In the Shadows of the Unknown: Unveiling the Malevolence with Ghost Hunter Tours

In the realm of the supernatural, where untold specters and ungodly evil spirits roam,

lies a chilling pursuit known as ghost hunting. A journey into the heart of darkness, where the line between the living and the dead becomes blurred, and the chilling secrets of haunted locations are unveiled

In this bone-chilling blog post, we shall delve into the twisted world of ghost hunting and the harrowing exploits of lead investigators Gary Taylor and Andrew Ayres from the infamous Ghost Hunter Tours. Brace yourselves, for the haunting and horror that awaits.

The Haunting Allure of Ghost Hunting:

Imagine stepping into the depths of a haunted mansion, the air thick with an otherworldly chill, and shadows that dance with malevolence. Ghost hunting, my friends, is the embodiment of terror and intrigue. It beckons those who dare to confront the unknown, to witness the unexplained, and to come face to face with the unfathomable darkness that resides within the haunted recesses of the world.

Lead Investigators Gary Taylor and Andrew Ayres:

Enter the twisted minds of two audacious investigators, Gary Taylor, and Andrew Ayres. These brave souls possess an insatiable hunger for the macabre, their hearts beating in synchrony with the very entities they seek to confront. Through their bloodcurdling expeditions, they have carved a path through the darkest corners of the supernatural, leaving no stone unturned and no malevolent spirit unprovoked.

Untold Specters and Ungodly Evil Spirits:

Prepare to witness the desolate beauty of haunted locations, where untold specters linger and ungodly evil spirits thrive. Ghost Hunter Tours, under the relentless leadership of Taylor and Ayres, ventures into these forsaken grounds, where whispers of long-forgotten tragedies echo through the corridors. These locations bear witness to unspeakable horrors, as lost souls and vengeful phantoms manifest, desperate to claim the living as their own.

The Echoes of Horror:

In their terrifying pursuit, Taylor and Ayres encounter the echoes of horror, capturing on their state-of-the-art equipment the heart-stopping moans, the bone-chilling whispers, and the ghastly apparitions that defy comprehension. Armed with electromagnetic field detectors, capturing the ethereal energies that surround us, they delve deep into the abyss of the unknown, daring to confront the malevolence that lies within.

The Terrors Unveiled:

It is in the analysis of the collected evidence that true terror takes hold. With their twisted minds, Taylor and Ayres interpret the chilling recordings, amplifying the fear that lingers within each word, each phantom image. They unravel the dark secrets of the spectral realm, revealing the malevolence that seeps into the very fabric of our reality, leaving participants trembling in the wake of unimaginable horror.

An Invitation to the Abyss:

Ghost Hunter Tours, guided by the perverse minds of Taylor and Ayres, is an invitation to plunge headfirst into the abyss. It is a dance with the devil, a tango with terror, and an opportunity to explore the realms where mortal fears collide with the supernatural. But beware, for in the pursuit of answers, there lies the risk of awakening forces beyond comprehension, ungodly entities that may linger long after the tour has concluded.

In the grim domain of ghost hunting, where the veil between the living and the dead is frail, Ghost Hunter Tours led by Gary Taylor and Andrew Ayres offers a harrowing adventure into the heart of horror. Untold specters and ungodly evil spirits await those who dare to step into the shadows. With each chilling expedition, the investigators unravel

the mysteries of haunted locations, conjuring spine-tingling fear and confronting the malevolence that lurks within. If you possess the audacity to confront your darkest fears, join Ghost Hunter Tours, but remember, once you step into the abyss, you may never return the same.

The Great Beast is coming to Hastings

Aleister Crowley, The Occultist Who Horrified Early 1900s England

By Katie Serena

English mystic, novelist, mountaineer, and magician Aleister Crowley rejected his upper-class Christian upbringing and explored the darkest corners of occultism.

He was an occultist, ceremonial magician, drug fend, sex addict, mountaineer, poet, and a “traitor to the British people.” He drew

crowds of followers and hordes of critics. He was branded as evil and egotistical, a raging genius, and a messiah of anti-Christianity. It’s safe to say that few people in modern history generated as much controversy, shock, and scandal as Aleister Crowley.

