Penmon Priory, Anglesey

View Larger Map

Ghostly nun

'Spontaneous Case - Paranormal phenomena that occur in everyday life, unsought and unexpected'.

Is Penmon Priory haunted? 'Joan' a visitor to Anglesey certainly thinks so.

"In 1980 I was with my husband and two boys on holiday on Anglesey. One evening at dusk, we visited Penmon Priory near Beaumaris. We had visited the church, the well and my husband led the way to the old stone priory which was open to visitors.

He suddenly looked at me with a very surprised expression on his face and said "did you see that?" I replied "see what?" he said "that Nun - she bent down, looked at me and walked into the priory".

Puzzled, we walked towards the building and walked in. There are only two rooms, we didn't see her in the first so we walked through to the back room only to find that she had completely vanished!

Later on that evening, we spoke to the keeper about my husband's experience and he asked him to describe her. He described her in detail to which the man replied "Oh I've seen her a few times around here. When I'm walking the dog at night, I sometimes feel someone tapping me on the shoulder when I'm out at night. Often the church bells ring during the night by themselves."

It was at this point that we realised that he had indeed seen a ghost.

When we were driving away from the grounds, the car kept stuttering and stalling until we were out of sight of the priory. The car was brand new and had been running fine up until that point and was fine afterwards.

My husband was never one to invent stories so I believed him straight away. I didn't believe in ghosts back then but I sure do now!"

___

I love these kind of stories, or 'spontaneous cases' as they are called, when people are just going about their daily business without a mere thought of the paranormal and then witness something profound.

It is interesting that the experient actually thought he saw a nun. It appears to be a very fleeting visual description and it did happen over 20 years ago.

Thinking rationally; could he have been mistaken, why did he think she was a nun, there was no mention that they had described a nun to the keeper or that she was wearing a nuns habit or uniform in this narrative.


Maybe another visitor was present around the building. The old stone priory is a small ruin, so it doesn't take you long to get around the rooms, making it round in just a few seconds or so. And a pigeon couldn't be mistaken for a nun, surely? Unless she is really ugly! ;)

Also the light was fading it was dusk so he may have misinterpreted what he saw. But, church bells do not ring by themselves unless someone wanted to have a good ole yank in the middle of the night. The car misfiring may have a more down to earth explanation (dirty petrol).

I have been to Penmon priory, it is a very tranquil and still place, so you may notice if anyone is around quite easily. This reminds me of a time when I was visiting Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, one busy summer afternoon, the paranormal was far from my mind; I had gone into the old mill area, nobody was in there only me, I entered the middle section and I thought I saw a man wearing a leather waist coat, he was bending down doing something on the floor, I only saw him for a split second, it was a cross between seeing something and a hallucination, it was very odd. Maybe my eyes and brain had done the window dressing for that location. Same applies to this story.

On researching the priory further, it is Augustinian and there could well have been Augustinian nuns staying there at some point in history. A believer would say, 'the nun looked at the husband, this could not be a residual type haunting as there was visual interaction'. There could be a logical explanation though of course and there doesn't appear to be any other related incidences at the priory appart from what the keeper had experienced too.

Footnote: Witness testimony

Retelling old experiences can lead to confabulation, the experiencer should immediately record or write down exactly what they saw. Getting a witness soon after their experience is important (paranormal investigators)

Edinburgh Vaults - Cellar, tunnel, cave, underground

I had travelled the best part of 200 miles to visit the vaults, we met up with Mercat Tours, it was a daylight tour, call it what you will. We spent the first quarter of it stood in the wind and the rain, listening to the guide who looked like a headmaster, until he decided to take us down one of the closes for shelter. He spoke about the history of Edinburgh and the shit filled buckets that could be emptied over your head if you didn't make your presence known in the street below.


We proceeded into the vaults. We passed around an old heavy kettle, I'm sure some were enjoying it for the history, but I was miserably bored. I was disappointed at the size of the Blair street vaults too. Frustrated, I held back from the rest of the group and began wandering around on my own with my camera, one or two folks kept looking over their shoulders at me, probably wondering what I was up to. Two cellars away from the rest of the group, I quietly stood right in the far corner in the cobblers room next to a candle on the wall and felt rather naughty in the darkness, like a skiving child, I waited for the cobbler to tap me on the shoulder, but he didn't. 'Was the vaults really haunted?' Not so much as a sniff of boot polish from Mr Boots size 11's only the sound of drips of water coming through the walls.


