Hypnogoria: Hypnogoria Halloween Advent Calendar - Door 06

Door 06 - Local Haunts

Transcript from the Into The Night radio show, broadcast on Radio Redvale, Thursday 5th October 2023

Time’s coming up to 10.45 PM and you’re listening to Mike Nelson, and I’ll be with you until midnight. We’ve got more tunes, more chat and hopefully more fun to round off your Thursday evening!

Now then, regular listeners may remember that last week I mentioned I’d seen something on the old tellybox about a village called Pluckley! And this little village in Kent has a claim to fame! It claims to be the most haunted village in Britain. Quite the boast! But friends, here’s the thing, they only have a dozen ghosts. Yes, that’s right, just twelve! And I thought that for the supposedly most haunted village in the land that was a bit low!

I grew up in Haggleton - which has a smaller population than Pluckley by the way - yes old Mikey checked - and I’m sure I remember hearing about loads of ghosts haunting this wonderful old place. So I asked you wonderful people out there in radioland to write in, and tell me about the ghost stories you grew up with here, in the Redvale! And by Jove, did you folks oblige! We got a record postbag, and I thought we’d start delving into them tonight! Can we beat Pluckley’s record? Well, let’s find out!

First up we had several letters concerning a spook that’s reputed to walk at Provost School, on James Road in Haggleton. The school opened in 1720, just a wooden building then, and was later rebuilt into the wonderful Victorian premises we know today. However while the original school may be gone, apparently one of the former masters isn’t! A figure of a stern looking man, dressed in a gown and mortar board, has been seen many times striding on the grounds apparently! Now a few of you wrote in to say you'd seen the old boy, however Mr A. J. Price has perhaps the most interesting story to relate. He writes -

Dear Mike, I cannot say I have seen a ghost, but I have certainly heard one! It happened when I was a pupil at Provost School back in the 1970s. One day in summer, me and a few of the chaps were playing cricket on the old playing fields. I was fielding and stood fairly near the cinder path that borders the playing field.

I distinctly heard footsteps approaching me, and yet when I looked round, there was no one in sight. However the footsteps continued. Coming nearer and nearer and then right past me, and then faded into the distance. Yet, there was absolutely no one to be seen. However the really strange thing is that the footsteps sounded like someone walking across a bare wooden floor, not the distinctive crunch of a cinder path. Later when I checked the floor plans in the library, I discovered that where I was standing was right in the middle of the old wooden school house!

Well sir, that’s quite the tale! Absolutely fascinating! Have any of you good folks heard these phantom footsteps? Do write in to the usual address! Ok, then moving on, time for one more before the news! Right then, the next letter is from Suzy Turner who has this to say -

Hi Mike

Hello to you too Suzy!

A few years ago we moved into an old Victorian house up on Benson Avenue. It was a lovely old place, three stories, lots of room for a young family. It needed some work, but as we are both keen DIYers so that wasn’t a problem. Like a lot of the older Victorian houses in Haggleton, there was an attic room which I fancied using as a home office.

It seemed perfect, nice gable windows, lots of light, lovely view and so forth. But I could never bear staying in there very long. It was always a bit cold and often there seemed to be a funny smell that seemed to come from the old cast iron radiator in there. It was awful - like spoiled meat, and it kept coming back no matter how many air fresheners I used, or how often I bleached the old radiator.

Then other things started happening. Little things started disappearing. Pens and pencils. I thought I was just being careless. But then childish scrawls started appearing on the walls. And then the noises started. Horrible little sounds - grunts and cackles. I know it is such cliché, but twice I swear I hear the sound of chains dragging.

The last straw was when I came up one morning to do some paperwork and found that snapped. There were teeth marks! Well, I never used the attic room again.

Ruddy hell, I’m not surprised Suzy, lordy lordy! Anyhow she continues -

We moved out soon after. I’ve seen the house up for sale quite a few times since. Have any of your listeners lived here? And why did they move out?

Well, you heard her folks! Anyone else know anything about an attic room on Benson Avenue? If so, write in! Ok then, Producer Raquel is signally wildly behind the glass that I have to wrap this up and go to another record to take us up to the news! So then, here’s the Eldritch Light Orchestra who are currently climbing the charts with this number - Carter’s Theme!