Stringer/Getty Images

The tabloids called him the “Wickedest Man In The World,” and a “Master Of Darkness.” But how do you begin to describe a man who was banned from Mussolini’s Italy for acts of extreme depravity, and who also rubbed elbows with the most respected writers of the 20th century while penning textbooks on tantric sex magic? Let’s take a closer look at the complicated life of Aleister Crowley.

Aleister Crowley’s Not-So-Humble Beginnings Wikimedia Commons

Crowley’s birthplace in Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. He came from a wealthy family.

To understand Aleister Crowley, or to come as close to understanding him as he would allow, one must start with his upbringing.

Born Edward Alexander Crowley in 1875, he quickly found himself amongst some of Britain’s most devout Christians, the very opposite of the type of people he would attract later in his life. His father was an evangelist, and at first, Crowley found himself entirely devoted to the religion, out of respect for his father.

But after his father’s death when Crowley was just 11 years old, he began firmly eschewing all sense of Christianity. He would point out inconsistencies in the teachings of the Bible during study groups in school, and would outright defy Christian morals by smoking, masturbating, and having sex with prostitutes. For his behavior, his mother referred to him as “the Beast,” a title which he revealed in

Aleister Crowley in traditional occult ceremony dress. Wikimedia Commons

Crowley adopted the name Aleister in 1895 when he was 20 years old. His reasons for discarding his old name, outlined in his autobiography, seem to foreshadow every choice he would make in his adult life, as they depict a man with high ambitions, ideals and a complete disregard for personal connection:

“For many years I had loathed being called Alick, partly because of the unpleasant sound and sight of the word, partly because it was the name by which my mother called me. Edward did not seem to suit me and the diminutives Ted or Ned were even less appropriate. ”

“I had read in some book or other that the most favorable name for becoming famous was one consisting of a dactyl followed by a spondee, as at the end of a hexameter: like Jeremy Taylor. Aleister Crowley fulfilled these conditions and Aleister is the Gaelic form of Alexander. To adopt it would satisfy my romantic ideals.”

Crowley’s First Forays Into

The Dark Depths Of Occultism

The same year that he changed his name, Crowley enrolled at Cambridge University. His life at Cambridge paints a picture of a lifestyle ft for an Austenian hero — a tortured soul practicing chess, penning poetry and inspired literature, and dreaming up exotic mountain climbing adventures in his spare time.

However, Aleister Crowley was about as far from a Mr. Darcy type as one could be. Under his polished, collegian exterior lay a deeply tumultuous man, harboring secret plans of magical domination, maintaining borderline-sadistic sexual relationships with both men and women, and delving ever deeper into the world of the occult.

Once his time at school was over, Crowley nearly considered a career in diplomatic relations. But after a brief illness that triggered his understanding of morality and “the futility of all human endeavor,” he further narrowed his focus to writing occult literature and publishing several erotic poems.

Aleister Crowley during his K-2 expedition. Wikimedia Commons

In 1898, Crowley met a chemist named Julian L. Baker, a member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, which he joined. The order was devoted to studying paranormal activity and all matters of the occult.

Eventually, Crowley hired a senior member of the group to be his live-in personal tutor on the subject. Together, Crowley and his tutor experimented with ceremonial magic and the ritualistic use of drugs.

Independently, Crowley continued to explore his bisexuality and seek out prostitutes. But while this life for him was eye-opening and spiritual, higher-level members of the Golden Dawn considered it too libertine and refused to allow him entry into the upper levels.

Having had enough of Europe after his stint with the Golden Dawn, Aleister Crowley traveled to Mexico, bringing to life his past dreams of mountain climbing. From there, he traveled to Japan, Hong Kong, Ceylon, and India.

While in India, Crowley began practicing raja yoga, a Hindu meditation tradition. He later accompanied mountaineers in the first-ever attempt to climb K2 in 1902.

Travels Through Europe And Falling In Love

Rose Crowley, Aleister’s first wife. Bettmann/Getty Images

In November of 1902, Crowley traveled back to Europe, settling in Paris and immersing himself in the art world. Again, his lifestyle painted quite a different picture than the one he was truly living, as he surrounded himself with famed artists like painter Gerald Kelly and sculptor Auguste Rodin.

