Tag Archives: Paranormal

Feature length release of ‘An Evening with Geoff Holder: Haunted St. Andrews’

 

This week we officially release the feature length presentation by Geoff Holder on ‘Haunted St. Andrews’. Filmed on in February 2012, in front of a live audience, Geoff covers topics from the philosophy of belief to mummies and apparitions, to poltergeists and timeslips.

 

If you’d like to see Geoff in action, make sure and keep up to date with the events calendar on the site, and come along to a talk near you. Alternatively if you’d like to book Geoff for an event, or invite him to speak for a group of society in which you are involved, head over to our ‘Get in Touch’ page!

 
 

In which the author gets a cracking review by Tom Ruffles of the Society for Psychical Research…

 

The estimable Tom Ruffles of the Society for Psychical Research has just given Paranormal Cumbria a very positive review. The full review can be found here but I’ve extracted a few highlights:

 

“The contents, conveyed in his usual humorously perceptive style, are arranged thematically … He supplies references for all his stories, the result of which is a three-page bibliography of books, journals and newspapers that allows readers to double-check for themselves. This rigorous analytical approach is rare in the field, and all the more welcome for it.”

“The Croglin Grange vampire… Holder delves into the various accounts as they evolved from the first reference in print by Augustus Hare, showing what a complex narrative it actually is.”

 

[Comparing the book with another, similar publication] “To sum up, the resident of Cumbria may well want both (plus Holder’s The Guide to the Mysterious Lake District book) in order to ensure that they have maximum coverage of the county. But the visitor who does not want to purchase both will be better off with Holder’s book. And it’s three quid cheaper. I therefore declare Paranormal Cumbria the winner.”

 

The review can be found on Tom Ruffles’ blog,  http://tomruffles.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/supernatural-cumbria-by-h-c-ivison-and.html

 
 

In which the author gave a talk at the ghost club in London…

 

On Saturday 17th March I was delighted to return to The Ghost Club, this time with a talk on ‘The Jacobites and the Supernatural’. My previous talk for the august institution (founded 1862 and still as sprightly as ever) was ‘Aleister Crowley and the Hauntings of Boleskine House’.

 

The Jacobite rebellions of the 17th and 18th centuries convulsed Scotland, Ireland and England – almost leading to regime change in Westminster – before the cause was extinguished at Culloden, the last pitched battle in Britain. The adventure was also steeped in supernatural belief, from magical healing and witchcraft to second-sight, crisis apparitions and deals with the Devil. Drawing on my book of the same name, ‘The Jacobites and the Supernatural’ was a journey through battlefield phantoms, Black Dogs, haunted castles, holy wells, water turned into blood, and, yes, endlessly multiplying spectres of Bonnie Prince Charlie.

 

The event was for memebers and guests only, but joining on the door is always an option. The event took place at 2pm, in The Committee Room at The Victory Services Club, 63 Seymour Street, just off Edgware Road, London, W2 2HF. A kind thanks to all those in attendance.

 

For more information on the Ghost Club, visit – www.ghostclub.org.uk

 

 

In which the author appears on the ‘Paranormal Podcast’ again…

 

 

That gentleman and scholar Jim Harold has just posted another slice of his inestimable internet supernaturalia, ‘The Paranormal Podcast’, this one featuring my second appearance on the American show. Jim and I discuss the meaning and reality (or otherwise) of hauntings, with reference to poltergeists, apparitions, doppelgangers, fetches, and the dubious genre of ‘haunted telly’. Somehow we also managed to shoehorn in time slips (ghosts-as-time-travellers), the ‘survival hypothesis’ (ghosts-as-conscious-spirits), the ‘stone tape’ notion (ghosts-as-recordings) – oh, and some knickers. It was great fun.

 

The show ‘What are Hauntings?’ can be downloaded for free from here!

 

http://jimharold.com/the-paranormal-podcast/what-are-hauntings-with-geoff-holder-paranormal-podcast-229/

 
 

In which the Author launches another video book trailer…

 

There’s another video book trailer cannonading around cyberspace. The video for Paranormal Cumbria can be found on this website here, on youtube and at bookreel.tv.

 

The trailer was put together by Jamie Cook, webmaster of this parish, and the book itself is due out on March 31st.

 

 
 

In which the author gives a talk on ghosts in St Andrews…

 

On Thursday 23rd February I’ll be in the St Andrews Public Library giving an illustrated talk on ghosts.

 

Entitled ‘Haunted St Andrews and Area,’ and based on the book of the same name, the talk will feature such supernatural denizens as:

The White Lady and The Haunted Tower

 

  • The Poltergeist of Pitmilly House (and other poltergeists)
  • Ghosts of The Pends and St Leonard’s School
  • Ghosts of Town and Gown
  • Death Warnings and a Vortex of Evil

 

The event starts at 7.30pm and tickets (which are selling fast) are £3.50. Call 01334 659378.

Location: St Andrews Library, Church Square (off Church Street, between South Street and Market Street), St Andrews, KY16 9NN. More details and map here.