Monsters as mirrors of their eras

Episode 142: The Monsters and Myths of London | Halloween Special 🎃

Welcome to a spine-chilling Halloween special from the London History Podcast! Join host Hazel Baker from London Guided Walks as we explore the terrifying creatures, urban legends, and supernatural tales that have haunted London for centuries. From Victorian fire-breathing demons to medieval spectral hounds, 1970s vampire hunts to stone devils carved in revenge—these are the monsters that refuse to stay buried.

🔥 SPRING-HEELED JACK: The Victorian Terror
In February 1838, 18-year-old Jane Alsop answered a knock at her gate. A man claiming to be a policeman shouted, "For God's sake, bring me a light—we've caught Spring-heeled Jack!" When she handed him a candle, he threw back his cloak, spat blue fire in her face, and attacked her with metallic claws. Her testimony, published in the Patriot newspaper, convinced skeptics that London faced a real threat. Discover how Spring-heeled Jack terrorised Victorian London, leapt impossibly over rooftops, inspired theatrical productions and penny dreadfuls, and may have influenced modern superheroes like Batman. He was never caught—and some say he's still out there.

🐕 THE BLACK DOG OF NEWGATE: Medieval Vengeance
Step into medieval London during the devastating famines of Henry III's reign. At Newgate Prison—described by Henry Fielding as "a prototype of hell"—starving inmates committed the ultimate sin: they killed and ate a scholar accused of sorcery. But their crime awakened something worse. A monstrous black dog with burning eyes began stalking the corridors, hunting down each cannibal one by one. Even those who escaped weren't safe—the beast followed them into the streets. First recorded in 1596 by prisoner Luke Hutton, this legend became so powerful it appeared on tavern tokens as currency, inspired Elizabethan plays by John Day in 1602, and is still reported near the Old Bailey today.

🧛 THE HIGHGATE VAMPIRE: 1970s Mass Hysteria
On Friday the 13th, March 1970, Thames Television broadcast interviews with witnesses who claimed a vampire haunted Highgate Cemetery. Within two hours, hundreds of Londoners armed with wooden stakes and crucifixes stormed the gates in "the largest vampire hunt of the 20th century." Explore the decades-long feud between occultist Sean Manchester—who arrived at newspaper offices in opera cape and top hat—and investigator David Farrant, who was arrested carrying a stake. One man claimed he tracked the vampire to Crouch End and killed it. Another wrote books declaring it still lurked in ancient tombs. This wasn't medieval superstition—this was 1970s London, and it shows how even in the space age, the city never quite escaped its Gothic past.

😈 THE CORNHILL DEVILS: An Architect's Revenge
Walk down Cornhill in the City of London and look up at numbers 54-55. Three red terracotta demons have been sneering down since 1893—but most Londoners rush past without ever noticing. Legend says architect Ernest Augustus Runtz placed them there as revenge against the vicar of St Peter's Church, who opposed his building plans. Runtz commissioned artist William James Neatby to create the most grotesque devils possible, positioned to glare eternally at the church. The smallest devil, mouth wide open, was supposedly modelled on the vicar's own face—condemned forever in Doulton terracotta. They're proof that in London, even architecture can weaponise a grudge.

More Spooky Episodes:
🎃 Episode 122: Haunted Underground Stations
👻 Episode 28: The Ghost of Cock Lane

Hosted by Hazel Baker, London tour guide and historian.
Visit londonguidedwalks.co.uk for walking tours and more episodes.