Paranormal News Thursday – Is the Ghost Box a Modern Day Ouija Board?

After a little while of neglect I decided to try and step up my Blog Posts by bringing back ‘Paranormal News Thursday’. Which for those of you that don’t remember, it’s basically a weekly Post on ant articles or pieces on the paranormal that I manage find. Investigating the paranormal helps you find some slight oddities, but these experiences allow you to give a little more time to listen to others experiences. All of a sudden you realise the importance of looking at individuals experiences and how they tie in as an important part of any paranormal investigation. After all if you look at history and how historians look at it, they look for first, second and third hand accounts of events. It’s these accounts in the realm of the paranormal that make the case and build the reason for most investigations. Following that, the investigation becomes the place where we look for evidence to support those accounts of individuals. Sometimes the evidence doesn’t come, but when it does it can be amazing!

Getting to this Post though….

I recently read an article by Charles Swearengin who discussed possible similarities between the age old Ouija Board and the more recent development of the Ghost Box. Covering the age old fear factor that has come to be a part of the Ouija Boards reputation and it’s links to the dark arts, but also asking if the Ghost Box presented a scientific tool is much better. Check the full article out here:-

Paranormal News Article

The article goes into some great detail on of the Ouija Boards history which is an excellent insight into the beginnings of the cult game which has seemingly grown in popularity from its bad press. The links that were made between the board and the darker elements of the spirit world have just managed to fuel the users expectations of what was possible by using it.

As an investigator I have been on a few investigations where a Ouija Board was used to attempt contact with spirits. However, in my opinion from what I have witnessed information that has come through the users of a Ouija Board has been either unsubstantiated or just doesn’t make any sense. I’ve not managed to find supporting evidence for information from the Board, but that doesn’t mean it’s not out there. The Board may have picked up on something that doesn’t have supporting documentation available to us or even an event which wasn’t considered significant in its day.

Unfortunately this line of faith is similar for the Ghost Box too. We attempted to use one on a Farsight PRS investigation and to be honest it just came across as multiple random words. Nothing made any sense and none of it tied into our investigation.

What do I see, what do I think in regards to both these methods? Well simply I currently don’t have faith in either approach, neither seem to return clean results. Both methods are wide open to interpretation and depend majorly on the participants making sense of the results. As both are also so variable in their form they don’t make very good sources of evidence.

In the past I have witnessed both of these methods utilised by other investigators outside of my old Farsight team and found it interesting how a group can stumble through an interpretation of what they see or hear, land on an explanation, then as a group go with it! I don’t understand why this maybe the case, perhaps as a group they feel a part of something by discovering this piece of information? Still in most cases the groups remain agreed!

Is the Ghost Box a modern day high tech version of the age old Ouija Board? I don’t think so! There are great similarities, but they are simply both different ways of obtaining information which is very vague, but usually backed up by the group involved.

However, my mind will always remain open to any aspect of paranormal investigation! After all, you never know both of these methods may one day provide me with acceptable evidence. Just have to wait and see I guess.

As the original article mentioned though in this case I think opinion of the masses is very important, so please feel free to comment and let me know what your take on these two methods is?

Catch ya on the flip side!

I Just Can’t Keep Away!

Towards the end of last year I had to make a drastic decision to back away from investigating the paranormal, which was based around my finances, the fact that my day job became very busy and that I also wanted to spend more time with my family. It’s no secret that my paranormal investigation was taking up a lot of my free time, organising investigations, updating our website, writing articles on the investigations and finding new ways to investigate can be a full time job.

Unfortunately something had to give and that was me! The only problem being that following my own end to investigating, the team also began to stop their investigating under the Farsight PRS banner. For me this was a massive shame as I really hoped the team and Farsight PRS would continue to thrive even without my involvement. Still this is something that occurs to many paranormal investigation teams, usually around the eighteen month mark. Still grasping onto the dream that what I had originally put together wouldn’t be subjected to this I hoped there would be a way Farsight PRS would continue.

Currently that’s not the case as the team has pretty much dissolved and we have no plans to revive the team. However, I do hope to keep the research and what we began alive somehow. The only way I can think of doing that is to continue investigating when I can and report where I can.

At the moment, as the old Farsight PRS website is now down I will continue to add what I can to the Farsight Files Blog. Hopefully it will still get read here.

