 In early 1970 local press spread rumours that a vampire haunted Highgate Cemetery in London . Amateur vampire hunters flocked in large numbers to the cemetery . Several books have been written about the case , notably by Sean Manchester , a local man who was among the first to suggest the existence of the " Highgate Vampire " and who later claimed to have exorcised and destroyed a whole nest of vampires in the area . In January 2005 , rumours circulated that an attacker had bitten a number of people in Birmingham , England , fuelling concerns about a vampire roaming the streets . However , local police stated that no such crime had been reported and that the case appears to be an urban legend . 
