Monster Diary: Sunday Radio

On Sunday night, I'll be on Ken Gerhard's Search for Hidden Beasts show where I'll be talking about my latest book, Monster Diary: On the Road in Search of Strange and Sinister Creatures.

Here's the link to Ken's show, where you can find all the info.

Monsters of the Midlands

There's a new post from me at Mysterious Universe that delves into a number of stories I've collected over the years of what may be large eels roaming the waters of the UK, and specifically the Midlands area. In fact, very large eels!

The article begins likes this:

"Any mention of large, serpent-like monsters lurking in the waters of the British Isles inevitably conjures up imagery of the nation’s most famous cryptozoological creature, Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster. Or monsters. Indeed, if not some strange Fortean phantasm (which I don’t actually rule out), then there would have to be an entire colony of such things in the loch, given that sightings have been reported for many a year. But, regardless of the true nature of Nessie, sometimes it’s not necessary to travel to ancient lochs to find tales of terrible things lurking in the dark depths. Sometimes, you can find them right in the heart of the city, which is something I note in my new book, Monster Diary: On the Road in Search of Strange and Sinister Creatures.

"Back in the late 1980s, when I was working as both a fork-lift and a van driver for a company in the West Midlands, England town of Walsall, I heard a number of noteworthy stories pertaining to sightings of huge violent eels, which were said to roam the dark, winding canals of both the nearby city of Birmingham, and certain rural areas of the adjacent county of Staffordshire. Rather like some 1950s era street gang from the Bronx, they seemed to travel in packs, prepared to take on just about anything and everything that had the misfortune to cross their path."

And here's the complete article.

The photo above - taken by me a couple of years ago - shows one of the stretches of Birmingham canal in question where at least one of the eels was reportedly seen back in the '80's.

Final Events & Ray Boeche

Back in 2010, I wrote what was probably my most controversial book ever: Final Events. It was a book that looked into the controversy surrounding a deeply-buried think-tank-style group in the US Government that concluded not only did UFOs exist, but they were nothing less than demonic in origin.

The reason - in fact, the only reason - I learned of the group's existence was because back in 2007 I interviewed a man who met with a couple of its members, under very cloak-and-dagger circumstances, in late 1991 in Lincoln, Nebraska.

That's man's name is Ray Boeche, both an Anglican priest and a long-time researcher of the UFO phenomenon.

Although I missed it when it surfaced a week or so ago, there's a new online interview with Ray that you can find right here, and which delves deep into his research, thoughts and much more of a ufological nature.

The Lady of the Lake

There's a new article from me at Mysterious Universe on a subject that I don't usually delve into much (as it bores me rigid), and it's ghost-hunting.

But, in the case I refer to in the MU feature, I have made an exception, since the story in question had its origins pretty much on one of my old doorsteps.

And it all begins like this...

"It’s strange how, sometimes, profound and intriguing mysteries of the supernatural variety can turn up pretty much on your very own doorstep. A perfect, paranormal case in point: the spectral young woman of White Rock Lake, Dallas, Texas, where I lived from January 2004 until the summer of 2008. Indeed, my apartment practically backed on to the very shores of the lake itself, which made the mystery even more inviting to me.

"Built in 1911 as Dallas’s very first reservoir, White Rock Lake has nearly ten miles of shoreline, thick trees, a long and winding path for walkers and cyclists, and is home to more than thirty kinds of mammal, including possums, bobcats, and red foxes, more than fifty types of reptiles, and around two hundred kinds of bird. But, it’s the supernatural, rather than the natural, which occupies our very own study of what may lurk deep within the dark waters and shadows of White Rock Lake."

And here's my complete post.

PS: The photo above shows good mate Jon Downes - Director of the Center for Fortean Zoology - when we hung out at the lake for an afternoon in 2010.

Lair of the (Very Weird) Beasts

My latest Lair of the Beasts column at Mania.com expands on some of my ideas concerning the Fortean overtones present in many cases of a cryptozoological nature that I've investigated over the years. And they amount to many of the cases that I detail in my just-published book, Monster Diary: On the Road in Search of Strange and Sinister Creatures...

The Real Men in Black: Chinese Edition

For those who might be interested, a Chinese edition of my 2011 book, The Real Men in Black, has just been published.

Don't ask me where you can get it from though, as I have no idea! Aside from going to China, of course!

