death, before burying him in front of the Priory gatehouse.

Dungeon visitors will see a wraith-like vampire hovering bat-like above replica ivy-covered Kirklees tomb, her red eyes and shiny fangs glowing in the dark.

"In true Dungeon tradition, there will be plenty of surprises and no shortage of scares," said boss Helen Douglas.

"Our new feature will also take visitors back through the centuries to the six-year reign of terror of Prince Vlad Dracule of Walachia (near Hungary) from 1456 to '62," she added.

Vlad was an exponent of surely the most barbaric form of psychological warfare ever employed... scaring off an invading Turkish army by putting in its way a field full of the bodies of men, women and children, all impaled on stakes.

History records one estimate that there were 20,000 bodies staked out.

"We'll use a combination of quality theming, special effects and live acting to try and give visitors an insight into the horror that must have been felt by those Turkish soldiers," said Helen.

Vampires: Fact of Fiction will also look at Bram Stoker's creation Count Dracula, and finally provide details of modern vampires.

"A lot of people will be astonished to learn that far from being consigned to history and fiction, there are popular vampire societies meeting in secret here in the UK right now," said Helen.

The new exhibition replaces the Witch Trials feature, and is set to open at Easter.

Back to top