Ghosts in the news!

6th

Ok i'm deadicating (get it?!?) this thread to stories from around the world where ghosts make it into the news.

The first one is only from this week in the US:

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/5/prweb389326.htm

I have plenty more links and BBC news tends to cover stories about the paranormal quite well.

New_Departure06

Very creepy.

happy cookie

Creepy alright but...

if the photo shoot was in '97 how come the streak of bad luck didn't start until 2002 then? Is it that the curse doesn't start till one discovers the "hidden image"? or maybe I read the article totally wrong...

I can't find any footage as of yet, but does anyone remember a few years ago there was a CCTV camera footage of a supposed ghost making its way around a carpark?

I think that made it on to the news.. if I find anything I'll let ye know.

6th

If its the one I remember it was faked and the actual fakers came forward. Mind you it may well be a different case. Hopefully you find the clip so we can all see.

Zillah

I also remember that one. I think I burst out laughing when I saw the video.

stormkeeper

I still remember the time that I was a part of that radio thing ages ago... the "moving lights thing" still gets me a chuckle, even if it wasn't paranormal.


Still though, on topic... it's sometimes difficult to tell when something is paranormal or not, given the amount of evidence...

Not exactly in the news, but does anyone remember the BBC (I think?) did that show called Ghostwatch years ago?

Basically they held a live investigation in a house which was supposed to be haunted. It was probably the inspiration for Most Haunted. Everything was completely faked, yet people tuning in late missed this being announced, and took it as being real.

Anyways,

the ghost one I was on about was the one where it was like a white sheet floating around. It probably was faked, and it looked pretty damn fake too.

py2006

I remember that Ghostwatch programme! It was very good! I don't think they actually announced at the start that it was a hoax! That was only revealed afterwards as alot of people were scared out of their minds!

That pic in the OP link is a total fake in my opinion! That image of Morrison in the background is a famous pose of his which is seen alot.

fabcat

I have Ghostwatch on DVD, it is terrifying, I remember watching it when it was on originally, i think it was '91 or '92 and it scared the hell out of me.
They advertised it as real on the BBC, Sarah Greene was in the house and Michael Parkinson presented it, there was so many complaints the next day they had to make an apology. My husband got it off ebay (he remembered it too) and we were both curious to see how it looked like now we were both adults, it scared the hell out of me again!! I'm 24 and I knew it was fake, I was still terrified!!:(

That Jim Morrison picture is cool, took me a while to pick him out, but yeah, the image is even dressed the same

6th

On the Jim image - how would you expect him to look? I'm not claiming its real but surely he would appear in a familiar way? Now if anyone can find the exact photo it has been taken from i will write it off but to say its a fake because it looks like him is crazy!

As for Ghostwatch, it was great to have a show done like that so far bac and i believe it most have been an influence for Most Haunted. Hoax i know but still great show.

New_Departure06

I don't fully see Most Haunted as a hoax. Some of the stuff that happens could be real. In particular, in the Kinnity Castle episode there was an image of a man that was lit-up outside the window.

6th

There are loads of threads on Most Haunted lets not turn this into another one.

6th

Here's a new story from BBC today:

More than half of Britons believe in psychic powers such as mind-reading and premonitions, a survey suggests.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/5017910.stm

6th

Also in a follow up to this thread:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054919610

Psychics claim to have made contact with late Beatle John Lennon in a controversial pay-per-view TV seance broadcast in the US.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4941490.stm

New_Departure06

Road ghost:

http://icsurreyonline.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200surreyheadlines/tm_objectid=17093427&method=full&siteid=50101&headline=road-ghost--now-the-experts-appear-name_page.html

Mysterious sightings of girl seen wandering across bypass tempt paranormal group to investigate further

GHOSTSPOTTERS are being asked to come forward to help solve the riddle of the mysterious ghostly sightings in Caterham.

Several motorists have contacted the Surrey Mirror to report seeing a young girl wandering across the Caterham bypass in the early hours of the morning.

All of the drivers reported spotting the "ghostly figure" at about 3am.