Magonia Reviews "The World's Weirdest Places"

 

 

Magonia review my recently published book, The World's Weirdest Places, and say in part:

"One of the first things that one notices is Mr Redfern’s animated demeanour. It is what is generally known as infectious. His passion for his subject jumps, as the old saw has it, off the page and jollies the reader along in the manner of a cheery, yet knowledgeable tour guide. There is certainly a positive quality akin to good, old-fashioned storytelling about his narratives that leads an unsuspecting reader into some truly odd places. And my, but those places are very odd indeed! Forests where werewolves sprint into the ancient woodland, black dogs glare from baleful, red eyes that threaten impossibly from fairy tales, long-past underground civilisations made from gold; all of these wonders and yet more are waiting to be discovered by those looking for the less usual happenings in our own world."

 

And here's the full review...

A British Bigfoot: In Kent...

From Britain's Daily Mail newspaper, Bigfoot in Kent:

And here's an extract from the article, to give you an idea of what's afoot:

"It is an historic and quaint 'middle England' town which doesn't really like creating a scene. But if the reports of one terrified walker are to be believed, the residents of Royal Tunbridge Wells could have a giant Bigfoot-like creature in their midst. A man walking in the woods beside the town's common claims to have spotted an 8ft tall beast with demonic red eyes and long arms."

Cases like this abound all across Britain, but, even the most cursory of studies of cases like this make it very clear that the British Bigfoot is not a flesh and blood beast, but something far stranger.

I'll very soon have more words to say about the British Bigfoot. In fact, about 120,000 of them...

Keep watching this space...

The Legacy of the Red Lion

A couple of days ago I received an email from a man named David Mcavoy II, who has a new book out right now with somewhat of a cryptozoological tinge to it.

Here's David to tell you more...

The book is called The Legacy of the Red Lion and is the first in the Swords & Sails series, a set of young adult books about a young man named Edward Reynolds who finds himself forced aboard a pirate ship called the Cerberus. Along with pirates, ghosts, a powerful Sea Witch, and his own country's navy, Edward and his crew find themselves facing a sea serpent as they round the Cape of Good Hope:

Edward helped Kana along, guiding her weak and shaky legs toward the railing. Suddenly the ship lurched, causing everyone to stagger about and Kana to fall.
 

"What the devil?" Wolfang snarled from the helm. "Squid, did we hit something?"

"Oy! Can't see that we did Captain!" Squid called back.
 

"Edward." Kana whispered.

Edward turned to her, finding her pale and frightened.

"What's wrong?" He asked her.

"Danger...We're all in danger..."

Everything grew still and quiet on the Cerberus and Edward found himself stepping toward the railing to look over the side, fear gripping at his chest and throat as he looked from the terrified Kana down to the sea below. There, as he stared down into the sea, he saw something large move in the waters below-a thick, green, slimy looking something that moved from side to side before slipping under the boat.

"There's something under us!" He shouted back to the others.

Before anyone could react a massive form exploded from the water on the port side of the ship away from Edward. Water poured off the massive creature's body in a torrent as the enormous, eel like sea serpent shook its head and neck from side to side, raising it as high as the tallest mast and hissing down at the Cerberus, opening its mouth to reveal dozens of huge, jagged teeth.

The choice of location for the encounter was inspired by the account of the H.M.S. Daedalus and its encounter with a sea serpent. I have a life long interest in cryptozoology and future installments in the series will also have cryptozoological influences in them.

Anyone interested can pick up the book here: http://www.piratenovel.com

Or follow me on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/davidmcavoyII

Or goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6526107.David_McAvoy_II

The Weirder Side of Cryptozoology

There's a new post up from me at Mysterious Universe that digs into some of the weirder cryptozoological/strange animal stories that appear in my new book, Monster Diary: On the Road in Search of Strange and Sinister Creatures.

As I note in the article:

"The book is written in definitive road-trip style, and covers my many and varied investigations of strange creatures from early 2009 to late 2011. But, there’s something else, too. It’s something that will likely get mainstream Cryptozoologists, Ufologists, ghost-hunters, and investigators of the paranormal in states of fury. And, no doubt, it will provoke a great deal of eye-rolling and head-shaking, too. What is it? I’ll tell you! The numerous examples I cite in the book where bizarre beasts, supernatural phenomena, and UFOs have all crossed paths; time and again, and to deeply significant degrees."

Here's the link...

Quoting Moseley: Contactees and MIB

In the wake of the sad passing of Jim Moseley, I thought I would share with you a few notable quotes that Jim made to me on the several occasions when I interviewed him for my books.

