Harry Kümel

Who is Harry Kümel?

Harry Kümel is a Belgian film director.

His 1971 vampire feature Daughters of Darkness, starring Delphine Seyrig became a cult hit in Europe and the United States. He also directed the film version of Malpertuis, featuring Orson Welles and adapted from the novel by Jean Ray.

He also directed Monsieur Hawarden about the cross-dressing Meriora Gillibrand whose two male lovers fought a duel in Vienna. She then killed the survivor and fled to Belgium dressed as a man. She took the name Hawarden from a family related to hers in Lancashire. The film is a fictionalised account; her grave can still be seen near Malmedy in the German-speaking part of Belgium.

He made a cameo appearance in Nicholas Royle's novel Antwerp.