Doris Birch is a resident of Margaret Court on King’s Road in the Canterbury town of Herne Bay. The 73-year-old became so frightened and frustrated at an apparent petering poltergeist that she went to the local papers for help.
It seems that the ghost has a thing for groping people.
In This is Kent, Birch notes;
“It’s like an octopus. It started four months ago. I was lying in bed when I felt this creepy pair of hands.
“I kicked frantically and it went away. Next time it came I hurled the duvet on to the floor!
“But the ghost keeps coming back. I’ve tried sleeping without the duvet. But it started shaking my mattress.
“I even threw the mattress off the bed and bought a new one but it has made no difference.
“I told my 16-year-old granddaughter and she was gobsmacked. She said I must be joking.
“People are going to think I am mad but it is as real as the day to me. I’m not lonely. I love living alone.
“But this is very creepy and is giving me the jitters. It’s harassing me. I need to call in the Ghostbusters.
“I told the vicar and he said it is a lost spirit. What I want to know is, why has it got lost in my flat?”
Doris’ experiences sound very similar to the symptoms of hypnagogia but the local press makes no mention of a doctor being involved.
King’s Road appears to be in a modern area of Herne Bay. As you would expect it’s not far from the sea and it’s near the Kavanagh Cinema and Herne Bay Junior School. Google Maps doesn’t reveal any nearby graveyards or Churches although King’s Road does include the entrance to Memorial Park.
Herne Bay Memorial Park was completed in 1930 as a memorial to those that lost their lives in the First World War.
Methodist Minister Hugh-Nigel Sheehan of Mortimer Street’s United Church admits the grandmother approached him for help.
“I was approached by Mrs Birch but I fear I am not in a position to help. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.
“I have no expertise in this at all. I am neither a trained counsellor nor from a church with a tradition of exorcism such as the Catholic Church. It is very difficult to know how to respond.”
It does not sound as if the Methodist Church was much good to Birch.
However, reporters at This Is Kent contacted the husband-and-wife team of Ray and Beryl Herne who have experience as ghost-hunters and mediums. They plan to use a ‘vortex of light’ in order to send the spirit back to the other side.
In the paper, Beryle Herne said;
“Sometimes spirits need to be here. There is usually a reason. Sometimes it’s family. Sometimes we have to alleviate some stress.”
In Pure Spirit
Do you have any experience of paranormal activity in or around this area?
Do you think this is just a case of hypnagogia and the local media bringing in ghost-busters in order to sell papers?
Creative Commons Credit: Pam Fray.