Ten things you never knew about... vampires

Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula was first published on May 26, 1897 but that’s not the only connection between vampires and today’s date.

1. May 26 was also the date of birth in 1913 of that great actor of film vampire hunters Peter Cushing.

2. … and the following day, May 27, was the date of birth of those great vampires Christopher Lee ( born 1922) and Vincent Price ( 1911).

3. The first vampire novel in English was The Vampyre by John Polidori published in 1819.

4. Polidori was Lord Byron’s physician and is said to have based his vampire on Byron himself.

5. The horror film actor Bela Lugosi was buried

wearing one of the cloaks in which he had appeared as Dracula.

6. The English courtier Walter Map wrote of vampires in his book “De nugis curialium” ( Trifles of courtiers) in the 12th century.

7. Dracula is the only fictional character to have appeared in more films than Sherlock Holmes.

8. Thousands of Americans are reported to have taken out insurance against turning into vampires or werewolves.

9. The earliest reference to vampire- like, blood-eating demons was in Sumeria around 4,000BC.

10. The idea that sunlight can kill vampires is modern, perhaps no later than 1950.