To the surprise of many, Paris was where Aleister Crowley fell in love. Gerald Kelly introduced Crowley to his sister Rose during a meeting, after which the two married. At first, the marriage was one “of convenience” to prevent her from entering an arranged marriage.

But before long, the two fell in love for real. Crowley even set aside his profane, dark writings, and penned his wife several love poems.

Despite their initial arrangement, Rose and Aleister Crowley could not be a more perfect pair. Rose accompanied Aleister on his journeys and went along with his schemes, and indeed it was through her that Crowley found the inspiration to begin his own religion.

The Birth Of Thelema, Aleister Crowley’s Infamous New Religion

While Rose was meditating, she informed Aleister that the Egyptian god Horus was waiting for him. In 1904, through his own meditation, he heard the voice of Aiwass, the personal messenger of Horus.

Using the words of the messenger and Horus himself, Crowley transcribed The Book of the Law, the book that would become the basis of his new religion, Thelema.

The main teaching of Thelema was a similar principle to the one that Crowley had lived by his whole life: “Do what thou wilt.”

The teachings were intended to act as a successor to the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and were seen as extremely similar to theirs.

In 1907, Crowley founded the occult order, naming it the A∴A∴. Crowley devoted almost all of his time to building the order, writing its literature, and creating a periodical for its members.

A Tumultuous Personal Life In The Era Of Two World Wars

Rose and Aleister Crowley and their second daughter, Lola Zaza Crowley. Wikimedia Commons

While Crowley was consumed by the words of Horus and his desire to feed the masses information about the occult, his wife was descending into her own darkness of full-blown alcoholism.

Meanwhile, their daughter Lilith died of typhoid in 1906. Despite the illness, Crowley still blamed her death on Rose’s inability to get a grip on the world around her.

Despite her apparent failure to remain sober, Rose and Aleister had another daughter, Lola, who was entrusted solely to Rose’s care upon the pair’s divorce in 1909. Eventually, Rose was committed to an institution in 1911.

The bulk of Aleister Crowley’s life after his divorce was spent floating from city to city, as he had before, picking up several “scarlet women” along the way, one of whom allegedly bore him a son, who he named Aleister Atatürk.

His travels were dogged by rumors that he was working as a British intelligence spy, as several countries he drifted through were coincidentally under investigation by the Brits.

He continued to publish occult manuscripts and engage in sex with prostitutes during the years of World War I.

Aleister Crowley in 1921. Keystone/Getty Images

By 1920, he’d moved to Sicily, where he established the Abbey of Thelema as his headquarters. There, he and his followers experimented with sex, drugs, and a series of bizarre rituals.

The government was so appalled that they banned Crowley from Italy, forcing the headquarters to close and the group to disperse.

But that didn’t mean Crowley was done. He soon found an assistant who helped him transcribe his teachings and publish his books. And by the late 1920s, he got remarried to a Nicaraguan woman named Maria Teresa Sanchez, so that she could join him in Britain.

During World War II, he rubbed elbows with known figures from the intelligence community, such as Ian Fleming and Roald Dahl, though the rumors of Crowley’s involvement in actual intelligence were never confirmed.

However, he did offer his services to the Naval Intelligence Division at one point — and he was turned down.

On Dec. 1, 1947, Aleister Crowley died at age 72, his body giving out to chronic bronchitis. His funeral dubbed the “Black Mass,” was only attended by a few of his closest friends and associates — despite his words reaching hundreds of thousands of people throughout the years.

It seems that even though he’d gained the infamy he’d always wanted, he was not remembered fondly as a person. However, friends and family assured everyone that he wouldn’t have wanted to be.

The Complicated Legacy Of Aleister Crowley Though he was gone, the impact of Crowley lived on, not only among occultists – possibly the only people who remember him fondly – but also through writers, artists, philosophers, and musicians.

Crowley’s image stands, amongst others, on the cover of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album, and his motto, “Do what thou wilt,” is inscribed on Led Zeppelin’s Led Zeppelin III vinyl. David Bowie referenced him in the lyrics to “Quicksand,” and Ozzy Osbourne paid tribute to him with a whole song titled “Mr. Crowley.”

