Buffy the Vampire Slayer lore casts a wide net around the world, and fans just found a real-life Easter egg for one of its far-flung events. According to the show, the vampire Angel was born in Galway, Ireland in 1727, and was first bitten there in 1753. Last week, a fan found a plaque commemorating this fictional event in the real-life city of Galway, and they shared a photo of it on Reddit. Even users on the Buffy subreddit were largely unaware of this obscure marker, and surprised that it was allowed to remain on display in a public place without interference. Commenters proposed other places that deserve a real-life memorial for fictional events.
“On this site in April 1753, Liam O’Malley was bitten by a vampire and went on to become the most feared monster in all of Europe,” the plaque reads. “He later changed his name to Angel and found fame in the 1997 hit TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer and his own spin-off show.”
It looks like the plaque is affixed to a painted wooden bench or railing outdoors, and the user who shared the photo, u/justagreatdane, revealed roughly where it’s located. It’s apparently on a walkway across the street from Galway’s Latin Quarter — a small section of town renowned for tourist attractions and a lively night life. Other commenters announced plans to visit it themselves, with some jokingly describing it as a “pilgrimage.”
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Of course, fans did their due diligence by pointing out a few nitpicky issues with this memorial. For one thing, the last name O’Malley was never confirmed in any canonical sources — only in a magazine published early in the show’s run. In the show, novels, and comic books, Liam is never given a family name. Additionally, when he first became a vampire, he took the name Angelus, only shortening it to Angel centuries later when he moved to the U.S.
In the time of the main series, Angel is considered one of the most ruthless vampires in history, though he is by no means the oldest one involved in the story. Characters like Master have confirmed birthdates as far back as the 12th century, and some characters and events are described as taking place in the “Primordium Age.” There are even accounts of previous Slayers who lived in civilizations like Sumer and ancient Egypt.
These kinds of details may become more important as the revival of Buffy the Vampire Slayer takes shape. Sarah Michelle Gellar is working with filmmaker Chloé Zhao on a new Buffy series for Hulu, and as it won’t be a reboot, it must maintain the existing canon as we know it. The series is still in development at the time of this writing, but every update on it so far has been very promising. In the meantime, the original series is streaming on Hulu now.