It was ok I suppose, if you don't mind parting with a few quid for a couple of hours. But, I was desperate to have the place to myself. Hayhoa.


The most shocking thing of all was our exit out of the vaults, to be confronted with ambulances and on-lookers and a very large guy laying on the cold street having what looked like a heart attack and receiving a heart massage from the paramedics, it didn't look good. Poor guy.






Source: Paranormal database


Breathing


Location: Edinburgh - Vaults beneath South Bridge

Type: Haunting Manifestation

Date / Time: April 2000

Further Comments: A number of experiments carried out by Dr Richard Wiseman to investigate the alleged haunted vaults resulted in one participant being reduced to tears after hearing heavy breathing in an empty vault. Another person reported seeing a ghostly figure in an apron walk past.

Bodmin Jail, Cornwall

We decided on a visit to Bodmin county gaol. This cruel looking building must have struck the fear of God into those prisoners who saw it for the very first time. It looked very threatening from the top of the hill on the drive down. As we pulled up into the carpark the heavens opened, I ran for cover only to find myself faced with a trap door and a noose! We bought our tickets at the bar and was handed a governors notice.

Once inside it was colder than it actually was outside, I was physically shaking.

I peered into the small cells and I tried to imagine what it must have felt like to be imprisoned in such a dwelling ‘horrible’. We then walked onto a wing, each tiny cell

housed with mannequins in various poses. One was called ‘Fed by the fairies’ – Anne Jefferies was born in 1826; apparently she attracted a large following in Cornwall. She was suspected of been a changeling (fairy offspring) in solitary confinement and not given any food continued to thrive, she insisted that every night the fairies brought food to her cell.


We then walked down to the naval jail it was a very tall building covered in overgrown shrubbery, but on the way whilst taking photos I looked up and noticed out of the corner of my eye a face in one of the high windows, it was slightly creepy but on closer inspection it was one of the mannequins that had been strategically placed, maybe by accident or by design, but it was quite amusing all the same.


Inside the naval jail looked similar to a modern jail in its design, rows of cells going as far as 4 floors. I bobbed my head in one or two to get a feel of them, I would have loved to have visited at night. No ghosts jumped out at me although it did feel very creepy, even during the daytime.

Thornhill Hall, headless horseman, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire

Remains of Thornhill Hall

This is local legend, I'm not sure how accurate this story is as it was passed down to me personally by someone who was in the pub at the time when this happened. One night back in the mid 1980's a local man was walking through the Rectory Park and ruined Thornhill Hall near Dewsbury, when he was set upon by a man on a black horse, the rider had no head! He ran like hell and the headless horseman galloped after him and then it just disappeared. The man ran to the nearest public house for safety, still hysterical with fear and fright, babbling uncontrollably, crying in-front of a pub full of people he recounted what he had just seen. Thats as much of the story I know, but it is a very well known account of an alleged haunting manifestation in the area.


History

The former hall is a moated medieval manor house of archaeological importance.


Thornhill was the seat of the Savile family in the 14th - 17th century. The hall was built around 1450 and comprised a stone built manor with moat and gatehouse in its own park, which was redeveloped around 1600. Immediately to the north of the island is the site of a 17th century bowling green while to the west lie three earthwork terraces which are probably the remains of a formal garden of the later hall.


During the Civil War, in August 1648, troops of Lady Anne Savile defended the hall against the Parliamentarians, but were forced to surrender and the hall was accidentally blown up and destroyed.

Today, the site is largely overgrown and the only visible remains are the moat, part of the fireplace and front wall, two damaged statues which may have been on a gatehouse plus loose stones from the former buildings. The remains are grade 2 listed and currently classed as 'at risk' by English Heritage and the site, moat, former bowling green and site of the formal gardens are a scheduled ancient monument.

Eyewitness account

Another local resident who I have met personally, recounted the story of when he allegedly saw Richard Beaumont with his own eyes, sat on a horse, down by Black Dicks temple, he is adamant that what he saw was black dick himself. Now, human memory is totally unreliable, I am not saying he didn't see it or has embellished this story over the years, as it happened a long time ago, but what he said was very convincing. But, the brain has a good ability to fill in the gaps. What he could have seen is just a man on a black horse nothing more nothing less (occam's razor). He is now researching about him and has now become an investigator of the paranormal because of his experience.