The first one comes from my Contactees book and focuses on Jim's words (highly insightful words, I think it's fair to say) on the controversial Contactee George Adamski, which, I'm pretty sure, got close to the truth about the man who (allegedly!) met the Space Brothers.

Jim said...

“When I met him, Adamski was in his classic mode of the great guru. You could go to him at Palomar without an appointment and he would be sitting there, holding court, and talking to all the people that came in. He seemed like a pleasant sort. He couldn’t prove anything: you had the choice of believing him or not. Now, whether he was genuine or not, he did have a background with the Royal Order of Tibet. Then he wrote his science fiction story, Pioneers of Space, which turned out to be very similar to his later UFO book. I don’t think he literally believed everything he said. But I think what he said was in-line with a personal philosophy that he may very well have taken seriously."

Jim continued:

“I think with Adamski it was like this: if I say ‘I’m Jim Moseley, and I believe in world-peace, love and saving the environment,’ people won’t care. Why should they? But if I say that a spaceman called Orthon told me that we should love each other; well, that certainly gives it more meaning. I think that is one of the big things behind the Contactee movement. They believed in what they were saying; but they needed a higher authority to get it across. Like in religion, you need God. Adamski needed Orthon.”

Moving on, back in September 2010, I interviewed Jim about his views on Albert Bender’s now-legendary claims to have been visited by the Men in Black in the early 1950s.

As the interview progressed, Moseley practically shouted down the telephone to me that: “This is funny: there’s something wrong with the phone here! The longer I talk the more static I get!"

As I noted in The Real Men in Black regarding this odd case of phone interference:

"...Perhaps the souls of [Gray] Barker and [John] Keel decided to turn the tables, and duly partook in a few tricks from the other-side on Moseley. Or, maybe, the Men in Black – so oddly keen on playing disruptive games with our telephones – were engaging in a few Trickster-like shenanigans of their very own on Moseley and me. Given that Moseley is skeptical of much of the MIB lore, possibly, in their own unique way, the Tricksters were trying to tell him that he should not be quite so skeptical, after all."

Well, maybe, now, Jim finally knows the truth behind the MIB, the Contactees and all the rest!

Jim Moseley RIP

Sad news from Loren Coleman:

"Fortean friend, ufology humorist, and writer James W. Moseley, 81, died Friday night, November 16, 2012. He passed away at a Key West, Florida, hospital, several months after being diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus.

"Upon hearing of the death of Moseley, Anomalist Books publisher and editor Patrick Huyghe said: 'He was one of the last remaining old timers from the golden age of flying saucers. Goodbye, Jim.'"

And here's Loren's fine tribute to Jim.

Cryptids and Circuses

Over at Mysterious Universe, I have a new post up that deals with one of the regularly-trotted out theories for bizarre beasts in our midst. Namely that they're circus-escapees. We can never rule out the possibility of some escapes from circuses.

But, the sheer number makes it clear - to me, anyway - that this explanation is pretty much ongoing folklore...

And here's how I begin...

"One of the many and varied explanations put forward to try and explain away the presence in our midst of strange beasts and creatures – 'Cryptids,' as they’re known within the fields of Cryptozoology and monster-hunting – is that they’re nothing stranger than zoo-escapees. Some might say that the theory is a highly plausible one. Well, I would agree to a degree, were it not for one important and undeniable fact: such tales have been dutifully trotted out on so many occasions now that it’s abundantly clear they, themselves, are nothing more than folklore-in-the-making. Let’s take a look…"

A Diary of Monsters: New Book

Anomalist Books have just published a new book from me: Monster Diary: On the Road in Search of Strange and Sinister Creatures.

Written in first-person style, the book chronicles my on-the-road investigations of all-things cryptozoological from early 2009 to late 2011. And here's the AB background-info on the book...

MONSTER DIARY is the latest saga in Nick Redfern’s ongoing series of worldwide road-trips in search of strange creatures and terrifying beasts.

In this transatlantic trek, Redfern is hot on the trail of...a Mothman-like creature in Wisconsin; giant eels that lurk in the canals of Birmingham, England; a spectral mammoth and a ghostly big-cat in American woods; Bigfoot in New Mexico; a Chupacabras in the wilds of Oklahoma; vampire-like beasts roaming the valleys of Wales; and California’s very own shape-shifting Skinwalkers.

