Unable to find a scriptwriter to take on the project, Deane wrote the play himself in a four-week period of inactivity while he was suffering with a severe cold.

[4] Deane re-imagined Count Dracula as a more urbane and theatrically acceptable character who could plausibly enter London society.

It was Deane's idea that the count should wear a tuxedo and stand-up collar, and a flowing cape which concealed Dracula while he slipped through a trap-door in the stage floor, giving the impression that he had disappeared.

[5] Deane also arranged to have a uniformed nurse available at performances, ready to administer smelling salts should anyone faint.

With Raymond Huntley as the Count and Deane as Van Helsing, it was a huge success and toured for years.