Herbert Varney

From Harry Potter Wiki

Sir Herbert Varney (1858-1889) was vampire who preyed upon London women in the 1880s. He was eventually caught and killed by a specially-assigned group of wizards from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

[edit] Behind the scenes

• Herbert Varney may have been loosely based off of Jack the Ripper, who in 1888 brutally murdered at least five women in London, but was never caught.^[1]
• Although Varney is the name of places and companies,^[2], and the surname of certain celebrities ^[3], this character probably references Varney the Vampire or the Feast of Blood, a Gothic horror story written by James Malcolm Rymer in the 19th century, and one of the first vampire novels ever written (predating and influencing Bram Stoker's more popular Dracula).^[4]
  • Marvel Comics first adapted this character with the name of Varnae, a former wizard from Atlantis who became the first lord of the vampires and plagued the likes of Conan the Barbarian^[5] and Doctor Strange^[6]; later, Marvel Comics adapted Varney to their own continuity as a separate character.^[7]

[edit] Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game) (Appears on a Famous Wizard Card)

[edit] Notes and References