Those who remember him often lend their ideas of him to his image as a cookie-cutter villain, an image that might not be too far off. His name is whispered with horror amongst devout Christians, skepticism amongst conspiracy theorists, and with awe amongst the occultists and pagans.

Ultimately, Crowley’s goal was achieved – no matter what they say when they whisper his name, it’s still being whispered today.

Now that you know about Aleister Crowley, the “wickedest man in the world,” read up on history’s most infamous cult leaders. Then, learn about the most interesting mad scientists of all time.

If you would like your chance to get up close and personal with Mr. Crowley the just us if you are brave enough then join us at our investigation at the True Crimes Museum. Book your ticket here: https://www.ghosthuntertours.co.uk/product-page/ghost-hunt-at-the-true-crime-museum-hastings-25th-november-2022

All credits for this article go to Katie Serena | Checked By John Kuroski Published August 22, 2021, Updated July 15, 2022, https://allthatsinteresting.com/aleister-crowley

Katie Serena

 

Katie Serena is a New York City-based writer and a staff writer at All That's Interesting.

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A B O U T A DV E RT I S E J O B S P R I VAC Y P O L I C Y 

  Aleister Crowley, The Occultist Who HorrifiedEarly 1900s England By KatieSerena English mystic, novelist, mountaineer, and magician Aleister Crowley rejected his upper-classChristian upbringing and explored the darkest corners of occultism. H e was an occultist, ceremonial magician, drug fend, sex addict, mountaineer, poet, and a “traitor to the Britishpeople.” He drew crowds of followers and hordes of critics.He was branded as evil and egotistical, a raging genius, and a messiahof anti-Christianity. It’s safe to say that few people in modernhistory generated as much controversy, shock, andscandal as Aleister Crowley. Stringer/Getty Images

   Known as the Great Beast 666,Aleister Crowley wasone ofthe most controversial igures in modern British history. Thetabloids called him the“Wickedest Man In The World,” and a “MasterOf Darkness.” But how do you begin to describe a man who was banned from Mussolini’s Italy for acts of extreme depravity, and who also rubbed elbows with the most respected writers of the 20th century while penning textbooks on tantric sex magic? Let’s take a closer look at the complicated life of Aleister Crowley. Aleister Crowley’s Not-So-Humble Beginnings Wikimedia Commons Aleister Crowley’s birthplace in Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, England. He came from a wealthy family. To understand Aleister Crowley, or to come as close to understandinghim as he would allow, one must start with his upbringing. Born Edward Alexander Crowley in 1875, he quickly found himself amongst some of Britain’s most devout Christians, the very opposite of the type of people he would attract later in his life. His father was an evangelist, and at frst, Crowley found himself entirely devoted to the religion, out of respect for his father.

   But after his father’s deathwhen Crowley was just11 years old, he began frmly eschewing all sense of Christianity. He would point out inconsistencies in the teachings of the Bible during study groups in school, and would outright defy Christian morals by smoking,masturbating, and having sex with prostitutes. For his behavior, his mother referred to him as “the Beast,” a title which he reveled in.

Aleister Crowley in traditional occult ceremony dress. Wikimedia Commons

Crowley adopted the name Aleister in 1895 when he was 20 years old. His reasons for discarding his old name, outlinedin his autobiography, seem to foreshadow every choicehe would make in his adult life, as they depicta manwith high ambitions, frm ideals, and a complete disregard for personal connection: “For many years I had loathed being calledAlick, partly becauseof the unpleasant sound and sight of the word, partly becauseit wasthe name by whichmy mother called me. Edward didnot seem tosuit me and the diminutives Ted or Ned were even less appropriate.Alexander was too long and Sandy suggestedtow hair and freckles.” “I had read in some book or other that the most favorable name forbecoming famous was one consisting of a dactyl followed by a spondee, as at the end of a hexameter: like Jeremy Taylor. Aleister Crowley fulilled these conditions and Aleister is the Gaelic form of Alexander. To adopt it would satisfy my romantic ideals.”

