Exec Producer: Dinah Lord

Editor: Dave Richards

Caravan Media for PBS and Sky History

Starts 29^th October on Sky History

In Poland, archaeologists have uncovered a skeleton with a sickle across her neck and a padlock on her toe – a sign that people once believed this woman might be a real-life vampire. But there’s much more to this chilling discovery. She’s part of what’s now called the Field of Vampires, a site filled with up to 30 other “deviant burials,” all believed to be part of ancient attempts to keep the dead from returning.

With exclusive access to unprecedent archaeological discoveries, this two-part documentary series follows an international team of experts led by historical specialist Dan Jones, as they journey throughout Europe and the US to uncover the reasons behind these ritualistic burials and understand how the myth of vampires began. An intense forensic investigation of ancient skeletons in mysterious graveyards, ground-breaking DNA analysis, and pioneering facial reconstruction techniques piece together the stories of these characters that built a much larger myth.

Dave Richards cut both episodes and comments: ‘I particularly enjoyed the challenge of weaving the narrative threads of the the wider history of how vampire panics spread across 18th century Europe with the story of what happened to the the macabre, excavated remains of a woman believed to be a vampire. One of the major challenges of the film was creating an eerie and unnerving atmosphere out of an unassuming, agricultural field in rural Poland. The moving reveal of the forensically reconstructed model of the female victim, as she would have looked at the time, is a highlight.‘

The series starts 29^th October on Sky History 9pm, just in time for the spooky season!