Haunted Adelaide

Did you know there are 3 separate (allegedly) haunting incidents reported on the ANZAC Highway?

1. The children at the Morphett Road crossing in their PJ's, sometimes seen covered in blood!

2. The ghost girl asking to be picked up and taken to her mother’s. There are police reports of this incident.

3. The family in their car who drive along next to you, stare at you, and then suddenly distort into a bloody cut-up mess like they've been in a car accident!

All this and more in Haunted Adelaide – available only at Amazon.

Buy it here: HAUNTED ADELAIDE

Allen Tiller - Paranormal Investigator of Eidolon Paranormal

Allen Tiller -  Paranormal Investigator at Eidolon Paranormal

My interest in the paranormal started at a very young age, I cannot tie it to one particular event, place or time, but one of my earliest memories is of reading a book written by Richard Winer called "The Devils Triangle", which I believe was my Grandfathers (He passed away before I was born)
 As a teenager, I watched the X-files and similar shows and started to follow the work of local UFO legend Colin Norris, as well as other local paranormal researchers.  I read and watched everything local Australian teams produced and spent a lot of time talking to people, and team members, about the things they discovered that didn't make it into the mainstream media. 
 I moved to Queensland in January 2002 and in that year went on my first "ghost tour". I was impressed with the history and stories but felt like I could find out more and possibly even debunk some of the stories with the use of research and common sense...I had already been doing this in my spare time in South Australia before moving to Queensland but in no official capacity
  Nudgee cemetery was close where I lived, and easily accessible for investigations, so I began by investing with a digital camera that had video, a temperature gauge and a compass...I experimented with different ways of doing things and slowly began to invest in more equipment - unfortunately I found nothing of the paranormal in this cemetery (however, that doesn't mean it isn't haunted, just that nothing happened for me).
 At the time I was also heavily into Genealogy and as part of that found myself at Lutwyche cemetery on Brisbane's north side, a cemetery with a reputation for the unusual, and happily, the stories I heard had some truth ...which piqued my interest even more!
Around this time I started unofficially using the name Eidolon Paranormal Research, often on forums, I would shorten it to EPR or Eidolon. I had already started to think about forming a team in Queensland but found it much harder than I had imagined, as there just didn't seem to be a public interest, and most teams were not interested in having new members - the same applied in South Australia
In 2006 I returned to Adelaide and started investigating solo, I got many cases through word of mouth alone, but was able to debunk almost every one of the hauntings just by the process of elimination, or through the interview process.
 I decided to start working on local legends and Urban myths, this led me back out to St. Johns Cemetery at Kapunda. I had visited St Johns in the late '90s, and walked through the then standing reformatory remains - even then thinking it would be a place to return to one day... 
 As I got closer to starting my team, I started testing the waters by taking friends out to cemeteries to see how they react to certain situations, for me it was a lesson about human nature, so I could better understand how people may contaminate evidence or a site without realising they are doing so, and finding out how people may react, or deal with their own fears...I also started watching other teams even closer and learning how they work internally, what their processes are, where their strengths and weaknesses lie, with the intention of adapting this information for my own use.
 I decided a team based on foundations of scientific research, rather than psychics and mediums would be the best fit for myself. From there Eidolon Paranormal Research became a formal Investigation team - without a team...
 I took the basic principles of other paranormal investigation teams and the Colin Norris UFO group and put my own spin on them. I wanted a much more public team than other groups. When I started out learning how to use electronic equipment and how to set up experiments and investigations, there was very little information available, just a few books and a little on-line - it was my aim to make more of this information accessible to the novice ghost hunter. Slowly I am starting to achieve this through the website. The idea is that, eventually, www.eidolonparanormal.com.au would be a hub of useful information for the novice getting started, or the seasoned professional, all easily accessible and in one place
In 2009 I started to search for people to join me to make Eidolon a team, it was in this year I also dropped the "research" part of the Eidolon Paranormal name
Whilst working on the legend of Schneider's Alley in the Adelaide Foothills, I came across Loz on a facebook group. We shared a similar point of view of hauntings and the paranormal in general. We began to discuss the history of the Schneider's alley area and the local castle and I became impressed by her approach and what she uncovered. It didn't take long to ask Loz to become a team member, and with her reply, Eidolon Paranormal became a team and not a solo project. (Loz left the team in early 2011 due to internal politics, as did many other members, causing the team to almost fold entirely )
 We also have had other members come and go over the past few years, and unfortunately, I got to see the darker side of human nature within my own team, that again left me without a team and investigations waiting. I asked my partner (now Wife) Karen, to join the team line-up and we haven't looked back since. A former team member, Jayde, also came back from her time travelling overseas, and, much like the phoenix from the ashes, Eidolon Paranormal was reborn a far more professional, stable, hard working, dedicated experimental team. 
 Another of my desires was to see a local paranormal discussion group in the Adelaide CBD.  At the time the only S.A. group was the X group that meet monthly on Wednesday night in the Adelaide hills - this wasn't possible for me to get too, and I am sure for others too. So, when I received an email about a location that would cost next to nothing, I asked the rest of the team what they thought, most thought it was a bad idea (In some ways they were right) - but knowing I wanted to get this idea of the ground, I decided to try the location, and my idea out anyway. The SA Paranormal Meet-ups began in June 2010, with only three people attending the first one, Myself (as Host), the person who helped arranged the location and a friend of his, I expected more, and could of ended the Meet-ups right there, but persisted, as I knew an audience would take time to grow.
 Eventually, the meet-ups were very successful when hosted in the Greenacres area near Adelaide, attracting a large number of loyal attendees, however, due to the premises usage being changed, and internal conflict in the team, we took a short hiatus from hosting the meet-ups. The S.A. Paranormal meet-ups have now returned, and are hosted in Kapunda "The Most Haunted Town In The Western World", the new format is much more relaxed, and is attracting many new and wonderful people, as well a lot of local Paranormal Investigation Teams