The girl is described as wearing a skirt and short boots or wellies. One reader said she had no features.

stormkeeper

Surrey huh? That's just down the road from me!

6th

Another Haunting getting resent media attention:

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2006/May/14/style/stories/01style.htm

6th

Ghost hunters claim to hear four claps at Municipal

One ghostly fan of a concert at Shreveport's Municipal Auditorium might not have left the building.

While investigating the possible presence of paranormal activity in the city's historic music and performance venue Sunday, members of Louisiana Spirits, a group of ghost hunters from northwest Louisiana, claim to have heard four distinct claps that could not be explained logically or immediately.

Full Story here.

6th

Here's a really interesting one!

“Psychic phenomena, even assuming such exist, have no place in a judiciary duty bound to apply only positive law and, in its absence, equitable rules and principles in resolving controversies,” it added.

This is the story of a regional trial court judge in Malabon who was relieved by the Supreme Court on a question of his mental condition has asked to be reinstated to his post.

Full story: http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=police01_may08_2006

6th

It seems that there is plenty going on around the world with regards to psychics and the paranormal.

Here is a case where a court is allowing the testimony of a psychic:

"If a psychic is going to testify and say `I am a psychic and I can see the future and I have solved cases with my psychic abilities ... the very nature of the testimony is that of an expert of sorts,' " he said. "The court would laugh me out of here if I called a psychic as a witness."

http://www.insidebayarea.com/trivalleyherald/localnews/ci_3906752

6th

ITV2 enters more 'Haunted Homes'

Wednesday, June 7 2006, 23:40 BST - by Neil Wilkes
ITV2 has ordered a new run of paranormal documentary series Haunted Homes for transmission this September.

The first, six-episode series ranked as one of the channel's highest-rated original shows with regular audiences of over 500,000 viewers.

Series two (8x60') will feature eight frightened families and groups of friends, too scared to even live in their own homes. Cue top psychic Mia Dolan, a paranormal investigator
who will take over the house for 48 hours in an attempt to find out what's going on and see if she can rid them of their terrifying spirits.

To help promote the new series, ITV1 plans to air the first series from the autumn.

Have to ask does anyone actually read this thread or should i not bother updating it?

stormkeeper

I read it...

6th

Well renowned psychic make contact with theatre's ghost?
SUPERNATURAL sleuth Tony Stockwell will be visiting Harrogate Theatre on June .
The star of TV shows Street Psychic and Most Haunted Live will be visiting Harrogate Theatre and conducting a ghostwalk around the theatre.

The historic 106 year theatre has a resident ghost, Alice. Tony will be accessing all areas to unearth the past and maybe even solve the mystery of Alice.

Tony will performing the ghost walk during the afternoon of June 23. He will also be on stage in the evening for his one man show giving messages to people from loved ones who have died.

“I’m like a transmitter,” he said, “the link between two worlds – I filter through thoughts and feelings, inspiration and information from those who have passed over.”

The legend of Alice, Harrogate Theatre’s resident ghost, is shrouded in mystery. Known to the staff and considered very friendly, no one is sure about her history except she fell to her death from the theatre’s balcony. Whether it was foul play or a suicide from unrequited love, this could be her chance to communicate from beyond the grave.

I think this guy is great.

6th

More paranormal happenings from the states:

...three in four Americans believe in at least one form of paranormal activity, according to a 2005 Gallup poll.

The largest-held belief - 40 percent - was in extrasensory perception, or ESP. Between 20-37 percent of others polled believed in one or a combination of other things like ghosts, telepathy, clairvoyance, astrology, communicating with the dead, witches and reincarnation. Nine percent said they believed one could channel the dead into their own body.

http://www.djournal.com/pages/story.asp?ID=221498&pub=1&div=News

stormkeeper

That's quite a high amount of people... wonder how it's like in the UK and Ireland...

6th

Kennett wrote:

That's quite a high amount of people... wonder how it's like in the UK and Ireland...

Here's a story I posted from the BBC in the last week or so:

6th wrote:

..... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/5017910.stm

6th

But don't get the wrong idea. They're not like the Ghostbusters. Their goal is to help clients understand unknown phenomena, not to trap lost souls in a little black containment unit.

