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LIVE Fright nights
Most Haunted stakes out a scary castle in the land of Dracula
The Most Haunted team head to Transylvania for what is possibly their scariest assignment yet. They’ll spend three nights at Corvin Castle, a haunted Gothic pile that numbers Vlad the Impaler, the inspiration for Dracula, among its former inhabitants. We braved a chat with presenter Yvette Fielding to find out more…
What prompted Most Haunted’s first trip outside the British Isles?
I blame Paul O’Grady. He came on a Most Haunted Live we did a couple of years ago and said we should do a show in Transylvania because it has a fantastic history. Also, I’d been there during my Blue Peter days for a show about Romanian orphanages, and I’ll never forget driving through Transylvania and thinking, ‘Oh my God, that’s Dracula’s castle.’ It has the most amazing atmosphere.
What’s special about Corvin Castle?
It’s an incredible place, absolutely huge. Vlad the Impaler was allegedly imprisoned there for seven years, and people have reported seeing dark, shadowy figures and strange lights.
Will it be similar to other editions of Most Haunted Live?
We won’t have an audience, so it should have a very different feel. We’ll be looking into the history of the place and trying to convey the atmosphere. It’s one of the biggest castles we’ve used, so we’ll be relying on viewers to be our eyes and ears. Hopefully they’ll phone and text in to tell us they’ve just seen something on the webcam, and we can follow it up.
What if Vlad the Impaler makes contact?
If our psychic David Wells suddenly starts talking in a Transylvanian accent claiming to be Vlad the Impaler, I’ll be the first one out of there!
Do you still get frightened making the show?
At the moment, I’m most apprehensive about the cold because it’s in the mountains and is supposed to be absolutely freezing. But I can’t go anywhere on my own – even if there are just two of us I get nervous. I prefer safety in numbers.
Are you planning any more trips overseas for Most Haunted?
I’d love to do a show from the Bermuda Triangle. I’m a huge fan of myths and legends and would like to start investigating things like werewolves and Bigfoot – all my books are about that stuff. No wonder I have nightmares!
Bite-size facts about Transylvania
- Transylvania, which literally means ‘land beyond the forests,’ is in the western part of modern-day Romania.
- It’s the home of Dracula, the fictional vampire in Bram Stoker’s eponymous novel, published in 1897.
- Dracula is loosely based on Vlad III Tepes or Vlad the Impaler, a 15th-century prince from neighbouring Wallachia, who liked to impale enemies on sharp wooden stakes.
- Transylvanian folklore has it that if a baby is born prematurely, with an extra nipple or to an unmarried mother, it will become a vampire.
- Famous modern-day Transylvanians include Monica and Gabriela Irimia, aka The Cheeky Girls.
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