   Crowley’s First Forays Into The Dark Depths Of Occultism The same year that he changed hisname, Crowley enrolled at Cambridge University. His life at Cambridge paints a picture of a lifestyle ftfor an Austenian hero — a tortured soul practicing chess,penning poetry and inspired literature, and dreaming up exotic mountain climbing adventures in his spare time. However, AleisterCrowley was about as far from a Mr. Darcy type as one could be. Under his polished, collegian exterior lay a deeply tumultuous man,harboring secret plans of magical domination, maintaining borderline- sadistic sexual relationships with both men and women, and delving ever deeper into the world of the occult. Once his time at school was over, Crowley nearly considered a career in diplomatic relations. But after a brief illness that triggered his understanding of morality and “the futilityof all human endeavor,” he further narrowed his focus to writing occult literature and publishing several erotic poems.

Aleister Crowley during his K-2 expedition. Wikimedia Commons

In 1898, Crowley met a chemist named JulianL. Baker, a member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, which he joined. The order was devoted to studying paranormal activityand all matters of the occult.

   Eventually, Crowley hired a senior member of thegroup tobe his live-in personal tutor onthe subject. Together,Crowley andhis tutor experimented with ceremonial magic and the ritualistic use of drugs. Independently, Crowley continued to explore his bisexuality and seek out prostitutes. But while this life for him was eye-opening and spiritual, higher- level members of the Golden Dawn considered it too libertine and refused toallow him entry into the upper levels. Having had enough of Europe after his stint with the Golden Dawn, Aleister Crowley traveled to Mexico, bringing to life his past dreams of mountain climbing. From there, he traveled to Japan, Hong Kong, Ceylon, and India. While in India, Crowley began practicing raja yoga, a Hindu meditation tradition. He later accompanied mountaineers in the frst-ever attempt to climb K2 in 1902. Travels Through Europe And FallingIn Love

RoseCrowley, Aleister’s irst wife. Bettmann/Getty Images

   In November of 1902,Crowley traveled back to Europe, settling in Paris and immersing himself inthe art world. Again, his lifestyle paintedquite a different picture than the one he was truly living,as he surrounded himself with famed artists like painter Gerald Kelly and sculptor Auguste Rodin. To the surprise of many, Paris was where Aleister Crowley fell in love. Gerald Kelly introduced Crowley to his sister Rose during a meeting, after which the two married. At frst, the marriage was one “of convenience” to prevent her from entering an arranged marriage. But before long, the two fell in love for real. Crowley even set aside his profane, dark writings,and penned his wife several love poems. Despite theirinitial arrangement, Rose and AleisterCrowley could not be a more perfect pair. Rose accompanied Aleister on his journeys and went along with his schemes,and indeed it was through her that Crowley found theinspiration to begin his own religion. The Birth Of Thelema,Aleister Crowley’s Infamous New Religion While Rose was meditating, she informed Aleister that the Egyptian god Horus was waiting for him. In 1904, through his own meditation, he heard the voice of Aiwass, the personal messenger of Horus. Using the words of the messenger and Horus himself, Crowley transcribed The Book of the Law, the book that would becomethe basis of his new religion, Thelema. Themain teaching of Thelema was a similarprinciple to the one that Crowley had lived by his whole life: “Do what thou wilt.” The teachings were intended to act as a successorto the Hermetic Order of theGolden Dawn and were seen as extremely similarto theirs.

   In 1907,Crowley founded the occult order, naming it theA∴A∴. Crowley devoted almost all of his time to building the order, writing its literature, and creating a periodical for its members. A TumultuousPersonal Life In The Era Of Two World Wars

Roseand Aleister Crowley and their second daughter, Lola Zaza Crowley. Wikimedia Commons

While Crowley was consumedby the words of Horus and his desire to feed themasses information about the occult, his wife was descending into her own darkness of full-blown alcoholism. Meanwhile, their daughter Lilith had died of typhoid in 1906. Despitethe illness, Crowley still blamedher death on Rose’s inability to get a grip on the world around her. Despite her apparent failure to remain sober, Rose and Aleister had another daughter, Lola, who was entrusted solely to Rose’s care upon the pair’s divorce in 1909. Eventually, Rose was committed to an institution in 1911. The bulk of AleisterCrowley’s life after his divorce was spent floating from cityto city, as he had before, picking up several “scarlet women” along the way, one of whom allegedly bore him a son, who he named AleisterAtatürk. His travels were dogged by rumors that he was working as a British intelligence spy, as several countries he drifted through were coincidentally under investigation by the Brits. He continued to publish occult manuscripts and engage in sex with prostitutes in the years during World War I.