Full Story here: http://citypaper.net/articles/2006-06-22/naked.shtml

6th

There are no set standards for psychics. Anyone can call him or herself one and begin practicing professionally. But there are some ways to determine the good from the bad. A professional psychic relies on reputation. If you are considering paying a psychic, ask for references and testimonials. Obviously if they’re reluctant to do so, go elsewhere. A psychic with confidence in their abilities will have no problem with providing this information.

More here: http://www.varsity.co.nz/features/articles.asp?id=5605

6th

Liam Gallagher has enlisted the help of Gwyneth Paltrow - to rid his home of spirits.

This has to be one of the best yet!: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/article/ds34220.html

6th

THT Online
Mahendranagar, June 22

The terror of a ghost, who seems to love concentrating on girls only, has had everyone's hair on end since some days in Tribhuvan secondary school, Tilachaur, located in Mahendranagar municipality-8.
Dozens of girl students in the school are falling prey to the ghost everyday. The ghost seems to have no use or time for haunting boys. Now, it has even begun targeting women. On Wednesday morning, it did not spare even a schoolteacher, Usha Bhatta who felt her whole body trembling. Students said it is the ghost effect. According to them, those affected by the ghost feel tremors in the body and a feeling of the supernatural enveloping them. After taking possession of the victim, the ghost mumbles, "You have kept me away from water for a week, give me water."
Local guardians said the school had been targeted by the ghost in the past, too. Some students used to suffer the ghostly symptoms every year. However, this time the number of victims is well over a dozen. He overpowers them everyday and the spells last four to five hours.

Story here

6th

A headless male ghost said to have once stalked a famous Aberdeen theatre appears to have returned - in high heels.

Full story on BBC here

6th

Locals who felt a pull toward the paranormal recently joined on MeetUp.com to form Tampa Ghost Watchers to investigate and document hauntings in homes and landmarks around the Tampa Bay area.

They met for the first time three weeks ago at Al Lopez Park to share their ghost experiences and trade ideas of places to investigate.

I've posted on New York paranormal section of meetup.com and was ignored completely but it looks like meetup.com is doing in the states whtat boards.ie Paranormal Forum is doing here.

Full story: http://www.sptimes.com/2006/06/23/Citytimes/Ghost_watchers_explor.shtml

6th

This is report in a few papers but I got this article from the Mumbai Mirror:

In a country where people struggle their entire lives for a home of their own, residents of a village in Madhya Pradesh are collecting money to build a house for a ghost.

Apparently, the ‘ghost’ appeared in their dreams and made the demand.

This rattled many villagers. Seven scared families have reportedly already left their homes to stay with relatives in neighbouring villages.

“Earlier the ghost used to live on a tree. But it got uprooted in a storm a few months ago. Since then, it has become homeless and has been demanding a place to live in,” said a resident of Madanpura village, about 500 km from Bhopal, in Bhind district.

According to village head Akhilesh Purohit, many villagers told him that the ghost would ask them to urge the panchayat (village council) to get a new house constructed for him. “But I would take it lightly.”

That was until the ghost appeared in his dreams.

Finally, the villagers decided to collect money and construct a house for the ghost. Construction is slated to start soon.

However, there is a hitch.

“The ghost insists that the house be constructed through the panchayat and registered in his name. But the rules do not permit us to do any such thing,” Purohit said.

6th

Article from The New Yorker:
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/060703ta_talk_paumgarten

One of the ghosts is said to be Belasco’s. The other is that of a showgirl who died when she fell into an elevator shaft backstage. Belasco’s wears a clerical collar (as did the man), and the showgirl’s wears a blue dress. To appease her, or it, every production at the theatre is supposed to feature at least one actress so costumed. In “Awake and Sing!,” the Clifford Odets revival that finished its run at the Belasco last week, that role belonged to Zoë Wanamaker.

Kernel

Not really ghosts in the news, but there is an interesting new photo on coast to coast that a few of you may have missed:

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/gen/page1514.html

6th

Nice find Kernel, maybe you could post it in http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054946804 too?

