Beyond Area 51

Interested in secret places with potential UFO links that extend beyond Area 51? If the answer is "yes," then you may want to check out the new book from Mack Maloney, which is titled - very appropriately - Beyond Area 51.

There's a new review of the book from me at Mysterious Universe, which begins...

"One of the biggest puzzles concerning secret military-, government- and intelligence-based facilities is this: Why do so many of these classified installations seemingly attract far more than their fair share of UFOs? There are, I believe, several possibilities. The first is that if the stories of crashed UFOs in the hands of officialdom are valid, then it may be the case that what we are seeing in the skies above these bases are attempts by military project personnel to test-fly captured UFOs.

"There is another more ominous possibility, however. Again, if UFOs really have crashed to earth, perhaps the nonhuman intelligences behind the phenomena are aware that their craft and dead (and possibly even living) comrades are held at these fortified bases and are testing the defenses of such places for the day when they plan to claim back what is theirs."

The Battle of Roswell

Well, over the last few days there has been a sizeable debate online about a certain, new aspect of the Roswell affair, which has now descended into almost all-out war of the "he said"/"she said" variety.

Rather than drone on about it all, and explain every aspect, which I simply can't be bothered to do, I'll instead direct you to the following links, which should be read in the order they are listed.  

I wish I could say "Have fun." But, I can't. It's just another case of Ufology doing what it does best. No, not researching or investigating but (you know what it is!) arguing.

1. It begins...

2. It continues...

3. It causes blood to boil...

4. Out come the boxing-gloves, as Canada and America go to war...

5. I have my say...

And that's only the start of it. My prediction: the final outcome on everything will be summed up by one word: "Inconclusive."

Airports and Implants

Well, yesterday morning I had to fly from Dallas down to Houston on business, and both on the way out and on the way back, I had to go thru those full-body scanners.

On the outward one from Dallas, I got flagged because the scanner picked up something in my back, but after a search they said "Well, there's nothing there." Which I knew anyway!

Then, on the way back, when I got scanned at Houston, the machine flagged something in both my wrists! Again, of course, there was nothing there.

I made a joke with the staff that it must be due "alien implants" which gave the staff a good laugh, but which was then followed by a question to me; "So what do you know about alien implants?"

I replied, "Oh quite a bit, as I write books about UFOs, aliens and stuff like that."

And, so, as it was quiet, I had a fun, but surreal, chat with airport security about aliens, implants, how they might be detected and more.

Just another weird day!

Man-Made Flying Saucers

There's a new article from me at Mysterious Universe, which starts like this:

Although such things are less common today, in decades-past there were far more than a few UFO encounters in which the witnesses reported how their vehicles – whether cars, trucks, or even motorbikes -  were adversely affected by the presence of a UFO. Such events have become known in Ufology as “vehicle interference” cases. Typically, engines, lights, and radios are mysteriously affected by the presence of the unknown craft. Only when the strange vehicle exits the area does normality return.

And here's the full piece.

Rendlesham: The Stage Play

The Rendlesham Forest affair of December 1980 is, without doubt, Britain's most famous UFO event. It has been the subject of government debate, half a dozen non-fiction books, a novel, and numerous TV productions.

And, now, thanks to award-winning playwright Ryan Sprague, it's going to be a theater production.

Interviewing a Monster Hunter

Over at Mysterious Universe, you can find a Q&A that I did some time ago with good friend Jon Downes, of the Center for Fortean Zoology. The interview covers a lot of ground and starts as follows:

"N: Jon, what, basically, is the CFZ?

"J: The CFZ is the world’s largest mystery animal research group. I founded it in 1993. And, since then, it has slowly become not just the largest in the world, but the fastest growing cryptozoological group in the world, too. My passion for unusual animals went back to my childhood, and I was determined to follow my dreams of establishing a group one day that would put us where we are now, and in a way that benefits everyone who gets involved."

Animals & Men at 50

Time flies: next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the publication of the Center for Fortean Zoology's in-house magazine, Animals & Men. But there's another anniversary too: the 50th issue of the magazine has just been published.

Contrary to popular opinion, the name of the magazine has nothing to do with weird sex (although it does place the term "doggie-style" in a whole new light...). It's actually the title of an old song by Adam and the Ants.

Originally, the magazine was a self-published, fanzine-style journal put together in Jon Downes' living-room.

Fifty issues on, however, things are very different. Today, each and every issue of A&M is professionally published by the good folks at Lightning Source.

It has a full-color, glossy, card cover, and numerous color photos contained within. Indeed, the current, 50-page edition contains no less than 40 full-color photos.