After many months of no investigations and if I’m honest itching to get on one, it’s been terrible! I’ve probably mentioned in the past how from my very first investigation I have had experiences that have quite frankly hooked me from day one. I miss investigating and even the locations with little to no activity interest me, as it’s pretty cool when you find logical explanations for things that others before you have claimed to be ghosts! Still it’s even better, sometimes exciting when you discover that oddity which you can’t explain. So, after all this time without wandering around darkened old buildings I think it’s about time I got back into it!

However, that will be a little difficult considering that Farsight PRS has disbanded. Still when a few more members joined Farsight almost two years ago, one of them was Aaron. Before Farsight Aaron was an active member of APIS (Anglian Paranormal Investigation Society), actually he still is. Now following my break from the paranormal I too will be joining APIS in some future investigations. Although I would love to resurrect Farsight PRS I don’t have the time at the moment to run a team, but I have been asked if any of my team would too like to join APIS.

APIS is a well established team, which have been around many years now. The team are well respected and currently looking to expand slightly. I hope that I will be able to add some value into their investigations. I have some pretty good tech from Farsight days to use and hopefully as the team have been around so long I will be able to learn from them.

If all goes well (which it should) then I should be joining the APIS team for my first investigation at The Old Nick in Gainsborough soon. I’m gonna be honest as its been so long I am a little excited about this investigation and hope that we can get some good results from it.

Where as before now I thought I may not get the chance to investigate anytime soon, it’s really good to know my next investigation is just around the corner.

Hopefully I will get back into and start investigating more. With that in mind perhaps a little it about my next investigation will be in one of my Blog Posts..

Catch ya on the flip side !

Afraid of the Dark?

From as far back as I can really remember along side my interest in the paranormal has been an obvious link to the dark. Having children myself now I am all too aware of the common fear which effects some of the next generation, the simple fear which creeps in as the lights dim low. However, this simple fear of what was hidden in the dark, in the unknown went beyond our children and if we are honest some of us worry a little about the shadows too.

I guess the idea for this post came about after I was re-introduced to what may lurk in the darker parts of my childrens room. Sometimes when you have kids, even a simple bedtime can spiral out of control when the room isn’t illuminated effectively.

After spending the past couple of years actively investigating haunted locations in the dark, I suppose the pitch black and shadowed filled rooms have become more than my friend. In fact walking through a darkened room has become second nature now. Perhaps that childhood programming which made me pause for a moment, theorise what maybe lurking in the shadows and then hunt for the light, has been phased out due to prolonged exposure. Still the very essence of both child like and adult fear of the dark still appears in every day life for me. Whether its my children practically begging sometimes for more light to help them sleep or some of my friends performing the ritual of pausing for a light switch. Either way, whatever age, all concerned must deep down fear the dark a little.

I believe that in a number of cases, probably more so with children the fear factor is fired by a belief that ghost generally come out to play at night. I know it was so as I grew up hearing ghost stories from friends and family members alike. Generally there was also a dusty old house involved too or darkened wood in the dead of night.

Of course this theory is totally unjustified as there are actually more reports of paranormal activity during the day than night! Possibly due to more of us being awake or simply because there are more background elements misunderstood as activity. So, why do we head out in the dead of night to seek our spirits? To be honest, no one has really managed a definitive answer on this, but I have a few ideas. First up, simply is the fact that its quiet at night and usually the only ones about at the locations we visit are us crazy ghost hunters. This does have its advantages for an investigator though, an ever so slightly controlled environment to investigate. I say slightly as an actual controlled environment is impossible to find, unless its a locked down labatory. Still doesn’t explain the walking around in the dark, surely the chances of mistaking those shadows for wandering spirits are greatly increased. Still investigating the paranormal isn’t always straight forward logically science and half the time our senses become the best tool available to us. Sometimes experience is the key.

Should we really be afraid of the dark? Who really knows! After all I have to admit, I’ve seen some pretty odd stuff when the lights are low and I’m pretty damn sure they are not just shadows! I guess that means that I will continue hunting around dark old buildings for the unexplained, which is fine by me as I enjoy it. The dark isn’t scary anyways, its what you find that throws you!

Are you afraid of the dark?

The Mystery of Jack the Ripper

There has never been such a case in history more prominent than that of the case of Jack the Ripper. For many years we have told and retold the story, covering it from angle after angle, delivering theory after theory, but still the Rippers identity remains a mystery. Although usually I spend most of my time researching things which are extremely hard to prove, I thought perhaps I would have a look at a case based more on elements we can measure. Still the case of Jack the Ripper, leaves me chasing ghosts once again.