Would love to get a hi res version of that shot for a closer look.

Kernel

6th wrote:

Nice find Kernel, maybe you could post it in http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054946804 too?

Would love to get a hi res version of that shot for a closer look.

Ahh sorry yeah, that's the thread I was looking for earlier.. hangover day.

Here's a 'ghosts in the news' link just pulled from coast to coast:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/connecticut/articles/2006/06/26/on_ship_a_ghost_of_a_chance/

EDIT: BTW 6th, the guys hotmail is listed on the coast to coast page, maybe he would send you a hi res?

6th

Ok this is from BBC last year but its an interesting article about scientist involvement with spirituality:

If there was any truth in phenomena that appear to defy the known laws of nature, the known laws of gravity, then scientists believed that they had to be the ones to investigate.

Full Story

mysteria

Parapsychology is a Science that investigates the Paranormal so by definition many Scientists are working in exploring and researching the field. Many other Scientific professionals are open to the concepts too, it's no help to generalise about Scientists or any group of people. check out the Edinburgh University Koestler Parapsychology site www.moebius.psy.ed.ac.uk where you may learn more about modern research into the subject.

mysteria

In one of the most remarkable paranormal cases on U.S. court records, the Spirit of a murdered woman contacted her mother from beyond the grave to expose her murderer.
23 year old Zona Heaster married Edward Shue in Greenbrier, West Virginia in 1897 despite her mother's disapproval. Three months later Edward sent an 11 year old boy to their home to ask Zona if she needed anything from the market. When the boy entered the house he found Zona lying still on the floor, body stretched out straight, legs together. One arm was at her side, the other rested on her body and her head was twisted to one side. At first the boy thought she was asleep but when he could'nt wake her he rushed home to tell his mother. When Dr. George W. Knapp,the local doctor and coroner arrived an hour later he found Edward had taken his wifes body to an upstairs bedroom and dressed her in her best Sunday clothes, a dress with a high neck and stiff collar. Her face was covered with a veil. Dr. Knapp tried to examine the body to determine cause of death while Edward cried almost hysterically, holding his dead wife's head in his arms. The doctor failed to find anything to explain Zona's death, but noticed faint bruising on the right side of her cheek and neck. He wanted to examine the marks, but Edward would not allow him to and Knapp came to the conclusion that Zona had died of "an everlasting faint." His official report concluded the cause of death was childbirth, extremely odd as the girl had not even been pregnant. Equally strange was his failure to notify the police about the suspicious marks on her neck that her husband would not allow him to examine.
At Zona's wake. Edward's strange behaviour was noticed by Mary Jane Heaster, the girl's mother, and some of the neighbors. In the coffin Edward had placed a pillow on one side of his dead wife's head and a rolled up sheet on the other, as if to keep her head in place and he refused to allow anyone near her. Around her neck was what he claimed was her favourite scarf, a large one that covered the entire neck and he insisted he wanted her buried in it. In late January 1897 the 23 year old was buried in the cemetery near Greenbrier, West Virginia.
Zona's mother was suspicious about the circumstances of her daughter's death. Mary Jane had removed the rolled up white sheet from Zona's coffin before it was sealed. After the funeral she offered it to Edward but he refused to take it, so the grieving mother decided to keep it as a memento of her daughter. Noticing that it smelled of something she could'nt identify, she immersed the sheet in a basin of water. Immediately the water turned red, like blood streaming from the sheet. Startled, Mary Jane scooped some of the water out of the basin but it was clear. Mary Jane did everything she could to remove the pink stain left on the sheet, she washed it, boiled it and hung it in the sunshine to bleach but still the stain remained. Mary Jane took this as a a sign, a message from her dead daughter that she had been murdered.
The mourning mother prayed that Zona would contact her from the Spirit world to reveal the circumstances of her death. Mary Jane prayed every day for weeks, then claimed her daughter appeared to her on four nights and told her mother how she had died. Zona's Spirit told her mother that Edward would hit and beat her frequently. On the day of her death he flew into a rage on hearing she had no meat for his dinner. He lashed out and savagely beat her, breaking her neck. To demonstrate what had happened, the Spirit turned her head around completely in front of her mother. Mary Jane went to see John Preston, the local prosecutor, and recounted her tale. Although sceptical, he concluded that there was something suspicious about the case and ordered Zona's body to be exhumed for an autopsy. The results revealed that Zona's neck had been broken and her windpipe crushed from being viciously strangled.
Edward Shue was arrested and charged with his wife's murder but he completely denied the charges. Then Mary Jane Heaster was called to give evidence. In front of a crowded courtroom and an astounded jury, Mary Jane told how Zona's ghost appeared to her, accused Edward of her murder, and told her mother that her neck had been "squeezed off at the first vertebra." The jury found Edward Shue guilty of the murder of his wife. At the time such a verdict automatically meant the death sentence, but because of the nature of the evidence, Edward was sentenced to life in prison where he died in 1900. So Zona Shue from her grave, revealing not only how she died - but at whose hand. Her ghost's testimony not only named her own murderer, but helped in convicting the culprit in a court of law. It is the only case on U.S. lawbooks in which the testimony from the spirit of a murder victim aided in resolving the crime.
To this day a historical marker near Greenbrier commemorates Zona and the unusual court case surrounding her death. It reads:i
"Interred in nearby cemetery is Zona Heaster Shue.
Her death in 1897 was presumed natural until her spirit appeared to her mother to describe how she was killed by her husband Edward. Autopsy on the exhumed body verified the apparition's account". Edward, found guilty of murder, was sentenced to the state prison. This is, to my knowledge, the only legally-documented case in which testimony from the Spirit world. helped convict a murderer.

