Legends of London

Throughout time, people across the world told each other tales of how they came to be. Of heroes and monsters, romance and tragedy, death and rebirth. Pathology helped shape the ancient world, explaining the unexplainable. This is Pathology Unleashed. London, one of the oldest cities in England, as well as its capital, has hundreds of years worth of history and culture. Permeating outside of England and into the grand stage of the world, leaving a lasting impact on human history. Embedded within its long and storied history are a number of urban legends and spooky tales. Stories of severed heads, ghosts and the undead, monsters and mysterious figures lurking in the dark, have circulated London for many, many years. With some going back centuries. This program will discuss a select handful of the most famous and most chilling legends of London. One of the most iconic and historic locations in the city, and perhaps the one with the most fearsome reputation, is the Tower of London. Built by William the Conqueror in the 11th century, the castle has acted as a fortress, as a palace for royalty, and perhaps most famously, as a prison. With a history drenched in blood, torture and death, the Tower of London is said to be the home of a number of ghosts. Those who had resided in the keep, and those who had perished within its walls. Some of which are incredibly famous. Such ghosts have included the likes of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII, whose headless form wanders corridors and walks the Tower Green where she was beheaded. King Henry VI, who is said to appear in the Wakefield Tower at the stroke of midnight. Lady Jane Grey, who was executed by the real-life inspiration for Bloody Mary, and wanders the battlements. As well as Princes Edward V and Richard, Duke of York, who play together in the White Tower. The severed head of the Welsh figure Bran the Blessed is said to be buried beneath the Tower, and his spirit may also haunt the grounds, attracting ravens to the ancient site. Though there is natural skepticism, the folklore of the ghost activity of the Tower has bolstered the already spine-chilling reputation of the Tower of London. Another iconic location in London is Trafalgar Square, home to a number of statues, not least of all a quartet of lions guarding Nelson's Column. It is said that if the world-famous clock Big Ben were to ever strike thirteen, that these statues would come to life, shaking their proud manes and roaring to the sky. The idea behind statues and inanimate objects coming to life is commonplace throughout England and Europe as a whole, hearkening back to legends of gargoyles and the like. While the number thirteen has long had negative connotations with bad luck and supernatural occurrences, while it is unlikely that Big Ben should ever strike thirteen, one may wonder just what these lions would do if they came to life. Would they keep guard over the Column and the Square? Would they terrorize London and its inhabitants, tourists and locals alike? Or would they just act as ordinary lions, hunting and sleeping as they do in nature? Though London was one of the primary settings of Bram Stoker's novella Dracula, it also has its very own vampire legend. With the chilling sense that there was something behind him, hunting him, he whirled around to see a tall, dark figure, which promptly vanished without a trace. This was soon followed by witnesses claiming to see coffins open after dark, and the dead rising, glimpses of a tall, dark-clothed man with glowing eyes, and foxes being found dead and drained of blood. Newspaper headlines ate up the rumors of the Highgate Vampire, fueling a sensation that bordered on hysteria. And on Friday, March 13, 1970, a mob of people from all over London swarmed Highgate Cemetery in an attempted exorcism, despite police efforts. Over the years, belief in the Highgate Vampire has waxed and waned, yet the notoriety of the cemetery has remained ever steady, as if something truly dark and sinister has a hold over the area. But vampires are not the only monsters said to run amok in the London area. One such beast is a spectral black dog, said to have stalked the area of former Newgate Prison. Unable to defend himself against the stronger and ravenous inmates, the scholar was quickly killed and eaten by the other prisoners. But not long after this savage act, the inmates who had eaten the scholar began to see a large, feral dog, with glowing eyes and fur as black as pitch, padding along the halls and the grounds of the prison. The superstitious and mentally shattered inmates were convinced that this ghostly dog was the reincarnation of the scholar, hellbent on revenge. One by one, the inmates fell victim to the black dog's teeth, and were ripped apart and eaten. The last surviving inmates were driven mad and broke out of the prison, never to be seen again, though it's been said that they had been chased down and killed by the black dog. To this day, it is said the black dog still prowls the area of the Old Bailey, where Newgate Prison once stood. Epping Forest is a woodland that stretches from London all the way to Essex, and has more than its fair share of eerie tales attached to it. Over 100 lakes and ponds are found within the forest, but only one of which is referred to as the Killer Pool. Legend has it that a young couple, in a forbidden romance akin to Romeo and Juliet, went on a walk through Epping Forest. They soon realized that they were being followed, and when they confronted the person, it turned out to be the girl's father. In his fury, the father killed his daughter and her lover, and he dumped their bodies into a nearby pond. Not long after, strange things began to occur. The waters of the pool became dark, murky and black in color. Wildlife began to die at its edges, and the ground became barren. But then, the pool began to collect a number of human bodies. In 1887, a woman drowned herself in the pool, and not much later, a young servant named Emma Morgan killed both herself and her child in the pond's murky waters. Over the years, many people have died either by suicide or murder in Epping Forest, as if drawn to the water's edge by the cursed pool, and driven to take the life of oneself or the life of another. Our final legend of this program is London's very own cryptid, Spring-Heeled Jack. In the early 19th century, legend sprang up of a killer who stalked the streets of London and Liverpool, one who may have been more of a monster than a man. Some say that he had a horribly disfigured face, partially covered by a metallic helmet or a mask, with eyes like red balls of fire, while others add that he was tall and lanky, with the appearance of a gentleman, albeit with a devil aspect. Other reported features include a flowing black cloak, a tight-fitting white garment, metal claws on his fingertips, and even the ability to breathe fire, sometimes blue or white in color. But the sole recurring trait found within each tail is his ability to leap astounding heights and bound great distances, jumping clear over walls and hedges and traversing the rooftops with ease. Hence the name, Spring-Heeled Jack. It was said that Spring-Heeled Jack would silently ambush an unsuspecting victim, more often than not a lone woman, before slashing at them, blowing fire at them, or even killing them before leaping out of sight, escaping from the authorities. Sightings of Spring-Heeled Jack were rampant throughout the 1800s, with his last documented appearance being in 1904, when a small group of people confronted him, only to vanish without a trace. There have been a number of theories and suspects to explain the legend, but some believe that he was a supernatural monster, one who still prowls the alleys and rooftops of London after dark. It should come as no surprise that a city as old and as significant as London would be chock full of urban legends, some that are centuries old, while others mere decades old, but nevertheless still very much alive and thriving. From the concept of statues coming to life, to a deadly pond out in the forest, to the terror that is Spring-Heeled Jack, and no shortage of ghosts, monsters, and vampires to round out the strange tales of London. If you ever find yourself wandering the streets of London, we urge you to admire the history of the city, soak in the culture of the people, and to be mindful of your surroundings. You may be in the presence of a ghost.