MONSTER DIARY reveals that many of the unknown animals of our planet are not all they seem to be. They may appear to be flesh-and-blood creatures, but is that what they really are?
Redfern sets out to prove that the true nature of the fearsome creatures that dwell in dark and shadowy woods, atop imposing mountainous peaks, and within the depths of murky lakes and rivers can only be understood with a knowledge of ancient rituals designed to conjure up foul life forms from some terrible realm, ominous sacrificial ceremonies undertaken in the dead of night, and disturbing occult rites.

Monsters do exist. Monsters are among us. But they are not what you probably think there are.

George Hunt Williamson: A Contactee Profiled

There's a new post up at UFO Digest from Sean Casteel that delves deep into the controversy-filled life of one of the most enigmatic of all the 1950s Contactees, George Hunt Williamson.

You can find the article at this link, which digs into countless issues, including the matter of the man's "government file" and what officialdom thought about him and concluded about him - matters I detailed in a lengthy paper that can be found in the recently-republished edition of Williamson's book, Road in the Sky.

Casteel begins:

"George Hunt Williamson, one of the major players on the UFO contactee scene of the 1950s, continues to be a shadowy, hard-to-define personality in the years since his death in 1986. He embodied a great deal of the contactee era’s optimistic faith in Space Brothers as the saviors of our planet and would be crucial to the formation of a large portion of accepted New Age doctrine. But he also had ties to a neo-fascist organization and was investigated by the FBI as a possible communist propagandist. He claimed degrees in anthropology that could never be verified, even while he traveled throughout the Americas collecting legends and stories from various indigenous peoples about visits from those same Space Brothers and their help in establishing functioning tribal communities. He would change his name to suit the occasion, sometimes calling himself Brother Philip, or by the Serbian moniker Michael d’Obrenovic."

Spying on the Saucer Seekers

There's another new post from me at Mysterious Universe, this one on how the world of officialdom keeps secret watch on what's afoot in the UFO research arena.

It begins as follows:

"Some people will tell you it’s totally untrue. It’s not. Others will say it’s unfounded. Dead wrong. And probably more than a few will claim it’s nothing but paranoia run rampant. Wrong again. What is it? Well, I’ll tell you: it’s the claim that Intelligence agencies not only monitor UFO activity, but carefully take note of what is being said on the subject at conferences around the world, too; even to the extent of sitting in the audiences and carefully making notes or recording every word that comes out of the mouths of the speakers. Think I’m wrong? Read on."

And here's where you can find the complete article...

The Horrors of Hopton Heath

There's a new post up from me at Mysterious Universe that focuses upon two of the strangest stories to have ever crossed my path. That both of them came from the same area - the site of a famous, centuries-old military confrontation in central England, the Battle of Hopton Heath, makes the whole thing even weirder.

I begin the article like this:

"Sometimes, as a writer of mysteries of the paranormal kind, I end up being the recipient of tales that are not just bizarre; they’re actually beyond bizarre! And what is without doubt one of the absolute oddest, and potentially most disturbing, stories I have ever heard came from a family who, in an October 2000 interview with me, maintained that, in 1979, while driving near the site of the 1643 Battle of Hopton Heath, Staffordshire, England, they came across a shocking sight: namely, the badly damaged body of a very strange-looking young woman sprawled at the side of the road 'that looked like a hit-and-run.' The woman, says the resolutely-anonymous family, was naked, had a head of long, dark hair, a mouth full of elongated teeth, and a pair of legs that were fused together below the knees,'like a seal' Yep, distinct shades of mermaids, no less.

"The story – provided to me when I was writing a weekly column in England’s Chase Post newspaper at the time, called The C-Files – gets even more controversial by the claim that the family elected not to inform the authorities of what they had found, and quickly continued on their journey. To this day, their action, or, far more accurately, their utter lack of action, hangs over them like a veritable sword of Damocles; or so they collectively assert, at least."

And here's the link to the complete piece.

Britain Gone Wild!

The BBC tells an interesting story - at its website - of animals of the distinctly out of place kind that once walked Britain...

Book Pleasures: Q&A

Over at Book Pleasures, there's a new interview with me that is a bit different to most interviews I do. Whereas the bulk of them are on the subjects of my latest releases, this one focuses more upon the process of writing in general, my attitude towards writing, my mentors, and more.

As an example, here's an extract from the interview (which was done by Norm Goldman):

Norm: "If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?"