So, what do we know about the case. We know that the Ripper terrorised London’s East End in the years 1888 to 1891, that the task of catching the fearsome killer was entrusted to the officers of Scotland Yard and although they failed they followed all lines of inquiry that they could.

Let us attempt to look at the case from the beginning, perhaps disregarding some of the added dramatics and stories which have clung to the case over the years. The best place to start then is with the victims, which is also where we find our first line of confusion. Which is the blurring between the definable Ripper murders and the Whitechapel murders. However, the eleven Whitechapel murders does include the Ripper murders and at some point each has been connected to the Ripper. Still properly defining the murders which were related to the Ripper, adds clarity to the case.

The Whitechapel Murders

Emma Elizabeth Smith – Tuesday 3rd April 1888 – Osborn Street, Whitechapel

Martha Tabram – Tuesday 7th August 1888 – George Yard Buildings, George Yard, Whitechapel

Mary Ann Nichols – Friday 31st August 1888 – Bucks Row, Whitechapel

Annie Chapman – Saturday 8th September 1888 – Rear Yard at 29 Hanbury Street, Spitalfields

Elizabeth Stride – Sunday 30th September 1888 – Yard at side of 40 Berner Street, St Georges-in-the-East

Catherine Eddowes – Sunday 30th September 188 – Mitre Square, Aldgate, City of London

Mary Jane Kelly – Friday 9th November 1888 – 13 Miller’s Court, 26 Dorset Street, Spitalfields

Rose Mylett – Thursday 20th December 1888 – Clarke’s Yard, High Street, Poplar

Alice McKenzie – Wednesday 17th July 1889 – Castle Alley, Whitechapel

Unknown Female Torso – Tuesday 10th September 1889 – Found under railway arch in Pinchin Street, Whitechapel

Frances Coles – Friday 13th February 1891 – FOund under railway arch, Swallow Gardens, Whitechapel

Above is a map, courtesy of the internet from http://www.herberthistory.co.uk/cgi-bin/sitewise.pl?act=det&p=303 displaying most of these murders.

Nichols, Chapman, Stride, Eddowes, Kelly, McKenzie and Coles had their throats cut. Except for Stride and Mylett there was evidence of abdominal mutilation in all cases. Chapman and Eddowes had their uterus removed and taken away by the killer. Eddowes left kidney was also taken. Evidence also suggests that Kelly’s heart was taken. All horrific murders in a reasonable distance and time frame from each other, its easy to link all of these to one person. After all its harder to believe there is more than one individual capable of such graphic mutilations.

Over the years though, following the input of various Detectives and individuals working on these unsolved murders, the list of murders which were linked to Jack the Ripper was reduced to Nichols, Chapman, Stride, Eddowes and Kelly. Tabram has also gained favour as the sixth victim as the opinion of some historians.

Obviously, as Jack was never actually caught this still all remains very much theory with a little supporting evidence. Perhaps he killed more that we just don’t know about yet.

Now we have the numbers of Jack’s murders reduced to five or six, we look at the next piece of evidence. In this case its the letters which were sent to the Police and Press on the Whitechapel murders. Some, if not most of these letters have been regarded as fakes, created by individuals hoping to excite the terror already burdening the city. However, a few of these letters have been given some credibility. These are the ‘Dear Boss’ letter, ‘Saucy Jacky’ postcard and the ‘From Hell’ letter.

Even if the letter is a hoax, it was the first letter written which made reference to the name ‘Jack the Ripper’ and linked it to the Whitechapel murderer. On the 27th September 1888, this letter was received by the Central News Agency and was believed to be a hoax straight away. However, three days later the double murder of Stride and Eddowes soon changed their minds. The defining point being that the in letter ‘Jack’ mentioned that he would ‘clip the lady’s ears off and send them to the police officers just for jolly’ and a portion of Eddowes earlobe was found cut off. All of a sudden the importance of this letter was highlighted by the police when they reproduced it in the newspapers of the time, hoping someone may recognise the handwriting.

On the 1st October 1888 a postcard was received by the Central News Agency, making direct reference to the ‘Dear Boss’ letter and the double murder. It was also believed to be written by the same hand.