As for issue 50, the contents are wide, varied, but always entertainingly interesting, and include: (a) an editorial from Jon; (b) a round-up of news of the cryptozoological kind; (c) new information on British Bigfoot reports; (d) my regular Letter from America column; (e) an article from Carl Portman on giant spiders; (f) a Watcher of the Skies column from Jon's wife, Corinna; (g) a feature from Carl Marshall on oversized snakes; (h) a fascinating paper from Richard Freeman on a Russian lake-monster; (i) a selection of book-reviews; (j) the latest news on Bigfoot; and much more.

If you don't already subscribe to A&M, you really should. And you can do so, by contacting Jon, right here.   

Graham Birdsall - 10 Years On

It's hard to believe that it is 10 years to the day that Graham Birdsall, the editor of Britain's UFO Magazine, died. Graham was a great friend who was taken far too early.

 

I first encountered Graham back in the mid-1980s, when UFO Magazine was not the glossy, newsstand magazine that it became in the 1990s. Back then, it was called Quest, and was a self-published, photocopied journal - times soon changed, however!

 

Graham was a very generous and enthusiastic person, who opened many doors for me when I started writing for the magazine and, later, when I began writing books. For that I will always be very grateful.

 

I have a lot of good memories of Graham, one of my favorite being sat in his house, late at night after a gig somewhere, and eating fish and chips and discussing football.

 

He is still very much missed. I'm not sure where I took this photo of Graham, but it's a good one to remember him by.

 

World War Z

 

 

Well, last night, I finally got around to watching World War Z, which I thought was bloody good! It was very different to the novel it's based on.

 

In the book, the story is set specifically AFTER the zombie outbreak has been contained, whereas in the movie it's erupting everywhere.

 

And the zombies in the book are the slow walking types of Night of the Living Dead. In the movie they are not just fast, they're like speeding trains!

 

Plus, in the book the zombies actually eat their victims, whereas in the film, they are just driven to spread the virus and then move on to the next person.

 

The only real downside was the "13" certificate, which meant the amount of blood and gore was kept to a minimum. Come on, it's a zombie film, there SHOULD be blood and gore!

 

The best bit? When a literal tower of zombies climb (like an army of ants) a newly-created, giant wall to keep the dead out of Jerusalem. For the people of Jerusalem, the wall was not such a good idea, after all...

Night of the Living Virus

And another new Mysterious Universe article from me, which begins like this...

"In George A. Romero’s classic movie of 1968, Night of the Living Dead, speculation was raised that the birth of the zombie hordes was possibly triggered by the actions of a U.S. spacecraft. While visiting the planet Venus, the craft, it was surmised, became bathed in radiation. Then, on its return to Earth, the craft let loose that same radiation upon an unsuspecting populace. The outcome was nothing less than the rise of the staggering, flesh-eating dead. Is it truly feasible that such a thing could actually occur in the real world?

"It’s highly unlikely – in the extreme, to say the absolute very least – that exposure to radiation could provoke any kind of violent, cannibalistic, zombie-like behavior. The possibility that a returning spacecraft might unwittingly unleash hazardous extraterrestrial materials on our planet, however, is not at all an impossibility. In fact, dealing with just such a potentially catastrophic event has already been planned for."

Flying Saucers: What The Hell?

There's a new Mysterious Universe article from me (which you can find here) and which starts like this:

 

"In 2010, I wrote a book called Final Events. It’s probably my most controversial book to date. Final Events told the story of a semi-official/quasi-official think-tank that concludes the UFO phenomenon is demonic. And when I say demonic, I mean in the horned, fork-tailed, and fiery pit sense. But, they put a distinctly unusual spin on things: namely, they believe the phenomenon 'feeds' upon a poorly understood form of energy contained in the human soul. In other words, we are being reared, nurtured, and finally digested, just like cattle. Or, so the think-tank asserts.

 

"Of course, as member of the group – unofficially titled the Collins Elite – freely admitted, it was simply a theory and nothing else. It was also a theory born out of the fact that the vast majority of the members of the group held strong religious beliefs that pre-dated their UFO research. And we should never forget that belief is a powerful and influential tool."

 

 

Sasquatch & Saucers

That's the subject of my latest Lair of the Beasts column at Mania.com... 

The Psychic Spy

 

 

The Psychic Spy, a new novel written by Irene Allen-Block, is an excellent book for which I wrote the following endorsement:

 

"In late 1970s London, a young woman is secretly recruited to work for British Intelligence. Her world soon becomes dominated by psychic-spying, enemy agents, assassinations, and suspicious deaths. Add to the mix, the Lockerbie tragedy, the Falklands War, and the classified world of MI6, and you have a great story filled with adventure, intrigue and shadowy characters. As Irene Allen-Block skillfully shows, the mind is a mysterious and dangerous tool."

 

On top of that, the novel is based upon real events, which makes it all the more intriguing. If spy stories, filled with all manner of twists and turns, are your thing, then don't miss this one!