Gargoyles - Gog and Magog

WILD YORKSHIRE (LINK)

Timeslips in Thetford

Thetford, Norfolk, England.

View Larger Map

Thetford Priory

West Door, Thetford Priory - In 1248 a notorious and dissolute prior of Thetford called Stephen was stabbed during a quarrel with one of his monks. He died just outside the great west door of the church.

Type of visit: Tour

I journeyed on, once again to Norfolk, it is one of my favourite counties in the UK.

I take a collection of paranormal related books with me on my travels, flicking through the pages of  'A ghost hunters guide to Norfolk', my memory was jogged by a story told by CJ Romer, (CJ23 to his friends) some of you old school investigators and paranormalists may remember the parapsychologist who featured on 'Ghost hunters' a UK TV show, episode: 2.1 (7) Ripples in Time, (Timeslips) which was aired in 1996 'pre-most haunted'!  As it states in the book, 'a respected paranormal researcher began a lifetime career and interest in ghosts' after what happened to him and some pals back in 1987; him and his four scientifically minded friends, (clinical psychologist, computer scientists) have various personal accounts of what they saw, a group sighting of a   phantom monk and staircase in broad daylight. Whether this case is related to the murder of Stephen remains a mystery, English Heritage note the stabbing of a monk.

In this video: Witness CJ Romer (Parapsychologist) (also JPTUK Patron).
He explains what he and his friends witnessed at the priory, this is also a very good example of critical thinking related to a paranormal type group experience.
 

The area where the phantom staircase and monk was seen

Thetford Priory just within walking distance of the town centre, it is a quiet and tranquil place, an English Heritage 'freebie' so you can investigate at night.

Paranormal Database
Singing Monks

Location: Thetford - Site of the Priory of the Canons of the Holy Sepulchre
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1937

Further Comments: The monks could be heard singing in Latin, in the ruins of the building. This was followed by a single reading from an unknown text.

THE BELL HOTEL in THETFORD
also a well known place for paranormal type experiences.

Skidbrooke "Demon Church" Saltfleet, Lincolnshire (St. Botolph's)

Type of visit: Legend trip

I had heard a lot about Skidbrooke Church or St Botolph's as being one of Lincolnshire's hotspot haunted places, with a good pedigree and lots written about it on the net So a visit to the 13th century isolated church was a absolute must. 

As we drove on the quiet and winding country lanes, I spotted the church in the distance, you can't miss it really, it's the only tall building you can see. Lonely and remote stuck in the middle of nowhere on Lincolnshire's flat marshlands. We pulled up on a side road in the car, Spaniel in tow. Only seconds out of the car I spotted what I thought was a big black dog bounding towards us, it just appeared out of nowhere and was running in our direction with no owner in sight! I shouted 'Get in the car now!!!' We all dived in the car like our lives depended on it. How the mind can play tricks, fortunately it wasn't a barguest with glowing red eyes, but a little stray black terrier dog, quite a tiny thing it was, I could have sworn it was BIG really big, I hate big black dogs, so glad it wasn't.

The dog continued to mind its own business and walked ahead of us up the long path to the church then disappeared in the long grass. By this point I was a little nervous as to what was around the next corner. Luckily the churchyard was all quiet, only a distant crow could be heard and a pigeon flapping its wings, the sun was shining  and there was no breeze.

"Mysterious Lincolnshire" By Daniel Codd

The 13th century church has stood abandoned for many a year now. It has not been used for Christian worship for 30 years. But its remoteness in marshland and corpse-shrouded eerie setting seem to have made it the focal point for gatherings of a sinister kind. Even before this there was reputed to have been the ghostly figures of hooded monks still haunting the place. A correspondent to the Lincolnshire Echo of 11 February 2006 noted how, late one night, in the hollow, empty shell of the church, he and some friends had clearly heard phantom footsteps crunch on the stone floor. Local lore tells ancient, vague stories of spells and witchcraft and is said that this church has been cursed! Stories first appeared in the 1970's and 80's that the empty church had become the haunt of Satanists, so much that it earned the reputation as the so-called Demon Church.

There were persistent reports of fires burning in its grounds and strange activities taking place, by January 2004 locals were so disturbed by the goings-on that they forced a meeting between the church leaders and the churches conservation trust to try and decide what action to take - one sad but extreme option being to demolish the church.