 S.A. Paranormal meet-ups became a monthly meeting point for like minded individuals to talk about their interests and experiences, and also a place for me to discuss methods, ideas and equipment. We have grown dramatically, the meet-ups now attracting teams from as far as Peterborough and Murray Bridge, and members of the public from Melbourne!
 I have a vision of where I wish to take Eidolon Paranormal, and I believe I have chosen the right people to help me achieve that vision...
I have been lucky in the fact that Eidolon Paranormal also has a strong network of supporters and friends that help us when they can, many choose to stay away from the public spotlight and have asked not to be named publicly - So with that in mind I want to state that your effort, support, interest and help never go unnoticed and unappreciated  -thank you (you know who are) - Allen

Most Recently my Journey has led me into Television alongside Robb Demarest, Gaurav Tiwari, Ian Lawman, Rayleen Kable and Ray Jorden on the Paranormal Reality television show "Haunting: Australia" which will air on Foxtel's "Syfy" channel in Australia in 2014
 Haunting: Australia: https://www.facebook.com/hauntingaustralia?fref=ts
Find me on Facebook  here: https://www.facebook.com/AllenHauntingAustralia?fref=ts

 

Paranormal Investigators: Past and Present:Special Edition: Dan Aykroyd

Dan Aykroyd

"Is there something strange...in your neighbourhood, who ya gonna call?

Born in Ottawa Ontario, Canada, on July 1st 1952 (Also “Canada Day”) Daniel Edward Aykroyd would grow up to be one of Canada’s leading comedians and actors.

Dan has had an amazing acting career, spanning television, theatre and movies, he has also recorded albums with The Blues Brothers Band. Dan also received an “Order Of Canada” award on October 21st 1998.

It is reported that Dan, in his early years suffered from Tourrettes Syndrome and is also a victim of “syndactylism” a birth defect where several digits are fused together.

Dan was also born with another very rare defect, “Complete Heterochromia”, his right eye is blue and his left eye is brown

Dan Aykroyd grew up in a Roman Catholic family, his great Grandfather, Samuel Aykroyd was a mystic who kept in contact with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, both being involved in the Spiritualist movement.

