The Black Monk of Pontefract Part 1

The quote, "Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days" is attributed to Benjamin Franklin. We assume the esteemed Mr. Franklin was speaking only of human guests, but it could also apply to the subject of tonight's show. Because the uninvited guest of 30 East Drive in Pontefract, England would prove to be more than an annoying visitor oblivious to hints or uncaring that they'd overstayed their welcome, it would show itself as a threat to the family's safety and sanity. In the mid-1960s and 70s, the Pritchard family who lived at that address experienced a visitor who was not only unwelcome but unseen, a capricious prankster whose sense of humor was offset by its sometimes vicious and violent power. Human beings have an astounding ability to endure hardships they are powerless against and eventually, this poltergeist presence came to be somewhat accepted, with the mother of the family, Jean, giving it the nickname "Fred." But what was this force in supernatural terms? Was Fred merely poltergeist energy in the general definition, a collective of entities, a demon, or the vengeful spirit of a condemned man? A local legend that a 16th century Cluniac Monk was tried and executed for a horrific crime on those grounds is the source for that last idea. Some have seen a dark, shadowy figure wearing a black monk's robe around the property and it has reinforced that notion. If that is the case, perhaps the Pritchards were the unwelcome visitors to the home of "The Black Monk."

For more information on this episode visit our website!

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(443)

S2 Ep13: No Human Could Throw Books Like This

In tonight’s dead letter, we hear from a librarian who works the desk at a fairly new building down in the Southeast. But the ground it sits on has a much heavier history: the library was built right ...

8 Apr 42min

S2 Ep12: The Carousel in the Ravine (Reposted)

In tonight’s dead letter, we hear a story from a listener who along with her husband encountered something bizarre hovering low near their land down in the southernmost part of the Australian mainland...

1 Apr 41min

S2 Ep11: The Nightshift Protocol

In tonight’s dead letter, a routine room cleaning following a patient's passing turns into a puzzling technological glitch. A sensor alarm designed to protect patients from hurting themselves keeps go...

24 Mars 40min

The Disappearance of Jim Sullivan

In the lonely New Mexico desert, police discover an abandoned Volkswagen Beetle containing a 12-string guitar, a wallet, clothes, and a box of unsold records. Things a working musician would never wil...

22 Mars 2h 31min

S2 Ep10: Stranger Danger

In tonight’s Dead Letter, Forrest and Scott read a submission from Stacey, which delves into the "Uncanny Valley" phenomenon in a true-life scenario. In a coastal town already known for its dark past ...

17 Mars 40min

Live Junk Drawer Tonight on Patreon!

Tonight, Forrest and I are sitting down with Jeremiah Byron for an exclusive live video interview about the unprecedented, real-time flap of Bigfoot sightings currently moving through Northeast Ohio. ...

15 Mars 1min

S2 Ep9: Another Bunny

In tonight’s dead letter from listener Amanda, the boundary between an adorable trusted holiday icon and nocturnal terror is tested in the deep woods near the Allegheny National Forest. A massive silh...

10 Mars 44min

Through a Laser Darkly

This episode dives into one of the strangest modern consciousness experiments ever proposed. Starting with cognitive scientist Donald Hoffman’s provocative idea that reality may function like a comput...

8 Mars 2h 24min