6th

(with regards to post 40)

er ...ok ...i'm just posting news articles on relative subjects for people to read. Its a fun thread not a debate thread. If you want to raise issues about parapsychology being a science theres loads of more suitable threads.

Like these:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054878476
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054946814

and this one
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054945596

6th

mysteria wrote:

one of the most remarkable paranormal cases on U.S. court records, the Spirit of a murdered woman who contacted her mother from beyond the grave to expose her murderer.........

Very interesting, do you have a link to the original article?

blahblah1234

I've found a few videos, don't know if there genuine but here they are anyway:

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/videos/ghostgirl.html

and a video of a UFO Sighting:

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/ufosighting.html

Strange Video:

http://www.ebaumsworld.com/flash/ghosts.html

6th

These arent news reports are they? My point of this thread is to show how common (or not) it is for the media to give attention to a suject which is labeled as crazy by so many.

imprezza

6th wrote:

Article from The New Yorker:
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/060703ta_talk_paumgarten

Is that the same Belasco that was on "The legend of hell house" on tv3 I think a few nights ago?

6th

Not sure will have to check it out, am sure google will be as helpful as always

6th

From BBC Africa:

Zimbabwe has unbanned the practice of witchcraft, repealing legislation dating back to colonial rule.

From July the government acknowledges that supernatural powers exists - but prohibits the use of magic to cause someone harm.

Full Story

6th

A police dive squad has searched the Manawatu River for an elderly man who has been missing for over a week.

James Alexander, 73, who has Alzheimers, went missing from his Palmerston North rest home on Sunday last week.

After a call from a psychic, police focused their search on a section on Manawatu River which had previously not been searched. Some of the man's clothing and personal belongings were found next to the river in the area the woman pointed them to.

A dive squad began a search of a stretch of the river by Riverside Drive on Monday morning.

Police say the river has been running high but has dropped considerably in the past week, which will be a big aid to the search.

Full Story

Edit: This story is getting alot of attention - its showing up in about 20 different newspapers world wide, a few radio and Tv spots too.

imprezza

6th wrote:

Not sure will have to check it out, am sure google will be as helpful as always

I know about Google I only asked a question I thought your an expert.

6th

Sorry i wasnt being smart at all, i just menat i was gonna google it cos it seemed interesting. I hate that sometimes tone and intent dont come across in posts.

For the record i'm no expert, just an enthusiastic amateur