Dan's interest in the paranormal and spirituality was natural and accepted in the family, Dan stated of his upbringing
 “All that stuff (spiritualism and the paranormal) was hanging around the old farmhouse I grew up in, so I was kind of steeped in it”

Many know that Dan Aykroyd began his Television career in Canada, and soon became a star in the U.S.A. via Saturday night live, from which was born many of Dan's recognised characters, but most of you will, of course, remember Dan Aykroyd best from "Ghostbusters", where he played parapsychology professor, Dr Raymond Stantz, but, did you know that Dan Aykroyd is also an avid investigator of the paranormal, particularly Ufology?

Dan Aykroyd produced his own DVD, titled ”Dan Aykroyd: Unplugged on UFO's" in 2005 where he is candidly interviewed by Ufologist David Sereda. In the documentary, Dan discusses various aspects of UFO phenomenon.

Dan, in 2009 wrote the foreword for his psychic investigator brother, Peter Aykroyd's book titled “A History Of Ghosts” which looks into his families historical involvement with the Spiritualist movement. The book's inspiration comes from handwritten notes by Dan and Peters Father and their Grandfather, found in a locked trunk in their family home. Samuel Aykroyd and Dan's father Peter (Snr), regularly took part in seances to try and make contact with the dead, Samuel always kept notes on all that was happening and being said, on a press junket to promote the book Dan is quoted as saying:

"If you ever wanted to know anything about seances, mediums, everybody from (spiritual investigators) Sir Arthur Conan Doyle to Oliver Lodge to (Sir William) Crookes, (Emmanuel) Swedenborg, this is the encyclopaedia, this is the absolute definitive book for anybody who is interested in mediumship today or in the past."

Dan describes himself as a spiritualist in this quote;

“I am a Spiritualist, a proud wearer of the Spiritualist badge. Mediums and psychic research have gone on for many, many years... Loads of people have seen [spirits], heard a voice or felt the cold temperature. I believe that they are between here and there, that they exist between the fourth and fifth dimension, and that they visit us frequently.”

In 2007 Dan Aykroyd also made the news after reporting a ghost in his own Los Angeles Mansion. A home formerly owned by Ringo Starr of “The Beatles” and Mama Cass of “The Mama's and Papas”.

Dan believed at the time that it was Mama Cass haunting the property, moving items, turning appliances on and off, and even crawling into bed with him!

Dan Aykroyd also hosted the cult Canadian TV series “Psi: Factor – Chronicles Of The Paranormal” a scripted sci-fi/ paranormal drama dealing with cases based on the imaginary “Office of Scientific Investigation and Research", the show ran for 4 years spanning 88 episodes.

Recently Dan has been working on  Ghostbuster's themed games for various gaming consoles and helping write a new script for the much anticipated “Ghostbusters III”. Dan appears occasionally on U.S. Television talking about UFO-related phenomena and still continues his research and investigation into cases in Canada and the U.S.A.

http://naturalplane.blogspot.com.au/2009/10/dan-aykroyds-belief-in-paranormal.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/31/arts/31schi.html?_r=1

Researched and Written

By

Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.com.au

All content on “Eidolon Paranormal” site, blog and corresponding media pages (eg Facebook, twitter etc) is copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any means or process without the written permission of the author. © 2012

All photos remain the property of their respective copyright owners and are displayed here for the purpose of education, research and review under the copyright act "fair usage" clause.

Some photos used here on this site are sourced from The State Library of South Australia, and The National Library of Australia - all photos are out of copyright and have no usage restrictions implied.

Paranormal Investigators: Past and Present: Peter Underwood

"The Sherlock Holmes of Psychical Research"

Peter Underwood

 As probably the longest-serving paranormal investigator in the world today, Peter Underwood is well respected, admired and sought after for his vast knowledge on hauntings and other paranormal topics.