As ever the authenticity of this postcard is still questioned by some, stating that the reference to the double murder and ‘Dear Boss’ letter could have been revealed in an early morning paper on the 1st October. I guess without todays high tech forensics its hard to prove!

The final letter was received in slightly more gruesome circumstances, in fact you could easily pull it right out of a horror movie! October 16th saw a George Lusk, the President of the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee receive a particularly fearsome item in his mail. A three-inch-square cardboard box containing half a human kidney preserved in wine along with the following letter.

Inconclusive medical reports of the time reported the kidney to be very similar to the one that was removed from Eddowes. The letter, which started with the title ‘From Hell’ was aimed directly at Lusk. It stated that he had sent half the kidney to Lusk, but fried and eaten the other half. Sound familiar? He then added that he would send the bloody knife used to remove it, if Lusk would wait a while longer. It was then sign ‘catch me when you can Mishter Lusk.

All three letters and additional items can be seen as evidence that they were sent by Jack the Ripper, but you could equally argue against their authenticity. Perhaps we will never know, but still an interesting twist to the Ripper story. Perhaps this case will never be solved and given how long ago it occurred, with a lack of evidence from the time surviving its more likely it never will.

When the horrors of Whitechapel came to an end, its likely that the Ripper either became too old to carry on murdering or perhaps he was arrested for something else unrelated to the Ripper murders. Its even possible that he was smart enough to cease his murderous ways to avoid capture. However, the character that shines through in the letters and the pure evil he committed, makes me believe that ‘his work’ would never be quite complete.

Jump forward in time and reports paranormal activity around Whitechapel which are linked to the Ripper case in many ways, including location, sightings of individuals and more. There are many links to the Ripper case which pop up from time to time in the paranormal world. Its easy to understand given the deep emotional circumstances of the murders which could have inprinted on any of the areas. Thats ofcourse if you take in to account the ‘stone tape theory’. Still all in all the original case and related paranormal stories are very interesting apart and together.

Cases like this where the paranormal stories told have a deep impact in a particular location which has a very well known past. The Ripper case is one of those and for that reason will remain of interest to me and probably many others.

All comments are welcome, so please feel free to let me know what you think or even to add a little to what I have written.

The Sherlock Connection

Since I have been old enough to understand the whole concept of heroes and vilans, I soon began to hold certain characters in higher regard! Oddly enough these characters probably weren’t the usual choice of kids my age at the time. Perhaps I was slightly influenced by my parents, but lets be honest we all are really. However, I guess I will never really understand why I like the more technical geeky stuff of this world like gadgets and computers, but also the more old school history stuff too. I guess in a way this kind of explains why I picked Indiana Jones, Doctor Who & the likes of Sherlock Holmes instead of say Superman or Spiderman. However, I did still think Batman was pretty cool, lets be honest who doesn’t think that the Dark Knight is a touch of a hardcore kickass type of guy!

Still, as the title suggests this little dity is all about Sherlock Holmes and my round about connection to him, which isn’t just the simple fact that he is up there along side Indiana Jones for me! In fact the connection comes from a third person, someone who developed the connection later on in his life, long after Holmes became a distant memory and other more important thoughts were clouding his mind. I am of course talking about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Doyle created one of those odd characters which although completely different from the normality we are used to, struck a cord with many and soon grew in popularity!

Doyle was born in Edinburgh in May 1859 and lead quite a busy life up to his death in East Sussex in July 1930. In his 70 years he wrote many notable stories, not just about Holmes, and he also worked as a physician for many years. However it was the traumatic twilight of Doyles personal life which created the link to mine. Don’t get over excited though, there isn’t a dramatic connection here. Basically, following the death if Doyles wife Louisa in 1906, the death of his son, his brother and several more of his family, he sank into a depression. He eventually found comfort in spirituality and trying to find evidence of something beyond death. This later lead to his envolvement in the Ghost Club and the investigation of the paranormal with a more scientific approach. It was this interest and approach to paranormal investigation which I understand. Perhaps one day I may be able to make some significant discoveries in the paranormal field, like Doyle did..

So, the connection is actually the simple fact that we both have a keen interest in the paranormal. Perhaps those interests like many in the field may stem from different personal origins. Some more closer to an individuals heart, some are a product of experiences, but all are human nature and our need to find the answers to questions which man has faced since the dawn of time. Whether the questions are sparked by events in our personal lives or simply just questions, there are some of us which seek the answers.