Aleister Crowley in 1921. Keystone/Getty Images

By 1920, he’d moved to Sicily, where he established the Abbey of Thelema as hisheadquarters. There, he and his followers experimented with sex, drugs, anda series of bizarre rituals.

   But in1923, an Englishman diedunder mysterious circumstances afterone ritual where heallegedly consumed the blood of a cat.Mussolini’s government was so appalled that they bannedCrowley from Italy, forcing the headquarters to close and the group to disperse. Butthat didn’t mean Crowley was done. He soon found an assistant who helped him transcribehis teachings and publish his books. And by the late 1920s, he got remarriedto a Nicaraguan woman named MariaTeresa Sanchez, so that she could join him in Britain. During World War II, he rubbed elbows with known fgures from the intelligence community, such as Ian Fleming and Roald Dahl,though the rumors of Crowley’s involvement in actualintelligence were never confrmed. However, he did offer his servicesto the Naval Intelligence Division at one point — and he was turned down. On Dec. 1, 1947, Aleister Crowley died at age 72, his body giving out to chronic bronchitis. His funeral, dubbed the “Black Mass,” was only attended by a few of his closest friendsand associates — despitehis words reaching hundreds of thousands of people throughout the years. It seems that even thoughhe’d gained the infamy he’d always wanted, he was not remembered fondly as a person. However, friends and family assured everyone that he wouldn’t have wanted to be. The Complicated Legacy Of Aleister Crowley Though he was gone, the impactof Crowley lived on, not only in occultists – possibly the only people who remember him fondly – but also through writers, artists,philosophers, and musicians. Crowley’s image stands, amongst others, on the cover of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album, and his motto, “Do what thou wilt,” is inscribedon Led Zeppelin’s LedZeppelin III vinyl. David Bowie referenced him in the lyrics to “Quicksand,” and Ozzy Osbournepaid tribute to him with a whole song titled “Mr. Crowley.”

   Today, the legacy of Aleister Crowley is a collage of intrigue. Those who remember him often lend their ideas of him to his image as a cookie-cutter villain,an image that might not be too far off. His name is whispered with horror amongst devout Christians, with skepticism amongst conspiracy theorists, and with awe amongstthe occultists and pagans. Ultimately, Crowley’s goal was achieved – no matter what they say when they whisper his name, it’s still being whispered today. Now that you know about Aleister Crowley, the“wickedest man in the world,” read up on history’s most infamous cult leaders. Then, learn about the most interesting mad scientists of all time.

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Katie Serena   KatieSerena is a New York City-basedwriter and a staff writer at All That's Interesting. Sign Up For The ATI Newsletter Email Sign Up Previous Post  Geronimo: The Tragic True Story Of The Legendary... Next Post The Dyatlov Pass Incident: The Mysterious1959 Tragedy That... 

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Is The Theatre Royal Margate Britain's Most Haunted Theatre?

The Theatre Royal, Addington Street, Margate, Kent, is perhaps southern England's most haunted theatre. Opened originally in 1787, heir to over 200 years of tradition and holding slightly under two thousand patrons, this theatre. has been associated with many famous actors. Its most famous manager was Miss Sarah J Thorne, who guided its fortunes until 1894. Something of a martinet, Sarah Thorne made her theatre celebrated in the south of England, but from around 1894, the playhouse began to decline. Over the years it suffered a number of vicissitudes and was turned into a furniture store. It was reopened as a theatre in 1930 and subsequently it has been in turn a cinema, a theatre, and a bingo hall.

Fred Archer was probably the first to make a national story about the hauntings at the Theatre Royal, Margate. According to the local papers a progressive series of hauntings began in 1918, when the ghost of Sarah Thorne was first seen. Miss Thorne, incidentally, is believed to have come back to protest at the modern usage of the theatre, such as bingo and other gambling games. So frightening was her wraith to some witnesses that the police were called in to investigate, but they found nothing untoward.

