Saturday 21 December 2019


Saturday 21st December 2019

The 'West Midlands Ghost Club' would like to wish all of our friends and visitors a very 'Merry Christmas' and a happy and fruitful 2020 to everyone!!!  

However you intend to celebrate the coming festive season, please take care, stay safe, and  we'll see you all again in the New Year!!

Saturday 21st December 2019

Just within the last week or so, the W.M.G.C. has received a fascinating email from an academic-Gentleman, who had a most intriguing story to relate to us. While not actually falling within the West Midlands region itself, the 'encounter' concerned occurred just over the county boundary, in a lovely area of Worcestershire called Wythall....

He and his partner had been for an evening out at a local pub and were subsequently driving home, along a country lane, just after 11pm.  As it was November, it was, of course, a pitch black night, at that time of year......

At a point during their journey, they reached the brow of a hill on the lane they were travelling along.  This height heralded a distinct 'dip' in the lane ahead of them - forming a small, 'valley-like' feature to the road - as the thoroughfare then rose again on the other side of the depression. As they crested the brow of the downward slope, the partner - who was driving - suddenly slammed their breaks on.... their headlights still set on full beam.......

In the distance, at the bottom of the hill, was (what appeared to be) something like 20 or 30 'Roman soldiers' coming out of the field to their left and crossing the road dead ahead of them, into another field on their right.....!?

The men are reported as seeming solid enough; though details like colours were hard to make out, as they appeared to be illuminated by a light source coming from behind them.... like a spotlight? The couple originally considered this to be just moonlight, perhaps, but, in re-visiting the scenario in their minds-eye, this now struck as unlikely, as it was too bright... and at ground level? Also, once the procession had crossed the road, they seemed to disappear into the darkness of the opposite field, which would possibly seem to suggest that moonlight wasn't involved?

Both witnesses had sat in silence, watching the scene unfold about 100 / 200 metres ahead of them. My correspondent reports that the sensations he'd instantly experienced at the sighting was disbelief and shock.... maybe even fear? His partner was able to put her feelings into words, however, and simply said: “What the f*ck is that!?!” 

While he hadn't manage to actually count the precise number of men involved, he was able to see that all of the men were on foot, except for one, who was on horseback at the very front of the group..... The foot-soldiers appeared to be walking in two’s, side by side. The horse was large - around the size of a 'shire horse', with bushy (furry) legs. The mounted soldier also appeared to be carrying a large, stick-like, object, with something around the top of it? However, it was hard to make out this object precisely, due to the fact that it was witnessed 'side-on' and at a reasonable distance.

Amazingly, no other cars / traffic came up or down the road in this space of time and - once the coast was clear - they drove, apprehensively, down the hill and back up the other side. I was told that, what had really flabbergasted the pair was the fact that, at the bottom of the hill, where the figures had made their way onto the road surface, there was no physical gap in the field border / hedgerow involved!?!

From a personal point of view, what I found interesting about the matter was that the couple were just returning from an evening at a spot that, itself, has a history of being haunted by a Roman-era ghost!?

The Gentleman involved informed me that he'd instantly plunged into some historical research on the location afterwards and had discovered numerous details that pointed towards evidence for a reasonable amount of 'Roman presence' in the area concerned, including the fact that a 'Roman thoroughfare' actually ran through the spot where the figures had been witnessed!  Of considerable interest too is the fact that the public house they had been visiting, on the night of their encounter, is also said to have a ghost associated with it:  A cyclic-sounding, 'Roman-era' phantom, incredibly enough!?!

Saturday 21st December 2019


Within the past few weeks, a most interesting, local, matter had been brought to our attention, in the form of a number of houses - in very close proximity to one another - that all seem to be experiencing similar haunting effects / activity. While this kind of scenario is only moderately rare, this particular case involves a cluster of properties which are all less than three years old, with occupants - some of different faiths / cultures - that all moved into the houses at approx. the same time......

Over the years, in responding to reports of supposedly 'haunted houses', we have often discovered scenarios similar to the situation outlined above. It is reasonably common to be called to visit one, allegedly haunted, property in a street.... only to then find that 'other' properties, in the surrounding area, are also supposedly experiencing strange activity of some kind?  It isn't always adjacent / attached properties, however - something that you might consider as 'not too unusual', perhaps - but, sometimes, a house two doors away... or on the opposite side of the street.... or in an adjacent / parallel road.... is also affected in some way?  Often there are a handful of properties affected within a small area.... and, most times, the activities concerned are quite different in nature and, seemingly, not at all connected (in their appearance / temperament).  

In speaking with one of the residents in the recent case outlined here, we were told that all was peaceful in their home for some five to six months or so - after they first moved in - before reasonably typical, potentially paranormal, incidents were initially noticed.

