Banquo Manor

Banquo Manor was a manor situated in the south east of England.

Characteristics
The village of Three Sisters was a mile away as was the local station, forming a triangle. Little Applecombe was 20 miles away when heading down the road from Three Sisters. It was build around the latter half of the 18th century. It was stone fronted with a conservatory of glass at the side. The drawing room was square and large, it had a French window leading onto the grounds and a fireplace against the wall; the door was made of strong wood. It was made from orange-tinted stone from local quarries; it was very rectangular and the front door was flanked by four pillars supporting an arch. It was small in comparison to other manors with tall narrow windows surrounded by white stone; this same stone was used on the Tudor-style battlements that crowned the manor.

The Manor was named after Banquo, a character from the play Macbeth. A plaque featuring a speech from the play hung in the drawing room; a second one hung in the study but was removed. (EDA: The Banquo Legacy)

History
Robert Dodds inherited a significant amount of money from his aunt; with this he commissioned the building of the manor by the Adam’s brothers. He fancied himself as an actor; his favourite performance was in Macbeth as Banquo, hence the manor's name.

It was rumoured that Dodds killed his aunt to establish a legacy. This was untrue as he was in Italy at the time.

Dodds' was murdered by his cousin, Pamela while practising his role as Banquo. Pamela had recently escaped from a lunatic asylum. She stabbed him in the master bedroom and then drank his blood. It was said she killed him in revenge for him having supposedly killed her grandmother (, his aunt).

In 1898, George Wallace was the owner. Richard Harries was invited to use the conservatory as a laboratory for his experiments into brainwaves. Harries took over the master bedroom.

Dr Friedlander and Herr Kreiner came to assist in the experiments. John Hopkinson also came as a witness. Gordon Seavers was expected but, unknown to the residents (bar Hopkinson) he had supposedly committed suicide.

Harries' experiment consisted of him sharing the thoughts of his sister, Catherine Harries. He set up the experiment and, as all the guests watched, began. The machine overloaded, Harries was killed and his body fell into the fiery wreck of his equipment. Hopkinson managed to free Catherine from the machine, saving her. The local police were sent for and Sergeant Baker and Inspector Ian Stratford arrived to investigate. (EDA: The Banquo Legacy)