Nick: "It's difficult to pick just one, because there are various people, coming from different angles. Many of my books are written in a first-person, road-trip style. So, I have to say that, without doubt, two of my biggest mentors and influences would be Jack Kerouac and Hunter S, Thompson, who typified that genre.
"Between them, they wrote some of the greatest books of the 20th Century, in my view anyway: Big Sur, The Rum Diary, the list goes on and on. But, for me, a mentor is not a hero. Nor should it be. The real person behind the heroic image generally doesn't stand the test of time.
"Kerouac was a huge influence on me. But I keep it all in perspective. Let's face it: he was a raging alcoholic, dead at 47, a life utterly wasted, and a body and great talent ravaged and destroyed by booze. And Thompson took a totally cowardly way out when he shot himself. Suicide is for weaklings."
And here's the link.

The Pyramids, the Pentagon, and Final Events

Just recently, Tim Binnall interviewed me for his Binnall of America show, as he has often done in the past. But, this episode was a bit different, since it focused on two of my books, rather than just one: The Pyramids and the Pentagon and Final Events.

 

And here's Tim himself to give you a run-down on the episode (which you can find right here):

"Prolific Fortean researcher and great friend of the program, Nick Redfern makes his long overdue return to BoA:Audio for a marathon conversation covering one of his most recent books, The Pyramids and the Pentagon, as well as a previous book, Final Events, which may have profound meaning for the UFO enigma. In the first half, covering Pyramids, we'll discuss stories of a Bible being found in the Roswell crash, CIA interest in Noah's Ark, odd references to Mars anomalies in old literature which may have come from the Voynich manuscript, as well as an overall look at why the government may be looking at ancient mysteries and what they may have found.

"In the latter half, covering Final Events, we'll delve into the bizarre story of a government think tank which studied UFOs and determined that they were demonic in origin. We'll discuss how Nick heard about the story, various aspects of the groups findings, notably their thoughts on Roswell, abductions, and MJ-12, as well as meta analysis on what the 'demonic UFO' theory means for UFO research and how Ufology reacted to Nick's controversial research.

"Altogether it is a brisk conversation that is also jam packed with amazing stories, intriguing anecdotes, and thoughtful analysis about a myriad of paranormal mysteries with a true trailblazer in the field of esoteric studies, Nick Redfern.

"Full Preview: We kick things off by getting an update from Nick on what he's been up to since his last appearance on BoA:Audio. We get meta and talk about the prolific nature of Nick's research and how it exemplifies the need to examine many facets of the paranormal. We then begin digging in to Nick's latest book, The Pyramids and the Pentagon, and he provides a thumbnail look at the premise behind the research, which is government interest in ancient mysteries. Looking at one of more bizarre tales found in the book, we have Nick extrapolate on the rumors that a Bible was found in the Roswell crash debris. This segues into details about the CIA interest in the Dead Sea Scrolls during 1947 and onward.

"Next, we move on to talk about Noah's Ark and how there is a wealth of documentation showing that the government photographed and investigated the infamous anomaly on Mt. Ararat in Turkey. Nick provides tremendous detail about the tales of Air Force photographs of an object in the ice and subsequent, extensive CIA investigation into the 'Ark Problem,' as they called it. This leads to some discussion about how it is baffling that, in this age of modern satellite technology, we still do not have any definitive answers regarding the Ararat anomaly. He also explains how Ararat is a unique 'paranormal location,' since it is treacherous terrain.

"Following that, we look at the Mars anomalies and how there appears to have been knowledge of these mysteries dating back much farther than the Viking probe photos which brought them to the public consciousness. Nick also illuminates the bizarre 'coincidence' that there are fairly accurate descriptions of Mars' moons in Gulliver's Travels and how it has been suggested that Jonathan Swift actually got the information from the Voynich Manuscript, of all places. Beyond that, Nick details how Jack Kirby's work also contained references to Martian mysteries and how his work, as well as other artists' works, may have been part of an acclimation program put together by the government.

"Nearing the end of our discussion on The Pyramids and the Pentagon, we discuss how the government has repeatedly tapped in to 'New Age' researchers for insights on ancient mysteries and ponder what that may indicate about their overall knowledge about the enigmas. This leads to Nick speculating that, rather than having the 'best and brightest' working on these mysteries as well as things like the UFO phenomenon, the government may be using more maverick scientists who are more malleable and controllable. Going in a different direction from there, we talk about the Navy has a surprisingly under reported role in examining many mysteries. This leads to Nick sharing a wild story which connects the pyramids, the Navy, and acoustic levitation.

