Ghost hunters raise funds for charity

The ‘Great British Ghost Hunt’, organised by Fright Nights, the UK’s leading ghost hunt specialist, has raised over £16,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation. The ghost hunt, which took place at 10 of Britain’s most haunted locations, was organised to find out which was the most haunted venue.

250 brave volunteers took part in the challenge held on Saturday 15 December 2007. All proceeds raised were donated to the charity which grants wishes to children and young people fighting life-threatening illnesses.

The most haunted venue was declared the Galleries of Justice, a former courthouse and jail that served the town of Nottingham. With a long history of powerful emotions - anger, despair, betrayal and executions, it’s not surprising that 31 instances of paranormal activity were recorded. Fright Nights are now planning the next Great British Ghost Hunt which will take place on Saturday 11 October 2008. The team are currently searching for locations that could possibly challenge the Galleries of Justice as Britain’s most haunted location.

The remaining nine locations included Bordesley Hall (14 confirmed incidents), Oxford Castle (11 confirmed incidents), Peterborough Museum (11 confirmed incidents), Buckingham House/West Country Inn (10 confirmed incidents), Niddry Street Vaults (9 confirmed incidents), Pembroke Castle (8 confirmed incidents) and Woodchester Mansion (1 confirmed incident). The results were based on the number of incidents reported by the volunteers. These were then investigated and later verified by experienced paranormal investigators and parapsychologists as to whether they could be classed as anomalous or paranormal activity.

At the Galleries of Justice, cell doors were heard slamming as well as strange scratching sounds. One female guest reported her outer ear becoming very hot and sore. On examination the ear was very red and hot to touch whilst the other ear was cool, however it faded over the next half hour. In the Sheriff’s Cave tapping sounds and two loud bangs were heard which sounded as if something was being thrown.

At the Niddry Street Vaults, a large number of people reported cold spots and unusual body temperature sensations. Footsteps, bangs and scraping noises were heard, even when the group were standing perfectly still. One lady almost fainted during a vigil. Another had her belt pulled out of her pocket during a séance when the group were all holding hands.

At Woodchester Mansion a male guest saw the apparition of a man in a white shirt with rolled-up sleeves peering from beyond the scaffolding in the chapel. The medium also reported sensing a figure of similar description in this area. At Peterborough Museum, a guest felt something brush against the back of his head, although nothing could have caused it. A few minutes later, it happened again. In the Cellar, footsteps were heard and a black “tar” like substance was seen edging its way down the corridor. On the back staircase, many experienced dizziness whilst footsteps or knocks were heard from behind the closed door.

At Pembroke Castle two people saw a moving mist on the stairs outside Henry 7th's room. One person heard constant whispering even though the group was stood in silence. Walking across the grounds two people saw a face in the windows of the rooms they had just come from. In the dungeon tower, many reported a feeling of falling forward and feeling heavy from the waist as if they were hanging.

At Oxford Castle, the team experienced electronic failure on a number of pieces of equipment, although it started to work again when taken outside. Whilst in the crypt by the base of the tower, two guests reported hearing a rumbling noise whilst the EMF (electric magnetic field) had turned red. A few minutes later, the EMF reading was normal.

Martin Jeffery, Director of Fright Nights stated,” We’re delighted to have raised so much money for such a worthwhile charity. The results were astonishing but not surprising. The Galleries of Justice is reputed to be one of the most haunted buildings in the country and renowned for its disturbing paranormal activity. We now look forward to finding a venue that can challenge Britain’s most haunted venue at our next Great British Ghost Hunt”.

For more information on the next Great British Ghost Hunt, visit the website at frightnights.co.uk.