The Bassetlaw Ghost Research Group had set up base camp in one corner of the old church during an all-night investigation. They reported that the gloomy oppressive atmosphere of the place appearing to be almost trying to force them to leave. Strange noises were heard, and ominous flashes in the sky when the weather was calm. Parapsychologist David Wharmby also stated enigmatically to the Louth Leader Newspaper, "We Saw Small Babies among the gravestones and grass!"

In the hamlet of Skidbrooke itself, the dark rumours surrounding the church had forced one woman to have her house blessed by a priest! The woman said " I felt such bad vibes, the whole place really freaked me out!

To our surprise the place was a shell, but not in a total state of disrepair. The windows were out, the leading on the windows was all twisted and contorted giving it a rather spooky appearance.

We walked around the graveyard, found some old war graves. I didn't sense anything eerie, why should I? Maybe at night it would be a different story. I would have gone back at night, but the inclement weather soon put paid to that. Shelter from the rain, but the howling gales would have covered up any sounds of phantom footsteps! 

"Experts claim church is paranormal paradise"  Louth leader (lol) Experts??

A classic stereotype,  local lore, gossip, people up to no good, then the rumours start and before you know it, an innocent old place is crawling with ghosts, demons and ghost hunters. 

It only takes one paranormal investigation to go mainstream for a location to get a rating as 'One of the most haunted...' EVIDENCE PLEASE!? ? 

The scariest thing was the little black dog! 
  

A fantastic place to visit if you're in the area.  

Path up to the church

How the mind can play tricks!!!

View Larger MapLINKSSkidbrooke Church - The History & the Mysteryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Botolph's_Church,_Skidbrooke

Dunstanburgh Castle

LOCATION: DUNSTAN, NORTHUMBERLAND 

NUMBER OF ALLEGED GHOSTS:3 
THE EARL OF LANCASTER 
SIR GUY THE SEEKER 
AN UNKNOWN LADY

Photo - JPTUK

Visit this place at night its seriously creepy and desolate. Take suitable footware and be prepared to walk a couple of miles. Beware of the cows.

We had spent a week roughing it on the Northumberland coast in the last weeks of September 06. Ok not entirely true. We spent a week in complete luxury in our newly purchased mobile home, not quite a ghost hunting winnebago but it will suffice, it does come in handy on long spooky jaunts. The evening was drawing in and we decided to pay Dunstanburgh Castle a visit. The castle looked near but it would be a 4 mile walk there and back. We had to walk across two farmers fields and down a long country lane that was never ending until we reached the coastline, a golf course ran alongside it. The castle looked fantastic in the distance, sitting there on the basalt above the sea, it looked like something from a children’s fairytale. As we walked nearer the castle it seemed to be getting further away, a strange optical illusion. We had to pass some cows on the way to the top, we had no option but to walk past them, they just gave us a brief look but we were slightly nervous of our bovine audience, especially with having the dog with us, so we clambered the very steep slope above them to avoid a stampede, but they just ignored us and carried on chewing.
We had passed a young couple on our accent, she was wearing very high heeled sandals, ridiculous footwear for that terrain, she precariously planned her route, personally I thought she was crazy. We eventually reached the entrance to the castle, we were disappointed that it was shut and bolted. The English heritage sign on the gate said “The castle will shut at 5.30pm” we looked at our watch it was 6.05pm. The entrance fee for adults was £2.70 !! What a cheeky admission price English heritage, its only a ruin I shouted ! Been brave and slightly naughty, I climbed over the gate and took a look around whilst my partner and the dog waited for me outside. The whole castle had an electric fence around it, I wasn’t sure if that was to keep unsuspecting visitors out our to keep the cattle in. I walked under the stone archway into the gatehouse half expecting a security guard to jump up behind me, but no one was there to welcome me in, not even the ghost of Sir Guy the Seeker. The place was deserted and desolate, the ticket office was bolted and by the time I’d walked past the ticket office there was nothing else to see apart from a large field and a lone tower in the distance, I was still moaning to myself about the outlandish price to get in to see a field ! I decide to jog to the tower, I had a quick look around and jogged back. The gatehouse was creepy, I stuck my head around this dark L shaped corridor that led to nowhere and noticed a figure looking around the wall, when all of a sudden this creepy howl came circling around me, the wind howled around the place making really strange noises through the holes in the walls. I convinced myself the figure was just my imagination going wild, I was spooked, so I legged it out of there. By the time we got back it was dark.