"In the second half of the conversation, we discuss, at length, Nick's 2010 book Final Events, which details an alleged government group that investigated UFOs and determined that they were actually demonic. We begin by hearing how Nick came upon the story via a former MUFON state director who was made privy to this secret group, known as the Collins Elite. He also revisits the shadowy nature by which he learned more about the group, including conversations with former members of the organization.

"This leads to us talking about the 'demonic UFO' theory and how the story of the Collins Elite gives greater credence to the hypothesis. That said, we also talk about how the 'demonic' aspect may be too literal an interpretation for a malignant force from another dimension or realm. The conversation segues into the importance of Jack Parsons to both NASA and JPL as well as the occult and arcane history of the modern paranormal mythos. Nick talks about how there is an odd paranormal lineage from Alistair Crowley to Parsons to Ray Palmer to Kenneth Arnold.

"In light of the hypothesis put forward by the Collins Elite, we then ponder, if we are being invaded by demonic forces, why there appear to be no mention of any counterbalancing force of good against them. Our conversation then turns towards Roswell 'crash,' which the Collins Elite believed was the result of alchemical trickery designed to fool humans. Attempting to get a handle on the various government groups investigating the UFO phenomenon, we then ponder where the Collins Elite fits in relation to an MJ-12 type group. This leads to us talking about another facet of the Collins Elite's conclusions, which was that the 'visitors' were interested in human souls.

"We then look at MILABs and how the Collins Elite investigated the phenomenon and concluded that they were also a part of the demonic illusion. Since the book came out a couple of years ago, we find out if Nick has any general update on the Collins Elite research. We also find out how the UFO community reacted to Nick research presented in Final Events, including how some Ufologists told Nick that he shouldn't have written the book. We then muse about the irony that the government, if they are really investigating the demonic aspect of UFOs, may have a more open mind about the phenomenon than the UFO research community.

"Furthering our journey into the troubling theories of the Collins Elite, we look at their 'end game' scenario which involved turning America into a purely Christian nation created via an staged 'second coming.' While that may sound insane, Nick details a revealed CIA plans to stage just such a scenario over Cuba in the 1960's and also reflects on how the warfare of the last 10 years has been suspiciously built along religious lines. In light of the alleged global cover up of the UFO phenomenon, we ponder whether the Russians or British governments have examined the demonic UFO theory. Our conversation then gets a bit meta as we talk about Nick's presentation of the Collins Elite story and how he fully acknowledges that it could be disinformation.

"Looking at the world of the paranormal, as a whole, we then discuss the perceived stasis which seems to have fallen over the entire genre in the last decade or so, despite the saturation of paranormal shows. We also reflect on how the hype for 2012 seems to have subsided, ironically, in 2012. We also return to the meta realm and learn how Nick decides on which topic to examine for his future books. Wrapping up the conversation, we find out what's next for Nick Redfern through 2012 as well as into 2013, including new cryptozoological books and a fresh look at the infamous Men in Black. "

Beware of the Black Helicopters

There's a new post from me at Mysterious Universe which focuses on the very weird mystery of the so-called "Black Helicopters," and it starts like this:

"There can be very few people – if, indeed, any – with an interest in UFOs, conspiracies, cover-ups, and strange and sinister goings-on of a distinctly weird nature who have not heard of the so-called “black helicopters” or “phantom helicopters” that seem to play an integral – albeit admittedly unclear – role in perceived UFO-connected events. And one of the biggest misconceptions about this deeply weird phenomenon is that those same mysterious helicopters are lacking in official documentation. Actually not so at all. In fact, exactly the opposite. If you know where to go looking…"

World's Weirdest Reviewed...

 

 

Andy Lloyd reviews my latest book, The World's Weirdest Places, and notes:

 

"Nick Redfern explores the realms of the paranormal, covering a selection of locations across the globe. Some are well known, some are highly unusual choices. All of them have in common the distinction of being 'steeped in strangeness of more than just one nature'. One might say they are polyparanormal in character. Redfern indicates that such sites are known in paranormal circles as 'window areas'. It is a curious thing indeed that seemingly innocuous locations can host such a diversity of phenomena as ghosts, Bigfoot, UFOs, black panthers, supernatural monsters and a general sense of nefarious malevolence."

 

He continues:

 

"The World's Weirdest Places is an entertaining and sometimes surprising collection of paranormal tales and hair-raising legends from across the globe."

