October 2008 Archives

Yes, it's that scary time of year again.

The shops are full of pumpkins and pointy hats. Little devils roam from door to door demanding money and sweets. If you don't pay up, you may well find your front door decorated with eggs and flour (the little monsters).

There is, of course, a lot more to Halloween than this recent import of American trick or treatery.

Just down the road in Gloucestershire there are some wonderfully haunted old places. Most of them are open to the public and some offer special ghost tours and events.

One of the strangest and most well known is Woodchester Mansion. This place is weird, not only because of its haunted reputation, but because it was never lived in.

Actually, they never finished building it. One day, in the early 1870's, the builders put their tools down and never returned. There is a rational explanation for this.

ARE YOU READY TO ROCK AND ROLL?

NOW, FOR MY NEXT NUMBER.......

Ok, I'm not exactly Tina Turner (or Yvette Fielding for that matter). I'm just your average ghosthuntin' girl next door.

However I recently got to play a blinding gig at Wolverhampton Civic Hall (Do I hear the sound of screaming boys?). I even got to sit in Robert Plant's special seat. I could almost smell his lingering aroma, the aftershave, the sweat, the test...

(Joanne, behave yourself - Sunday Mercury Moderator).

Ok boss, but I was only going to say testosterone. Now where was I? Ball is back in my court.

The Civic Hall contacted us and asked if we would be interested in conducting an investigation there. A lot of the staff were interested in the paranormal and some had experienced the odd bit of strangeness themselves. Of course we jumped at the invitation to investigate such a large grand venue.

The manager gave us a date and so a short while later we packed a thermos and some cheese sandwiches and made our way to the Hagley Rd to jump on the 126. (The black 4x4 was out of action, somebody had spiked the tyres).

The Old Crown in Deritend is one of a few remaining examples of Birmingham's medieval past.

It's amazing that this building has survived considering how close it has come to being destroyed during its long life.

It has seen off Civil War soldiers, Victorian town planners, German bombs, and a few centuries worth of drunken Brummies.

No one is exactly sure of the date of The Old Crown's construction, but it is likely it has its origins in the late 14th century and was built by a gentleman called Robert O' The Green. (I haven't been able to find out much about this rather interestingly named fellow).

The building as we see it today probably dates from the Tudor period and the oldest description we have is by John Leland. He visited Deritend in 1538 and was impressed enough to write about it in a letter to his master Henry VIII. He described what he had seen as "a fair mansion of tymber", (Leland, Birmingham Itinerary 1538).

At this time the Old Crown was being used as a guildhall and school. A few decades later it was owned by a businessman called John Dykson.