 

And here's the publisher's blurb, which reveals more:

 

"The Psychic Spy tells the story of Eileen Evans, a beautiful young woman and talented psychic who is unwittingly recruited by MI6 to join their new top secret Remote Viewing program 'Blue Star' during the heart of the Cold War in the 1970’s and 80’s. Eileen quickly finds herself embroiled in excitement and danger as she quickly becomes a 'psychic spy' for British Intelligence. Finding forbidden love with another agent, Eileen descends into a dark world filled with political intrigue, danger and death. Not only must she cope with the possibility of losing her life, she must also struggle with the very real threat of losing her soul.

"Smart, sexy and filled with humor and peril, The Psychic Spy is a thrilling adventure that explores a little-known but very real world where governments use actual psychics to spy on their enemies, and in some cases, even their allies! Using her own real-life experiences as a remote viewer, Irene Allen-Block has created a powerful tale that should entertain and educate readers on a piece of history that has been hidden in the shadows."  

Karl Shuker's Mirabilis: Reviewed

There's a new review from me at Mysterious Universe, on Karl Shuker's new book, Mirabilis.

 

This is an excellent book that, if you're into cryptozoology you won't want to miss!

 

The review starts like this:

"Available right now is an excellent new release from the good folks at Anomalist Books. Its title is Mirabilis: A Carnival of Cryptozoology and Unnatural History. And the author is one of the world’s leading authorities on all-things monstrous and beastly, Dr. Karl Shuker. Born and still living in the West Midlands, England, Karl  graduated from the University of Leeds with a Bachelor of Science (Honors) degree in pure zoology, and from the University of Birmingham with a Doctor of Philosophy degree in zoology and comparative physiology. He now works full-time as a freelance zoological consultant to the media, and as a prolific published writer. And, coincidentally, he lives barely 15 minutes away from where I grew up. But I digress!

 

"As for the contents of Mirabilis, well, if bizarre beasts and fantastic creatures are your thing, then disappointed you certainly won’t be. But, it’s very important to note that Mirabilis is not just a commentary on case upon case, and creature upon creature. Instead, we see Karl putting on his Sherlock Holmes-style cape and deer-stalker hat, and actually trying to figure out – detective-style – what the many and varied baffling beasts under his microscope actually are. And there are plenty of them. It would be impossible in a review of this length to cover each and every creature that crosses Karl’s path, but that doesn’t mean I won’t give it a good try."

"The Cryptoterrestrials" in Hardback

Yesterday afternoon, I received in the mail a copy of the limited-edition hardback version of Mac Tonnies' book, The Cryptoterrestrials. It's a big tragedy that Mac died before his book was published, but I'm sure he would have loved to have seen his work in hardback format.

Creating Our Own Reality

"As someone who has had far more than a few weird experiences over the years – particularly in relation to matters of a synchronistic nature – I often find myself pondering on reality. Or, perhaps, more correctly, pondering on what we consider to be reality. I can’t help feeling at times that we are living in (or, perhaps, trapped in!) a strange world of proportions not unlike those portrayed in The Matrix or Dark City. In both films, what passes for the real world is actually nothing of the sort.

"And it’s on the nature of reality that I want to focus right now. On more than a few occasions, I have come across examples where matters of a purely fictional nature seem to suddenly spring to life in the real world. If such things aren’t just down to random chance and coincidence (and I really don’t think they are), then there is something deeply strange afoot. I do not pretend to know how or why such things can be, but I can highlight two – of many – examples for you."

Yep, it's an extract from another Mysterious Universe article from me (that digs deep into the world of Quatermass and the Pit, out-of place-pterodactyls, and spectral, hairy wild-men deep in the old tunnels of the London Underground - quite a combination!), which is readable right here.

Going Underground

Thanks to Kithra for sharing this story with me this morning, of a planned excavation on one of the UK's most Fortean-filled places: The Cannock Chase.

The exact location is the small village of Brocton, a place I know very well.

As Kithra rightly points out, excavations around areas known for their paranormal qualities often provoke further weirdness. In view of that, it will be interesting to see if any new reports of high-strangeness surface in and around Brocton in the next few weeks...

Reviewed: Encounters With Flying Humanoids

 

 

If you haven't yet got hold of a copy of Ken Gerhard's new book, Encounters With Flying Humanoids, then you really should!

 

There's a new review of it - from me - over at Mysterious Universe, which you can find right here.

 

And here's an extract from the review:

 

"A few days ago, I received a review copy of the new book from cryptozoologist Ken Gerhard. Published by Llewellyn, its title is Encounters With Flying Humanoids. Ken is the author of a number of previous books, including Monsters Are Real, Big Bird!, and (with me) Monster of Texas. And, I’m very pleased to say, the book does not disappoint. Indeed, I read the whole thing in one sitting – which is a sure sign that the book is a very good one!   