 A life member and president of “The Ghost Club Society” (founded in 1851, this being the third incarnation, founded in 1994) Peter Underwood has travelled the world recording anecdotes, stories, writing books and investigating the paranormal. To date, he has written over 50 books on hauntings and other phenomena.

Peter was born at Letchworth, Garden City in Hertfordshire, on the 16^th of May 1923. Privately educated, Peter Underwood was destined to become a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and one of the worlds leading experts on paranormal phenomena.

 It is recorded that Peter’s first supernatural experience was that of seeing an apparition of his Father on the day off his Father’s death, but it should also be noted that his Grandparents lived in a haunted home known as “Rosehall”, a 17^th century house that allegedly contained the ghost of a headless man – it is thought that this is the around the time Peter developed his interest in ghosts and other phenomena.

 

 Peter Underwood has investigated some fascinating cases, including Borley Rectory (Essex U.K.) with Harry Price, whom Peter would later become the executor of Harry’s estate.

 Other notable cases included The Church at Langenhoe, in Essex. The haunting included the Church, the Manor House and the surrounding yards, and is well documented in Peter Underwood’s book “Nights in Haunted Houses” (1994), the book also features another famous location that Peter investigated “The Queens House” at Greenwich

 

He spent 12 years, on and off, exploring the remarkable Langenhoe case of hauntings that extended to the manor house, the church and surrounding area; Peter thoroughly examined and researched the unique Greenwich ghost photograph - probably the best known "genuine" ghost photograph ever obtained, “The Tulip Staircase” photo (for more about this amazing photograph visit this link: http://www.nmm.ac.uk/about/history/queens-house/the-queen-s-house-ghost).

Another case of note investigated by Peter is the Police College “Bramshill” in Hampshire, built in 1621, which is said to house 9 spirits.

"Bramshill" build in 1621

 

 In his almost 50 years of investigating Peter has held many positions of importance including:

Life President, Ghost Club Society (founded 1851)

President, Unitarian Society for Psychical Studies

Patron, Paranormal Site Investigators

Patron, Ghost Research Foundation

Patron, Ghost Investigation

Life Member: Vampire Research Society

Fellow: Royal Society of Arts

Peter has also had memberships with The Society for Psychical Research, (SPR), Association for the Scientific Study of Anomalous Phenomena (ASSAP), The Society of Authors, just to name a few            

 

 Peter Underwood has also had extensive media coverage on radio and television. He has been seen on “Strange But True” and appeared in the TV film “The Ghost Hunters” (UK).

 

 Peter was married in 1944 to Joyce, who unfortunately passed away in 2003 after suffering Parkinson’s disease for 14 years. In 2004 Peter struck up a friendship with Marlena Sypniewska, of whom he travels the world.

 In recent years Peter has continued publishing books but has also become the patron of “The Ghost Research Foundation” which was founded in Oxford in 1992 and Patron of “Paranormal Site Investigators” in Swindon.

He was also featured in Jason Karl’s book “Illustrated History of the Haunted World” and is a contributor to a Boris Karloff biography.

 

In 2009, following the passing of his friend, the renowned parapsychologist Hanz Holzer, Peter was invited to write the obituary for The Guardian Newspaper.

 

In 2010 Peter was also featured in a 6-page spread in “Paranormal Magazine” written by John Stoker, who listed Peter Underwood as  "One of the most important figures in the paranormal investigation community”

 

In 2011 he published the book “Shadows in the Nave”

 

So far in 2012, Peter has released two books “Haunted Britain: A Gazetteer” and “Irish Ghosts: Ghost Hunters Guide” plus he has one book scheduled for release in 2013 “Haunted Farhnam” when he turns 90 years of age!

 

To contact Peter Underwood please write to:

 Savage Club, 1 Whitehall Place, London, SW1A 2HD.

