John Hopkinson



John Hopkinson was a solicitor.

Early Life
John was the solicitor for Inspector Ian Stratford after the death of his wife.

John was a good friend of Gordon Seavers, he found his body and took a letter from it. He was aware that Richard Harries had blackmailed Gordon, resulting in his suicide.

At Banquo Manor
John visited Banquo Manor to view Richard Harries' experiments on brainwaves; he was there to give him legal advice. Richard looked down upon John for his lack of scientific knowledge. Although Harries' experiments amazed John, he did not like him.

John hid behind a curtain, eavesdropping on a conversation between Harries and his fiancée, Susan Seymour. He overheard her telling him the marriage was off. George then told him the history of Banquo Manor and it's founder, Robert Dodds.

Gordon was expected at the manor but John did not tell George of his death.

John met Dr. Friedlander when he came to assist in the experiments with his assistant Herr Kreiner. John and Friedlander questioned Harries on his experiment, John was not in favour of collective though as he stated "our minds are private property". Harries merely told him he wasn't bothered by the moral implications.

After dinner John crept into Harries' lab and sabotaged his experiment. He wanted revenge on him for Gordon's death.

They all went to witness Harries' experiments; he hooked himself and his sister, Catherine Harries, into his machine. It overloaded and John managed to take Catherine's headpiece off, saving her life; Harries was killed.

John was questioned by Inspector Ian Stratford; he became nervous but managed to put on a calm air. Stratford questioned him on his decision not to tell George of Seavers' death; he lied, saying George had been very ill and he hadn't had the chance to tell him.

That night John dreamed of Harries and awoke to hear one of the escaped rats nearby. John befriended Susan; they discussed the murder of Harries. Harries body was stolen and later found returned. Beryl was found death and in her hand was a piece of paper from Harries' notes.

The note had evidence of Harries' blackmailing. Stratford was able to deduct that John was the murderer but decided not to prove it and hence, prosecute.

George and Elizabeth Wallace were found dead. Stratford, John and Kreiner then began searching for the killer.(EDA: The Banquo Legacy)

Personality
John was good friends with Seavers and so took the chance to kill Harries. His guilt made him nervous in confronting Stratford but he soon regained his composure. John became good friends with Susan, comforting her in the chaos of events. (EDA: The Banquo Legacy)