The BBC is haunting my blog…..

Fyfe Robertson (1902 - 1987)

The BBC have been uploading things to their Youtube archive for a few years now, and there is a wealth of interesting clips to be found there! Obviously, for the purposes of the blog I've picked some of the spookier, weirder clips, but if you want to see glimpses of old British life, you should go check out some of the other stuff that's on there for yourselves later.....

But for now, I hope you find somethinamong the videos here that tickles your spooky bone....even if the authenticity of some of the claims in these videos might be, slightly, suspect!

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"Llyn Dulyn (‘Black Lake’ in Welsh) lies nestled in the Carneddau range of mountains in Snowdonia. 

A quiet, eerie place, it’s steeped not only in an ancient folklore of evil spirits and witches, but also a more modern variety of ghost story. It was the site of multiple airplane crashes during WWII, and became infamous across North Wales. In this clip, the locals speak in hushed tones to reporter John Swinfield of collecting debris from the plane wrecks, catching strange-looking fish and hearing disembodied voices calling out to them…

Excerpt taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, Wednesday 17th October 1973. "

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""Either 17 people have all been having hallucinations - including the police - or this is the best-documented ghost story of all time."

Nationwide's James Hogg reports from a seemingly ordinary, suburban house in Ponder's End, Enfield, where residents have reported experiencing a variety of unusual phenomena. There has been knocking in the walls, and furniture is regularly thrown around the house - apparently unaided.

These bizarre occurrences have piqued the interest of Maurice Grosse, an inventor and a member of the Society of Psychical Research. Mr Grosse believes that the disturbances are being caused by a poltergeist, and thinks that the recordings he has made while investigating the disturbances in the house might be the best evidence yet of parapsychological activity.

Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, 23 November, 1977."

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"Fyfe Robertson reports from the ruins of Broomhill House in Larkhall, which locals claim is haunted by a ghost known as the Black Lady. They have enlisted the help of a local ghost hunter, Tom Robertson (no relation), to exorcise the spirit.

Originally broadcast 1 February, 1963."

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"There were strange goings-on in Warminster, Wiltshire, home to a spate of flying saucer sightings in the west of England. Nationwide's Brian Ash spent a day and night looking for UFOs with the help of Arthur Shuttlewood and Rex Dutta.

This clip is from Nationwide, originally broadcast 28 August 1973."

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"BBC Northern Ireland's roving reporter James Boyce attends a traditional straw wedding in Derrylin, County Fermanagh and interviews local expert Captain George Saunderson.

"A straw wedding probably dates back to pre-Christian times."

"When the bridal couple return from their honeymoon, the local farmers and farmers' boys gather together dressed in straw to welcome home the happy couple."

This clip was taken from Six Ten, BBC Northern Ireland's local news programme.

Originally broadcast in 1964."

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""It's not rubbish. I saw it and I believe in it."

BBC Panorama reports on alleged Nessie sightings, as well as an ongoing loch-wide search for the elusive beast.

The hunt for the Loch Ness monster, involving a team of volunteers and army-hired search lights is led by David James, a British Member of Parliament.

Reporter Jameson Clark also hears from local eyewitnesses, who claim to have seen Nessie for themselves.

"The evidence, as you've heard, varies. Sometimes one hump, sometimes two, sometimes three."

"It's been seen all over Loch Ness, from Port Augustus to Castle Urquhart."

Clip taken from Panorama, originally broadcast on BBC Television, 13 June, 1960."

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"A major controversy has shaken the rural tranquility of Annacloy in County Down. A celebrated "fairy thorn" tree - a type of hawthorn bush that fairies are especially partial to - has been removed during the dead of night. The uprooting of this magical tree, which was in the proposed path of a major road development, has left many people in the area angry.

BBC Northern Ireland's roving reporter James Boyce visits the scene to speak to some local residents. Have they ever seen a fairy? What is likely to happen to the person who chopped down the fairy thorn?"

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"Fyfe Robertson visits Gruinard, Britain's most mysterious island. Gruinard was the site of Government experiments during World War II and remains shrouded in secrecy. 

Local crofters and fishermen know better than to land on Gruinard. Just what do they think happened there all those years ago?

Originally broadcast 17 Ocotober, 1962."

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""Allowing for the fact there's a lot of fraud, a lot of delusion, a lot of wishful thinking... there still is a hard core of something." - Tony Cornell.

Nationwide's James Hogg follows paranormal investigators on the hunt for poltergeists. He meets psychical researcher Tony Cornell, who has been investigating paranormal incidents for over 30 years. Cornell is a Cambridge graduate, whose interest in the paranormal was piqued when he was stationed as a Naval Officer in India. He has investigated hundreds of alleged hauntings, with no success. He and two physics graduates are currently investigating a chest of drawers that has been at the centre of alleged poltergeist activity. 

David Berglas is a practising magician, but also a trained psychotherapist and the Vice-Chairman of the Committee for Scientific Investigation into claims of the Paranormal. He demonstrates some of the ways that people can deceive investigators, and explains how often the simplest explanation turns out to be the truth. 

James then speaks to Dr Alan Gauld, who has written a book on poltergeists with Cornell, and often investigates phenomenon alongside him. Gauld is particularly stumped by a recent case involving a loud, persistent banging emanating from a young boys' bedroom. The banging has been heard even when the child isn't in the room, and Dr Gauld has gone as far as taking up the floorboards in an attempt to uncover the source.

Gauld and Cornell have now purchased the 'haunted' chest of drawers, in order to wire it up to various electronic gizmos - including a Sinclair Spectrum and several cameras - so if the chest of drawers moves of its own accord, they'll spot it.

After 30 years with no confirmed ghost sightings, what keeps Cornell and Gauld going?

Clip taken from Nationwide, originally broadcast on BBC One, Thursday 17 March, 1983."

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Blimey! Do we really only have a few days left before Hallowe'en!?

Better make sure you head over to the Countdown to Halloween hub to see what the other Cryptkeepers have been up to...I know that Mark Harvey has been creating some groovy, ghoulish soundscapes for you to listen to, so you should definitely pop over to his blog too!