Psychic researchers in the U.K. concluded the case was genuine
The
Enfield Poltergeist
by Elaine
Currie
The Enfield
Poltergeist has fascinated people and been the subject of debate
ever since reports of the poltergeist activity started to appear in
the national newspapers back in the late nineteen seventies. Psychic
researchers who spent months investigating the case obtained
photographs and audio recordings of the poltergeist activity. They
became firmly convinced that the Enfield Poltergeist was a genuine
case of poltergeist infestation. Guy Lyon Playfair, one of the
investigators involved in the Enfield Poltergeist case, subsequently
wrote a book on the subject called This House Is Haunted. There are,
however, people who remain sceptical and say that there is
insufficient evidence to prove that the Enfield Poltergeist was
anything other than a hoax played out by the children involved in
the alleged poltergeist manifestations.
The Enfield
Poltergeist case centred around a family living in the North London
suburb of Enfield. The family comprised of a divorcee, Peggy Harper
(her pseudonym from the famous book, not her real name), and her
four young children. The Poltergeist activity was focussed on the
younger daughter of the family, Janet, who was aged eleven when the
strange events began in August 1977. The Enfield Poltergeist
remained active in the household until September 1978.
The first
manifestation of the Enfield Poltergeist happened one night when
Janet and her brother, Peter (then aged ten), complained to their
mother that their beds were shaking about in a strange way. The
movement had apparently ceased when their mother entered the room
and turned on the light. At first Mrs Harper dismissed the
occurrence as a prank on the part of the children and the event
would have been forgotten but further strange things began to
happen. On the same night, Mrs Harper and the children heard noises
that sounded like feet shuffling across the carpet.
Having
introduced itself, the Enfield Poltergeist made a further nuisance
of itself that night. Mrs Harper and the children heard loud
knocking coming from the walls of the house and saw furniture
moving, apparently of its own accord. The experience frightened the
family so badly that they ran out of the house to seek help from
neighbours and called the Police in to investigate. The Police found
no trace of any human intruder but it is reported that one of the
Police officers witnessed a chair moving several feet across the
floor without human intervention..
The day after
this, the poltergeist became even more active and toy bricks and
marbles flew through the air as if thrown around by an invisible
hand. When the toys were picked up, they were hot to the touch. Mrs
Harper sought help from a local vicar and a psychic medium but they
were unable to explain or halt what seemed to be a paranormal attack
on the family.
In
desperation, Mrs Harper turned to the press and the case was
reported in the national newspapers. One of the reporters suggested
to Mrs Harper that she should call in the SPR (Society for Psychical
Research). One of their members, Maurice Grosse, who lived in North
London went to the house and started his investigations just a week
after the disturbing events had begun. Although the evidence
gathered during the investigations on behalf of the SPR was
inconclusive, Maurice Grosse became convinced that the Enfield
Poltergeist was a genuine case of poltergeist activity and remained
firm in his convictions until his death at the age of ninety in
October 2006.
As the
haunting continued, the Poltergeist activity escalated. Throughout
the time the Enfield Poltergeist was in residence the Harper family
experienced just about every kind of Poltergeist activity recognised
by psychic researchers. The knocking and sliding furniture were
followed by furniture flipping over, drawers opening and closing,
footsteps, the sighting of apparitions including a small child, an
old lady and a man in old fashioned clothing. The Poltergeist became
interactive firstly communicating through rapping and later by
speaking through Janet and her brother Jimmy (the gruff male voices
were apparently produced by using the false vocal chords). Janet was
thrown around her bedroom by an unseen force and there were
unexplained failures of electrical equipment in the haunted house.
I can vividly
remember reading about the Enfield Poltergeist in the newspapers
back in 1977/78. The Harpers' house was near to where I lived and my
eldest daughter was just a year younger than Janet Harper. Although
the Harper children did not attend the same schools as my children,
they might well have played together in the local park. One of the
things that made the Enfield Poltergeist so unsettling was the fact
that the haunting took place in a completely ordinary three bed
roomed semi-detached local authority house. Somehow the haunting
seemed more creepy because it took place in such ordinary
surroundings. We expect ghosts to appear in isolated manor houses,
haunted mansions or Transylvanian castles. Feeling that ghosts might
turn up in an ordinary family house with carpets and kids' toys and
a TV set, must have made many people uncomfortably look over their
shoulders to identify the source of any strange noise or unexpected
draught. I certainly felt that way. Although my curiosity was
strongly aroused by the sensational newspaper coverage, I did not
dare to take a walk past the haunted house just in case some
malevolent invisible presence decided to follow me home.
It has not
been proven that the case of the Enfield Poltergeist was a real
instance of poltergeist activity but, on the other hand, it has
never been proven that the Enfield Poltergeist was anything other
than a genuine haunting.
About the author: Elaine Currie
runs a Work At
Home Directory from her home in Enfield. To learn more about the
home of the Enfield Poltergeist visit
Enfield
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