The String of Pearls

Thomas Preskett (Peckett) Prest (c. 1810-c. 1859) was a British hack writer, journalist and musician. He was a prolific producer of penny dreadfuls. He is now remembered as the creator of the fictional Sweeney Todd, the 'demon barber' immortalized in his The String of Pearls (1846). He has also been associated with the authorship of Varney the Vampire. He wrote under pseudonyms including Bos, a takeoff of Charles Dickens' own pen name, Boz. Before joining Edward Lloyd's publishing factory, Prest had made a name for himself as a talented musician and composer. His works include: The Penny Pickwick (1839) (lampoon of The Pickwick Papers), The Life and Adventures of Oliver Twiss: Workhouse Boy (1841) (lampoon of Oliver Twist), The Miller and His Men; or, The Bohemian Banditti (1831) and The Hebrew Maiden; or, The Lost Diamond (1841).