Archer says that the theatre "where there is a trapdoor leading to what was a smuggler's cave" probably boasts the most diverse psychic happenings in. the theatrical world: "an orange-coloured ball of light"; "a scream which starts backstage and seems to travel across the stage and finally exits through the stagedoor" ; and "the appearance of a ghost in one of the boxes who draws back the curtains if they are closed."

The latter phenomenon was witnessed by Macqueen Pope, who believed this spectre to be an actor who had committed suicide by throwing himself from the box into the orchestra pit sometime in the early 1900's. Joseph Braddock dates the suicide to late Georgian or early Victorian times: An actor from a company playing at the theatre was dismissed for some reason, and on the next evening he bought himself a box for the performance. During the course of the play he committed suicide by throwing himself out of the box into the orchestra pit. Some time during the first decade of our century the wraith of a man was seen sitting in the box so often that the management was obliged to withdraw the box from sale, leaving it permanently curtained, until finally it was bricked up.

This, however, would predate the building of the Theatre Royal on the Addington Street site. Alternatively, the story as Braddock heard it could have referred to the eighteenth-century site of Margate's theatre tradition, and was perhaps a transference of the myth.

Modern testimony of the theatre's hauntings comes from Alfred Charles Tanner, who was interviewed about his sightings in 1966 by Dr. A. R. G. Owen, the distinguished Cambridge parapsychologist, and Victor Sims. Tanner, it appears, was working during January 1966 on the redecoration of the Theatre Royal when he encountered the ghostly happenings. In order that the redecoration should not interrupt the daytime bingo, Tanner had agreed to work through the night. His first night's work passed without incident dent, but during his second work stint he heard a series of sounds coming from the stage - as if someone were whispering. He stopped work for a few minutes to investigate, but could find no reason for the noises. Working on, he heard the natural creakings of the floorboards. Then, however, he heard the sounds of footsteps just in front of the stage and moving toward him. As he turned around to see who was there, the footsteps stopped. No one was to be seen. Suddenly, testifies Tanner, he heard the door of the box office bang violently. Again no one was to be seen. The decorator was entirely alone in the old theatre Tanner resumed painting in the hope that the unusual noises he had heard were "natural." Just as he was getting himself calm again, the phantom footsteps started once more. They came up behind him and halted when he turned. But this time there was something more eerie. Tanner heard an extremely heavy thump on the floor between the front row of seats and the stage-as though a heavy object had fallen there. Charles Tanner looked across at the spot: "I swear I saw the dust rising, just as it would if a real object had hit the carpet." Of course no object was visible, but could this have been the materialised impact of the ghostly suicide's cadaver hitting the floor? On the following night, Tanner was at work again when he was interrupted once more. This time he saw "a semi-transparent globular object measuring about ten inches across" moving across the stage from left to right. The globe latterly formed the shape of a head before it disappeared. This time Tanner saw curtains by the exit door being moved by an unseen hand.

The next working night Charles Tanner, who now had an assistant, Lawrence Rodgers, was haunted again. Both heard a curious bang from the dress circle. This time the police were called, but no intruders were found. Certain aspects of these hauntings - the slow movement of the curtains and the bangs and footfalls are typical of poltergeists, as set down by parapsychologists A. R. G. Owen and Raymond Bayliss. But the "face" remains more of an unaccounted mystery. Following the theories of G. W. Lambert, some persons have said that the "ghostly noises" had something to do with seismic disturbances. But can earthquakes cause localisation of phenomena in the theatre at Margate? Can it localise noises to one position only within a building? Hardly. Certainly the ghosts at the Theatre Royal, Margate, are best explained as poltergeists, with hallucination as a side effect in the case of the curtains and the "face"- almost as a form of mediumistic talent in terror. Above all the "atmosphere" of this theatre seems to be the most charged in Britain for psychic happenings. It's also worthwhile taking a look at some of the videos I've added to my You Tube page of some of the tv reports on the same subject. Here's a sample from an ITV kids programme 'It's A Mystery' from Sept 1996 dealing with unexplained phenomenons. This is the segment from the third show, with Sophie Aldred investigating the Theatre Royal Margate. Just use the link on the right to see others in my collection.

All credits for this article go to http://trm-archive.blogspot.co.uk/

#ghosthuntertours #theatreroyalmargate