At first, activity came in the form of things like taps and showers turning themselves on; lights turning themselves on; cupboard doors opening.... and items going missing, only to turn up again in (for example) blatantly 'obvious' places like the middle of the room, etc.  A number of bottles were taken out of the kitchen cupboards at one point and were lined up on the kitchen floor.... At another time, they were discovered lined up on an opposite work surface. Terrifying growls, bumps and bangs were heard and closed doors and windows were found to have somehow been opened again. The householder went as far as to contact the local police and have the locks to the doors changed, in case someone had a spare set of keys and were possibly 'letting themselves in' to cause mischief? This change had no effect on happenings, however.

At a point, dark 'figures' were seen around the house.... always in the peripheral vision.... which would disappear if you tried to look directly at them. Children in the family also reported seeing such figures too. One form appeared to be 'human-shaped', but - horrifyingly - manifested in a 'crab-like' fashion..... low to the ground and scuttling, like a spider with only 4 legs!? 

The figure of what appeared to be a little boy was also seen and - in a display of pity towards such a figure - the mother of the family told it that it didn't have to leave as long as it didn't scare anyone in the property.

One of the children reported seeing glowing lights in their bedroom, passing from the walls of the adjoining property, and going into another childs room within the house. The other child indicated that they saw a light that floated around the room and passed back into the room of the first child. Both children reported the lights as being blue.

The rear gardens of all of the properties involved in this matter actually 'meet' at a certain point and a lot of emphasis has been put on this junction as being significant in what is possibly going on? The aforementioned householder said that their two dogs were constantly barking and scratching at the fence in this (junction) corner of their garden and, in an endeavour to stop them - in case neighbours grew tired of the disturbance - they placed their garden shed in that corner.  Now, it seems, their dogs seemingly bark at / through the shed!?! They believe that there is 'something' significant in that section of the plot and say that, if you actually stand in that part of the garden, it's as if you weigh 50 stones.... the feeling there is so 'heavy and dark'? It is a sensation described as being akin to a magnet pulling you into the ground!?

All of the neighbours involved believe that this 'point' is significant and one reports seeing the dark figure of a man in that area in their garden.

One day, the householder was standing in their living room, when one of the children called from upstairs to say that they had seen something in their bedroom again. They lost their temper at this point and shouted, at the top of their lungs, telling whatever it was to 'F-off' and that it 'had to go'......!!! They report having suddenly felt a searing pain across the back of their right hand and their child - having come downstairs - saw them and instantly began indicating to the hand. In looking down, it was discovered that the hand was dripping with blood.... not from a superficial wound, but from a deep laceration!?

The wound was butterfly-stitched and had a number of sticking plasters placed on it, but the blood still came through the dressing. They decided they should go to hospital and - while waiting for a partner to arrive home - they also called the local church for help. Having also bandaged the wound - with no further sign of blood coming through - they decided they would actually go to see the vicar, before moving on to the hospital. On meeting the vicar, the latter asked if they might view the wound.... and the dressings were duly removed..... to reveal no sign of a wound at all!? Luckily, the wound had actually been recorded on video, on mobile phone, just after it had happened, and they were able to show the vicar the time stamped and dated footage as evidence! (*I have also been sent the video recording too)  Weeks later, when their Summertime-tan had worn off, they noticed a scar on the back of their hand, just where the wound had appeared!?

With regards to the neighbouring properties themselves, one neighbour reports that they cannot take photographs or video in their home, without the resulting images / footage either being 'black', or containing some form of blatant distortion? Another neighbour reports having a 'heavy spot' in their garden, as well as in the front bedroom of their house too. The neighbours frequently support one another in their respective situations and the above mentioned householder has sent me a strange video, recorded in the house referred to above, that contains no image, but a distorted sound track (that is currently under scrutiny). They have also visited the neighbours bedroom mentioned, to discover that they were 'knocked sick' by the sensations therein. They report a dizzy, queasy, drunken-type effect, and had to leave the room as a result. While no heating source was present / switched on, the room is said to be stiflingly hot.... especially a built-in cupboard, where a child of the family reports a 'portal', where a 'man' supposedly 'enters their home'....?

In endeavouring to combat the effects concerned, all kinds of measures have been taken... including: Church of England blessings, Islamic blessings, African blessings and psychic intervention. Numerous items and symbols have also been employed, such as pentagrams, Palm Crosses, Rosaries, the burning of Altar Candles, smudging with sage, the presence of Bibles and the Quran, etc. One neighbour has even called in people from overseas - from their own, African-based culture - in an endeavour to affect what is going on.......