Since a young age, thanks to my parents, I have questioned the world and its contents, perhaps thats where my interest in the paranormal developed from. Over the years I’ve been interested in the paranormal, even before Farsight, I found myself trying to investigate something. After all, if we don’t question the world around us, then we can’t appreciate it truly.

So, even if ghosts and the paranormal isn’t your thing, just take the time at some point to question what you see around you. What you find, if you dig beneath the surface may surprise you, it may even lead you to more questions! Let me know what you find though?

Welcome 2012

Well as 2011 and all its oddities slip away into the darkness of the New Years celebrations, I begin to look forward now into 2012, wondering what it may hold for Farsight PRS and indeed myself. You see the close of 2011 brought about some changes in my personal circumstances and also for others in the team, which mean that Farsight may have to take an unfortunate back seat. Although our interest is still firmly placed in the world of the paranormal, our lives dictate alternative paths.

For me persoanlly, this means less involvement in a team I initially helped create, but also less investigations and working on the paranormal in general. This also means an end to Farsight Files articles in Paranormal Magazine, which I enjoyed putting together. It also spells the end to my own reports which I was putting together.

For others in the team finances and work, the credit crunch if you will, has finally caught up with us. So, with me slowing down, so does the film crew too. Another vreat shame, but still they leave us at the end of 2011 with two years of footage of the Farsight team and our investigations.

I dare say the rest of the team feel in a similar position and it seems that Farsight PRS maybe on the cusp of shutting up shop.

However, lets just remember where this began, Farsight Files was my original Blog on things paranormal and the blog itself still exists, you’re reading it now! With that in mind I will continue where I can to do the odd investigation and to write up some of it in my Blog, which I also hope to post other interesting paranormal pieces to. Lets just say that Farsight Paranormal Research Society are taking a little break currently. So, please show your support for the team by posting something in our Facebook Page ‘Farsight Paranormal Research Society’. That way we will know you are still with us in these darker times. Also, keep an eye on this Blog from time to time, cause who knows when I might post or what I may post about. Comments are of course always welcome.

So, although this is kind of sad news to begin 2012, I wouldn’t say its the end or goodbye, more like watch this space and who knows whats coming up next!

Until the next time !!

We’re Going Deeper Underground

,The Farsight PRS team ventured to Essex last weekend to investigate the Kelvedon Hatch Secret Nuclear Bunker. As ever we headed out armed with what we had hoping to capture some paranormal evidence within the underground bunker.

I have to admit though, a part of me, a childlike part who still finds an underground base pretty cool was really looking forward to this one. I studied the plans and found myself slightly excited about the trip as I set off. Sad I know, but I find it really interesting. Anyhow, its good to know where a good base is located, just in case there is a deadly illness breakout and zombies do actually roam the countryside looking for brains to eat. If that did happen i would head straight for Kelvedon Hatch as its ideal.

Anyways, back to the investigation. We arrived on site around 7pm ready for our full night of investigation. This time there was only five of us, but still plenty to thoroughly investigate the location. Following a brief tour of the bunker with some questions, we made a few decisions on CCTV locations and began to set up the kit.

In fact, I think our setup went rather smoothly apart from one tangled video/audio cable which i think may have been my fault. So much for trying to make things easier!

We then cracked on with the investigation, exploring, monitoring and trying to make conact with the any possible spirits within Kelvedon Hatch. Our hosts had kindly given us all night to investigate and even offered up a few bunks if we so desired to stay before heading home in the morning. An unusual concept, but not something the Farsight PRS have not done in the past.

We monitored our CCTV system and other tech, noting down important information and relaying information back to the investigation team from Operational Command. We now have a dedicated person monitoring our CCTV system throughout the night, which is on a rotor so they dont get too tired. The system also has audio on four of the five cameras, so that is monitored too. The idea is to become proactive, so if something does happen and the investigation team are not in the right place, Operational Command can radio through and advise them where they could be. Hopefully this idea will work in the end proving its worth.

However, we had a few things occur during our investigation that we can’t really explain. I think Kelvedon Hatch Bunker was a really nice and pretty cool location to investigate. Wish I had a bunker like that!

As ever keep your eye out for the full report coming soon in Paranormal Magazine (www.paranormalmagazine.co.uk), i hope you enjoy it. Feel free to comment on any of these posts on my Blog, about the articles and anything paranormal really..

Apologies that its a bit short, just wanted to update you all really.