 

And here's Andy's full review.

Happy Bonfire Night!

To all my friends back in the UK: Have a great Bonfire Night!

The Legend of the Man-Monkey

Over at Mysterious Universe, I focus my latest article on a legendary British beast of Bigfoot-type proportions, albeit of a distinctly spectral kind.

Its name: the Man-Monkey...

And as I note in the opening lines of the article:

"On the chilly evening of January 21, 1879, a man was walking home, with his horse-and-cart in tow, along the tree-shrouded lanes that to this day still link the hamlet of Woodcote in Shropshire to the tiny locale of Ranton, Staffordshire, England. All was as it should have been until around 10.00 p.m., when barely a mile from Woodseaves and while crossing over Bridge 39 on the Shropshire Union Canal, the man’s life was plunged into chaos and terror. Out of the darkened woods emerged a frightening beast: it was large, black-haired, monkey-like in appearance, and sported a pair of bright, self-illuminated eyes that glowed eerily and hypnotically..."

The Other Side Of Truth

Looking for a new book to buy? Well, here's one I definitely recommend: The Other Side of Truth, the first book from Paul Kimball of Red Star Films.

Now, before anyone moans, complains or gets on their high horse, yes, Paul is a good mate of mine. But, no, that does not have a bearing on the fact that I'm about to give the book a good review.

If I hated TOSoT, or thought it was deeply flawed, I'd say so, and I'm sure Paul would appreciate the honesty, even if he didn't agree with it. So, this is not some exercise to massage Paul's ego or to do a mate a favor. And if you were thinking of making such an observation, keep your gob shut.

With that said, let's press on.

I approached the reading of Paul's book with a great deal of interest for a couple of reasons: one being that it's his first book, and that in itself is a good enough reason to both read and review anyone's book. Second, Paul has a lot of intriguing thoughts and ideas on the world of the paranormal, and I knew that, on reading the book, those same thoughts and ideas would flow out in fine form. And they do.

The Other Side of Truth is very much a personal odyssey that sees the Earl of Nova Scotia (that's Paul, by the way) traveling the globe (quite literally) in search of the answers to numerous mysteries, including UFOs, ghosts, life-after-death, synchronicities, time-travel, the meaning of existence, the nature of reality, and much more.

In other words, this is a first-person road-trip of definitive supernatural proportions.

But it's far more than that, too.

TOSoT is also the deeply personal story of one man's immersion in a strange world, of his realization that there are mysteries to be found and solved, and of his ultimate conclusion that life is very much a learning process - a journey to be experienced and embraced, both in the "normal" sense and in relation to the realms and worlds beyond our own.

And Paul skilfully (and time and time again) demonstrates something in the pages of his book that many people who have dug deep into paranormal phenomena have experienced: namely, that when you go looking for the unexplained, the unexplained sits up and takes notice of you.

That's to say the investigator very often goes from being a detached observer to a key and integral player, one who experiences a distinct sense and escalating suspicion that there are higher forces out there guiding and manipulating their actions, ensuring they are in the right place at the right time, and also acting as teacher as the learning process progresses. Hence the fascinating data that Paul includes in the book on countless synchronicities that he experienced during the course of important investigations and experiences in his daily life.

But this is no normal learning/teaching process. I always find it kind of amusing that both ufological skeptics and believers often ask the question: "Why don't the aliens land on the White House lawn?"

Well, first, that suggests "they" (whatever "they" may be) have a bias towards one country over another, which would seem - to me, anyway - to be pretty illogical for a non-human species.

Second, the question says less about Fortean forces out there and how they might operate, and far more about how we, as a species, might contact the people of other worlds. So, we assume - probably wrongly and certainly arrogantly - that they would do something broadly the same as us.

And third, it implies these intelligences are just like us, albeit more technologically advanced. Nothing could be further from the reality of the situation.

As The Other Side of Truth reveals, what appears to be genuine alien contact (and "alien" is intended here to mean a definitive "other" - perhaps extraterrestrial or maybe something even stranger) takes some undeniably alternative and even bizarre routes as it seeks to provide the clues and answers to those that go looking for them. And I mean really alternative and really bizarre routes.

If there's one thing - maybe more than any other - that I've found when it comes to investigating Fortean phenomena, it's the sheer, astonishing extent to which those same phenomena interact with us on an incredibly one-to-one basis when we seek them out. And Paul's book typifies this.