  Further reading:

http://seminars.torontoghosts.org/blog/index.php/2007/04/18/weird_wednesday_with_chris_laursen_20

researched and Written by:

Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.com.au

Paranormal Investigators: Past and Present: Hans Holzer

Hans Holzer

Born in Vienna, Austria in 1920, Hans Holzer was destined to become a world-famous TV host, Author, Researcher, Parapsychologist and Paranormal Investigator. Credited with writing over 100 books on the paranormal and occult topics, Hans would also write plays and musicals.

Hans starred as host of the TV show “Ghost Hunter” (not to be confused with the current Ghost Hunters television show) and was also seen on “In Search of” starring Leonard Nimoy, the “Today” show, “History's Mysteries” and the more modern “A Haunting”.

Hans interest in the paranormal was sparked by his uncle Henry, who told him ghost stories as a child. Hans, who became a strict vegan at age 11, went on to study Archaeology and Ancient History at the University of Vienna. In 1938, as World War II closed in, the family fled to New York City to avoid the oncoming conflict.

After his arrival in America, Hans went on to learn the Japanese language and studied religion and parapsychology at Columbia University. Later Hans went on to teach parapsychology classes at the New York Institute of Technology

Hans Holzer is often credited for coining the term “Ghost Hunter” after his first book in 1963, but, Harry Price (who we profiled in a previous story) had already used the term in the title of one of his books “Confessions of a Ghost Hunter” in 1936.

Hans is also often credited for coining other phrases and terminology still used today in the paranormal community such as “The Other Side (of Life)”.

Hans Holzer believed that ghosts were imprints left on the physical plane's environment that people, who were sensitive enough, could perceive, or “pick-up”. He believed Spirits were intelligent beings, able to communicate and interact with the living, whilst “Stay behinds” were souls bound to Earth after death (for reasons not yet known).

Holzer also believed in “levels of consciousness” and reincarnation.

Many of today’s theories regarding paranormal investigation, particularly those involving spirits, or ghosts, are directly influenced by Hans Holzer's body of work and case studies.

The case with the widest notoriety for Hans Holzer would have to be the infamous Amityville Haunting in Suffolk County, New York. Amityville came to the fore after Ronald Defeo Jr. shot and killed 6 members of his family in 1975. Then again in 1977 when the Lutz family claimed the house to be haunted, of which there has been much conjecture to the validity of the haunting since.

Amityville House

Hans wrote a non-fiction book about the Amityville murders entitled “Murder in Amityville” which was released in 1979, he later wrote two novel titles “The Amityville Curse” and “The Secret Of Amityville” released in 1981 and 1985 respectively.

The book “Murder in Amityville” would later be the basis for the screenplay of a movie released in 1982 titled “Amityville II: The Possession”

During an interview about the goings-on at Amityville Hans Holzer made a statement that rang true with us here at Eidolon Paranormal. When asked by the interviewer;

“Can you tell us your first impressions of the house when you arrived?”

Hans replied with;

“I don't get impressions as I am not a medium. My job is to investigate the facts”

Obtaining a PhD from the London College of Applied Science, Hans travelled the world extensively in search of first-hand reports and interviews on phenomena, interviewing paranormal researchers everywhere he went.

Hans Holzer referred to himself as “A scientific investigator of the paranormal”. He disliked the words “supernatural” and “belief” because supernatural implied that phenomena were not in the reach of explanation by science, and belief suggested irrational adherence to doctrines and ideas not supported by facts.

He had a dislike of electronic gadgets that are the core of paranormal investigations today, instead, he used psychic mediums for direct contact with any spirits present.

In an interview with Leonard Nimoy for the series “ In Search Of”, Hans is quoted as stating

“In all my years of Ghost Hunting I have never been afraid, after all, a ghost is only a fellow human being in trouble”

Hans Holzer died on April 26, 2009, aged 89, he is survived by his two daughters and many grandchildren. One of Hans daughters, Alexandra Holzer, author of “Growing Up Haunted” will be the subject of a future presentation

Researched and Written by

Allen Tiller © 2012

www.eidolonparanormal.com.au

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/30/books/30holzer.html

http://www.amityvillefiles.com/2009/05/05/hans-and-alexandra-holzer/

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/30/books/30holzer.html