A grave danger faced the terrified pupils of Central Street Infants School in Hebden Bridge in the early 1970s: The Blue Hand. This ghostly hand scuttled around the school’s corridors and was apt to pounce on unsuspecting children, especially if they were alone in the toilet. The spectral hand would gouge out the little one’sContinue reading “The Blue Hand ~ a Hebden Ghost”
Author Archives: Paul Weatherhead
Top 5 Cannibal Zombie Movies from the Golden Age of Gut-munching
In recent decades there have been some fine zombie films, but these mainstream offerings tend to suffer from one fatal flaw: respectability. The zombie films from the golden age (which I’ve taken as being from the late 60s to the early 90s) are different. They are gloriously disreputable, so much so that many were bannedContinue reading “Top 5 Cannibal Zombie Movies from the Golden Age of Gut-munching“
Experts are full of sh!t and here’s why…
According to Harvard biologist George Wald, civilisation will end in 15-30 years without immediate action. Ecologist Paul Ehrlich says up to 200 million will starve to death in the next ten years due to population increases, which will also cause the deaths of 65 million Americans. Furthermore, oil will be all gone in the nextContinue reading “Experts are full of sh!t and here’s why…”
Mandolinquents – Weird Musical History #5
Among top musicians, claimed one newspaper in 1932, the mandolin is much maligned and seen as ‘a tinkling toy, fit only for people whose musical ambition, like their musical ability, is severely limited’.[i] Not true, of course. I’ve unearthed a couple of French stories that show that the mandolin has played a role in heinousContinue reading “Mandolinquents – Weird Musical History #5”
Weird Musical History #4 ~ The Cat Organ
In 1549, a huge pageant was held in Brussels in honour of the entry of King Phillip II of Spain into the city. The musical highlight of this spectacle was a moving float upon which a live bear played tunes on an organ. But it wasn’t just any organ. It was a cat organ, sometimesContinue reading “Weird Musical History #4 ~ The Cat Organ”
Sweary Mary ~ The Clonmel Ghost
I’ve been researching and collecting historical cases of ghost hoaxes, and so I was pleased to find this great example from my mum’s home town of Clonmel, Tipperary. The ghost doesn’t have a name, so I’ve taken the liberty of calling her Sweary Mary for reasons that will become obvious. Unspeakably foul language The storyContinue reading “Sweary Mary ~ The Clonmel Ghost“
Talking Cats
People of a certain age may remember Prince the talking dog who appeared on the BBC show That’s Life in 1979 demonstrating his vocabulary. Prince would growl while his owner manipulated the dog’s jaw to produce just about discernible words, including what would become his catchphrase – ‘sausages!’ However, Prince’s feats pale when compared toContinue reading “Talking Cats”
Slippery Sam ~ Yorkshire’s ‘Nessie’
During the 1930s Britain’s north coast was regularly visited by a mysterious sea monster. At least, this is what many witnesses attested at the time, including a former lord mayor and two well-known Labour politicians. The press loved this recurring silly season story and the creature was dubbed The Humber Monster and the Withernsea VisitorContinue reading “Slippery Sam ~ Yorkshire’s ‘Nessie’“
Yorkshire Cave Girl Mystery!
In the summer of 1924, a shroud of mystery descended on the West Yorkshire village of Eldwick, near Bingley. Rumour had it that a beautiful but excitable young woman whose only companion was a grey cat had taken up residence in a cave in the nearby popular beauty spot of Shipley Glen. On her visitsContinue reading “Yorkshire Cave Girl Mystery!”
Attack of the North Sea Monster!
Fishermen are known for their tall tales, but few are as tall as the tale told of the gigantic fire breathing sea serpent that attacked a Scottish trawler in 1903. Reports of sea monsters were fairly common in the newspapers of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, but the desperate battle between the crew ofContinue reading “Attack of the North Sea Monster!”
Paul Weatherhead 