As I discussed the shortcomings of the CIA’s recent report on Havana Syndrome in my previous post, I thought I’d stay in the murky world of espionage and tell you how I came into the possession of KGB microfilm of American secrets. I spent three years teaching English in Russia in the 90s, mostly basedContinue reading “In which I steal secret microfilm from the KGB!”
Author Archives: Paul Weatherhead
In Which I Destroy the CIA with Facts and Logic!
Recently I wrote about my Top Three Mass Hysterias happening now in 2022.[i] Top of my hysterical hit parade was Havana Syndrome, the name given to a mysterious illness among US and Canadian embassy staff in Havanna, Cuba (and later in several other cities around the world). The symptoms included hearing a strange, high-pitched noise,Continue reading “In Which I Destroy the CIA with Facts and Logic!”
On Ghosts, Demons, Aliens and a Haunted Light Switch
Part One ~ I am plagued by ghosts and a demon I’m often asked if I’ve ever had any supernatural experiences myself. Well, sort of…. In fact, I’ve done battle with ghosts and a demon in the wild Balkan Mountains of Northern Greece. But of course, there’s a twist. I lived in a town calledContinue reading “On Ghosts, Demons, Aliens and a Haunted Light Switch”
Top Three Mass Hysterias ~ Happening Now in 2022!
Part 1 ~ Hysteria Call me hysterical, if you like, but it seems like we’ve been living through hysterical times. But hysteria is real, and so is mass hysteria. In this article I’m going to nominate the top three mass hysterias that are happening NOW in 2022. And it’s going to be controversial. Hysteria meansContinue reading “Top Three Mass Hysterias ~ Happening Now in 2022!”
On Seeing Things…
Many are familiar with former Todmorden police constable Alan Godfrey’s 1980 UFO adventure. It’s a thrilling tale involving a mysterious death, conspiracy, UFOs, teleporting cows, hypnotists (not all of them reputable), an alien and his robots. And a big dog. Of course, all is not as it seems, and I invite the reader to seeContinue reading “On Seeing Things…”
The Broad Bottom Ghost
The story of the Broad Bottom Ghost was told by Hebden Bridge born political activist and suffragette Lavena Saltonstall to the Todmorden and District News in the early twentieth century.[i] It concerns the area between Hebden Bridge and Mytholmroyd with the unflattering name of Broad Bottom, consisting of some woods, fields and a few houses.Continue reading “The Broad Bottom Ghost”
Brown Dick of Blackstone Edge
This version of the legend in all its melodramatic Victorian glory is adapted from the ‘Lancashire Burns’ Edwin Waugh’s dialect telling.[i] Most of the action takes place a little outside Calderdale, but I’ve decided to include it here. One snowbound mid-winter evening, a party of travellers were sheltering from the weather by the warmContinue reading “Brown Dick of Blackstone Edge”
Old Red Eyes ~ The Ghost of Todmorden Station
There was a great deal of alarm in Todmorden at the end of May 1864.[i] Rumours had circulated that one Saturday at midnight, the night watchman on the station platform had seen a ghost and that subsequently both the ghost and the watchman had disappeared. The following Sunday and Monday great crowds gathered round theContinue reading “Old Red Eyes ~ The Ghost of Todmorden Station“
Return of the Slasher… with Drugs?
In the November of 1938, reports began to emerge of a razor blade wielding maniac roaming the streets of Halifax and mounting violent and terrifying slashing attacks on his mostly female victims. The fear of this attacker led to vigilante mobs roaming the streets, businesses staying closed and widespread fear and panic. The attacks escalatedContinue reading “Return of the Slasher… with Drugs?”
Todmorden UFOs ~ Previously undiscovered historical UFO sightings from the 19th and early 20th centuries!
This experience can be found in a letter to the editor of the Todmorden Advertiser from 1932, and is perhaps the strangest of the pre-saucer era sightings I uncovered in researching Weird Calderdale. It is signed ‘Old Lydgatian’ and is reproduced below in full. A CURIOUS PHENOMENON “Sir,- One day this year, in about theContinue reading “Todmorden UFOs ~ Previously undiscovered historical UFO sightings from the 19th and early 20th centuries!”
Paul Weatherhead 