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David Farrant

Dreaded Hallowe’en (Ashcroft Park near Luton)

David Farrant at Highgate 1999

 FOREWORD

Well, its upon us again . . . the dreaded Hallowe’en: the night when the ‘spirits of the dead’ are supposed to be at their closest to the earthly realm and can even converse (supposedly) with their human counterparts.

That is the popular belief anyway: a belief which has its origins in antiquity.

I’m not so sure about that, as stories of ‘ghostly encounters’ seem  to occur at any given times,  and would not appear to necessarily coincide about traditional dates on the human calendar.

The following account would appear to be one such example, although Hallowe’en would seem to be an appropriate time to relate the facts as these were conveyed to myself a few years ago as part of a Society investigation..

Time means little in the esoteric sense.   So with that in mind, the following account may be just as relevant to the present as other days might have had in passing . . .

 

MYSTERIOUS ENCOUNTERS

IT WAS A DARK NIGHT, but various shadows still managed to manifest in the dim moonlight. Little else was visible on the remote hillside; but it was a well-known beauty spot. Most avoided it by night, however, preferring to visit it in the relative comfort  of day….
ASHCROFT PARK, near Luton has for long been associated with stories of ‘ghosts’ and other unexplained happenings; not least, with stories of strange lights in the sky put down by many to be UFO’s. Reported by many locals, these ‘spasmodic lights’ would appear to be closely comparable with similar reports of unexplained lights seen in the skies over the years; particularly at Warminster, a small town located on the Western fringes of Salisbury Plain where mysterious lights reported in the sky are a common occurrence.

These mysterious lights are often seen ‘flying’ below low cloud; sometimes hovering before disappearing out of view at an unbelievable speed. A strange similarity would appear to relate to Ashcroft Park where similar ‘strange lights’ have been reported; and as a further point of interest, it could be added, that many sightings of ‘ghosts’  and other unexplained phenomenon just happen to occur at locations where UFO’s have reported to have been seen …

One instance of UFO’s and their possible connection with ‘ghostly phenomena’ (at least, as we understand these on a material level) came to my attention  fairly recently …

The year was 1975, and a small band of ‘bikers’ from the  district used to meet regularly at Ashcroft Park their focal point being an old recreation centre known as the “Wreckie”, in the middle of the Park itself. These meetings were always cordial and friendly, but on one particular night two members of the  group had an extraordinary experience on their way to meet the others …

Andrew Fazekas, from nearby Luton, was with a friend and is convinced to this day that what they both witnessed at Ashcroft all those years ago, was not the product of their imagination …They had gone to the park late one Autumn’s afternoon when all of a sudden, walking up the long driveway that led to the “Wreckie”, both got a distinct impression of ‘being watched’. The surrounding area, at least, seemed to have gone cold, and an ominous black cloud was looming on the horizon. Heavy rain seemed imminent but did not appear, although there was a light drizzle.

Suddenly, they looked up attracted by a luminous glow in the sky. They both saw it; an eerie light behind the clouds that seemed to ‘pulsate’ as they watched. Then they both distinctly saw  two ‘figures’ peering down at them from behind the cloud where they had first noticed the light. They were semi-transparent and were illuminated by the strange light which appeared to emanate from behind the cloud. Their perception of this phenomenon was acute; or rather, their awareness of it had suddenly been seized as if by some ‘magnetic attraction’. Slowly but surely, the figures then disappeared behind the cloud and the mysterious light that had illuminated them so clearly slowly vanished as inexplicably as it had appeared.

Needless to say, both Andrew and his friend left the Park as quickly as possible, but yet another encounter at the same location just two days afterwards was to deter them from going near that particular area again ….

They were approaching the “Wreckie” – this time by night – when they both noticed a ‘whitish shape’ coming towards them along the path. As it got nearer, the distinct outline of a woman in a white dress could be seen, floating above the ground but without any head. It abruptly disappeared but the atmosphere of gloom and melancholy it left behind was unmistakable.

These occurrences (notwithstanding the deep impression they left upon Andrew Fazekas and his friend) would appear to bear out other local stories and superstitions about ‘strange events’ that occur within the precincts of the Park. There are many well known tales of a ‘woman in white’ that walks the grounds, for example, but interestingly, Ashcroft Park has for long been reported as a focal point for mysterious lights in the sky and (perhaps like Warminster) been associated with stories of UFO’s.

Some of these reports are nebulous, being a mixture of local gossip and counter-fact; but the stories exist and one is only left to wonder if there might be some cause that could give rise to their validity.   Forgetting stories about ‘UFO’s’, it could be questioned if there could be any connection between reports of these and other unexplained phenomena  that just happen to occur with their alleged vicinity.

Or to put it another way around, whether some ghostly phenomena at some reputedly ‘haunted sites’, may be responsible for ‘projecting energy’ that has been seen or interpreted  as ‘UFO’s’?

© David Farrant

 

The above case was first published in David Farrant’s book :  ‘Dark Journey – True cases of ghostly phenomena from the files of the British Psychic and Occult Society.’

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5 Responses

  1. Dear David
    Hope you are well. I must confess I hate Halloween, usually plagued by gangs of teenage lads in hideous masks banging on the door. Your account of the UFOs sighted at Ashcroft park was interesting. I know amongst some UFOlogists there is the view that UFOs are of paranormal or inter-dimensional origin. Some UFOlogists ( John Keel,Gordon Creighton, for instance ) went further and expressed the belief that UFOs were some form of demonic manifestation. I’m rather sceptical in regard to UFOs, I think the vast majority of sightings have a mundane explanation. Saying that though, I am convinced that we are not the only intelligent (not sure if would call humans intelligent) life in the universe.
    Regards Matt

  2. Thanks Matt,
    Nice to hear from you again.
    Interesting that you should mention the UFO connection and I was well aware of this possibility when I wrote up the article. But I chose to do it just by relaying the facts (as these were told to me) rather than interject with personal opinion.
    Personally, I think there may well be some connection between ‘mysterious lights’ seen in the sky and ‘earth forces’ – and in turn, with many unexplained phenomena that manifest (‘ghosts’ if you like) on the earth’s surface.
    Like yourself, I suspect’ I do not accept that these lights are ‘alien spacecraft’ (though I of course accept that life must exist on some of the countless billions of planets out there) and believe even less that these are connected with Satan or the so-called devil.
    I might just do a seperate article on this soon as I’ve certainly accumulated enough information over the years.
    Thanks again Matt and hopefully we will be in touch again soon.
    For now,
    David

  3. devils and demons–and vampires are made ridicule on all hallows eve, apparently thats why nobody has made a fuss over harry potter as it is all rather silly special affects and not serious! dont know as i havent read any just seen a few bits by chance on tv and was soon bored witless,
    raining cats and dogs here
    tata barbara
    ps david i just remembered the mystery mag board, but havent looked in my files yet! too busy busy!

  4. This Ashcroft Park affair is important, because it shows that there is some kind of connection between sightings of strange lights in the sky, which many people think may be extraterrestrial spacecraft, and spectral figures which are usually taken to be spirits of the dead. As Matt points out, a few writers like John Keel and Gordon Creighton have recognised that these things are linked, but most overlook this. They either want to prove that the strange lights come from Zeta Reticuli, or they want evidence of life after death, but ‘never the twain shall meet’. Any attempt to explain these things ought to start with an impartial survey of the facts, but that is what we seldom get.
    Gareth J. Medwy

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