But, the lessons we are taught, as Paul shows, are not dished up on a plate in easy to digest fashion. Rather, we are given snippets of data, and we are encouraged to seek the answers, to understand them, to learn from them, and to grow. Or not. The choice is ours.

TOSoT makes it abundantly clear to me that we are being offered incredible gifts by something, but if we choose not to take them, the loss is ours, and the phenomena then move onto the next person that ponders and wonders, and the next, and so on and so forth.

Paul is one of those that has chosen to accept those gifts, opportunities and insights into the bigger world around us - even if he doesn't have all the answers, or a complete picture of who or what it is that offers us those same gifts, opportunities and insights, or a full understanding of where this journey of life is leading.

But he realizes that something very extraordinary is afoot and goes after it, and recognizes when it impacts on his life, such as in those sections of the book that deal with the importance of those aforementioned synchronicities in critical, potentially life-altering events that can push us down varying pathways, depending on how we choose to respond.

So, what we have with The Other Side of Truth is one man's long and winding, personal transformation and his journey into a world populated by some form of intelligence that knows us far better than we know ourselves and from which we can learn a great deal - if, when it enters our lives, we choose to do so.

Paul has looked for those answers, he wants those answers, and he's found some of them. And in doing so, he has lived and learned. You can do that, too. And reading The Other Side of Truth is a great place to start.

Dark Night Haunting

Jen Devillier is a friend of mine who lives here in Texas and who has a book out right now that I recommend to one and all: Dark Night Haunting: The Life of a Paranormal Investigator, which is just the type of book I like, namely an in-depth, first-person study of the paranormal.

 

And here's the blurb for Jen's book, which will give you a good idea of its contents:

 

"This is a book about one woman's life and her experiences with the paranormal that led her to become a Paranormal Investigator. From beginning to end Jennifer Devillier's story is one that will explain just how normal someone with Psychic Abilities can be. If you have ever had experiences of your own that you could not explain or felt out of place because no one believed you, this book will let you know that you are not at all alone. Join Jennifer on her journey and see how one woman's life takes it's unexpected twists and turns with all the paranormal experiences that come along with it. Remember, we are NEVER alone."

 

And with those words I fully agree!

Jen's book is an excellent account of what it means to become immersed in the world of the unexplained and to study it, appreciate it, and follow the trail in search of amazing answers of the supernatural kind.

 

And here's where you can purchase a copy of Jen's book.

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The Journal of Cryptozoology

Dr. Karl Shuker delivers some excellent news:

"Less than nine months after officially announcing on ShukerNature its founding, I am delighted to announce that the inaugural volume of the Journal of Cryptozoology – currently the world's only peer-reviewed, scientific journal devoted to mystery animals – is now in print."

It certainly is, and you can find all the relevant information by clicking on this link.

And as the publisher of the Journal, Jon Downes, of the Center for Fortean Zoology, tells us:

"The Journal of Cryptozoology is published and funded by CFZ Press, which is owned by the Centre for Fortean Zoology. However, it is an entity completely separate from the CFZ and entirely independent of it. We have long been aware of the need for a peer-reviewed academic journal covering cryptozoology, and we feel that it is important that it is truly international in scope and independent of any pre-existing organisation or pressure group.

"We think that this is a very exciting new venture, and are immensely proud to be involved as its publishers. We are sad to see that other publishing ventures have folded for lack of funding, and so CFZ Publishing Group will guarantee to maintain funding of this project for at least the first ten volumes, regardless of sales, subscriber figures, or other outside factors."

http://forteanzoology.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-journal-of-cryptozoology-is-now-in.html

 

http://forteanzoology.blogspot.com/2012/11/volume-one-of-journal-of-cryptozoology.html

 

http://www.journalofcryptozoology.com

World's Weirdest: Reviewed

Author Linda Godfrey (The Beast of Bray Road, Hunting the American Werewolf, Real Wolfmen) reviews my latest book, The World's Weirdest Places.

Profiling the Houston Batman

In our book, Monsters of Texas, Ken Gerhard wrote about one of the strangest of all Texas cryptids - a somewhat Mothman-like creature that became known as the Houston Batman, and which briefly provoked terror in the city of Houston nearly 60 years ago.

Well, Ken was interviewed by ABC News about the saga of the unearthly thing for Halloween, and the results can now be found online, right here!

Wolfmen on the Loose

Okay, I'm a day late: Linda Godfrey shares with us for Halloween tales of the werewolf variety...