When one watches the Vincent Price classic Witchfinder General (aka The Conqueror Worm), the actions and behavior of the titular Matthew Hopkins may make one assume that the decidedly nasty character was a wholly fictional creation. After all, the film was based on a novel. Sadly, Hopkins was all too real. Given his nasty exploits, both onscreen and real life, it’s no surprise that he has inspired various horror-related literature and music, along with a few parodies. One such parody can be seen in the following video, wherein the Witchfinder General is used in an ad for Walkers crisps (potato chips):
In fact, Walkers actually used the character in an entire series of televised advertisements! ’tis not normal indeed.
1 comment
I had to do some googling to learn more about the Witchfinder General. After looking him up, I understood this commercial a lot better. How scary – I can see why this character was used in so many TV ads!