 

"As you will surmise from the title, Ken’s latest release is a study of all manner of weird winged things that appear to be at least partly human-like, but part-something very different, too. Before I get to the book itself, it’s worth noting that Encounters With Flying Humanoids is an excellent companion to Ken’s Big Bird! book, which deals with sightings of winged monsters of the specifically giant-bird and pterodactyl variety. So, with that said, onto Ken’s newest."

A Monster-Sized Anniversary

Over at Mysterious Universe, I have a new article that tells a very weird story- but one that is little-known outside of the UK - of a series of events that began in Wales a quarter of a century ago this week. How would I describe it? Maybe like "Animal Mutilations meet the Lambton Worm!"

Here's how the article begins:

"Twenty-five years ago this very week, a  deeply strange series of events kicked-off in Rhayader, which just happens to be the oldest town in mid-Wales. The location for all the unsettling weirdness was highly appropriate, since the town and its immediate surroundings are steeped in centuries-old myths, legends, fables and folklore. On top of that, the area is peppered with ancient, standing stones, which were carved and put into place by the ancients.

"Numerous axe-heads, many dating back more than 5,000 years, have been unearthed from the green fields of Rhayader. On top of that, back in 1899, on the town’s Gwastedyn Hill,  a wealth of fine, gold treasures and jewels was dug up. It was a discovery that led to theories that the priceless find had once been the belongings of a long-dead, 5th century princess – one Rowena, who was the wife of a local and ruthless ruler of that bygone era, High King Vortigern."

And here's the complete article...

Audio Books Now Available

For those who prefer to listen to books, you may be interested to know that two of my books are now available for download in audio format. They are:

1. The Pyramids and the Pentagon.

2. Keep Out!

Karl Shuker's Mirabilis

My new Lair of the Beasts article at Mania.com focuses on the new book from Karl Shuker, Mirabilis: A Carnival of Cryptozoology and Unnatural History, which is published by Anomalist Books. This is a great book, packed with amazing accounts and is heavily illustrated. If you don't have it, you should!

Smugglers and Strange Creatures

And another new post from me at Mysterious Universe, which begins...

"Just recently, I had a fascinating conversation with a fellow researcher of so-called “British Bigfoot” reports - which is a particular and favorite area of investigation for me, and which was the subject of my 2012 book, Wildman. It turns out that he has been studying a number of stories relative to hairy 'wild men,' cannibalistic sub-humans, and other, similar, horrific humanoids reported in the English county of Devon way back in the 1600s and the 1700s. In doing so he has uncovered something very interesting and eye-opening.

"If I sound just a little bit mysterious here, it’s because my colleague in question is preparing a major paper on all of this, hence why – right now – I’m being more than fairly vague about his identity. His paper should, however, appear in a major periodical before the end of this year. And, no, I’m not blowing any whistles by telling you the basics of the story. He’s cool with it."

Crashed UFOs in the UK???

There's another new article from me at Mysterious Universe, this one surrounding a highly controversial issue: so-called "British Roswell"-type events. It starts like this:

"Back in 1996, I received a number of stories – some from retired, British military personnel – suggesting that if I wanted to find out what the British Government really knew about UFOs – and particularly so crashed UFOs - I would be wise to focus my attentions not so much on the work of the Ministry of Defense, but on that of the Home Office. Although the Home Office is chiefly known for its work in the fields of counter-terrorism, immigration, and crime policy, there are indications that its work delves into far deeper, and much more mysterious, areas, too.

"According to several of the accounts provided to me back in ’96, the Home Office oversaw the security surrounding a number of secret, underground bunkers located across the south and southwest of England. They were built as fortified havens for senior military and government personnel, in the event of a nuclear strike on the UK by the Soviets during the Cold War. I was advised, however, that deep within two of the bunkers were stored the remains of a number of alien bodies – all preserved in cryogenic states."

Paranormal Paralysis

"One night in August 2002, after I had gone to bed, I had an extremely curious encounter. It was around 4.00 a.m. and I was awake and yet not awake. And I couldn’t move. I was suddenly aware that something was slowly heading down the corridor that linked the bedroom to the living room. That something, even though I couldn’t see it, I knew was a humanoid figure with the head of a wolf and attired in a long, flowing black cape. It emitted strange and rapid growling noises that seemed to be an unintelligible language, and the creature, whatever its origin was, seemed mightily pissed off about something.

"As it closed in on the room, I made a supreme effort to move my rigid, paralyzed form and finally succeeded, just as the beast entered the bedroom. In an instant it was gone and I was wide-awake. Psychologists call this “sleep paralysis” and would say that the incident was purely a product of my subconscious. The official term for such a state is hypnagogia."

The words above are the opening two paragraphs of my latest Mysterious Universe article, on a phenomenon that many have experienced, but that still remains shrouded in mystery...