22/09/2008 by admin.

Summer? What summer? The season officially ended yesterday - in an ironic blaze of sunshine.  But the warm weather could not save this year’s summer from a place in the worst top ten on record. There was 14 inches of rain and 464 hourse of sunshine - 7% less than the average.  As mentioned earlier on our ‘Watch’ August was a particularly gloomy month.  The poor weather was blamed on a jet-stream of fast winds high over Britain which blocked warm weather arriving from Southern Europe.  All very interesting given Mary Shelley’s role in our story and the reference to ‘A year without a summer’ which led to her writing the famous Frankenstien story.

Meanwhile, the number of fake £1 coins in circulation has doubled over the past 5 years, and now stands at nearly 30 million.  A Survey conducted by the Royal Mint revealed some 2% of £1 coins are now fake.  There are ways to tell a forgery from the real thing, you just need to know what you’re looking for. This curious to us given our discovery of coins from the Maundy Ceremony and Julia’s observation, “Are the coins genuine?’ Coincidence?

And finally, habitat loss is contributing to the worldwide decline of populations of common birds, with Birdlife International reporting fa fall in numbers of 45% of Europe’s common birds.  Farmland birds were the worst affected with the number of European Turtle Doves falling by 79%.  The study shows that environmental degregation is having a major impact, not just on birds but on bio-diversity in general.  Readers may recall how Emma Isola and Ralph Emerson sing a lament to the newly weds, Captain Lewin and Lady Katharine on Christmas Eve, which is all about two Turtle Doves!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCB4-JWZ1kQ&feature=related

Posted in Q65 Have you ever wished you could fly?, Q76 Are you going to take action now to save our world?, Q33 Do you believe in life after death?, Q28 Have you ever lived in poverty?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost?, Q.3 Do you have a good imagination? | No Comments »

21/09/2008 by admin.

A millionaire businessman in Yorkshire has become so spooked by his haunted mansion that he fled and left it to the bank.  The owner, Anwar Rashid, described how he and his family became so terrified after hearing screams, knocking and seeing apirations in the mansion at Clifton Hall.  He compared his experience to Nicole Kidman’s movie, The Others. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vu494-Dr5po

If Charles’ diary is to be believed, perhaps he ought to pay a visit to Blakesware Manor to witness the ghostly events there too? 

Posted in Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q16 Have you ever had a psychic experience?, Q15 Do you sometimes fear the worst?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | No Comments »

01/09/2008 by admin.

Last month was the greyest August on record - and one of the wettest ever.  Britain had just 105.5 hours of sunshine, compared to the August average of 165.1 hours.  This was put down to a temporary shift in the Gulf Stream, and a cooling current in the Pacific known as La Nina. 

Curious that this should happen - might it be the impact of the mysterious Lady in Grey in our story?

Posted in Q46 Do you value a good education?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | No Comments »

19/04/2008 by admin.

The Hammer horror star, Hazel Court, has died of a heart attack, aged 82. She was known as the Queen of Scream, because of her loud and bloody roles in a handful of films created by a monster cult following.  Among her original fans was the writer, Stephen King, who once said, “Who could ask for more?” when describing the thrill of meeting her.  Hazel starred in such films as The Raven, The Man Who could Cheat Death and The Curse of Frankenstien. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTaj3rLPd68

Many regarded her as very much of the English rose generation. Here’s an iconic image:

Hazel took the screaming seriously, “One can’t just scream,” she said in 2000. “To give a good scream one has to take an enormous breath, and such one’s stomach in, and fill one’s lungs and let go.”

This as a study by the UK Noise Association reveals that noise pollution in Britain has doubled since the 1960s.  People are often woken at night by the piercing scream of a car alarm, the wail of an emergency vehicle whizzing passed, or the bleep of a mobile phone with a low battery!  The hum of traffic is rarely far away and our skies echo to the sound of planes and helicopters.  At work, the low drone of the computer hard drive is inescapable.  Walk into a store and we’re often greeted by piped music! Complaints about anti-social levels of noise have soared, as many flats and apartments have poor sound insulation.  Now, what was it Sir Peter Scott said to Sarah about his hearing?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrfZpVYrbdM

Posted in Q75 Have you ever put on a show?, Q78 Do you want to be part of the picture?, Q44 Is there anything worse than a fly at night?, Q33 Do you believe in life after death?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | No Comments »

22/02/2008 by admin.

A special exhibition is taking place at the Metropolitain Museum of Art in New York, featuring the American artist, Jasper Johns.

 http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={A0EA279E-8A65-4D15-A346-C1C8981A6765}&HomePageLink=special_c2a

It recasts the ashen shade as one that gives an intelligent perspective on the complexities of life.  The exhibition has encouraged critics to think afresh about the significance and meaning of grey in our lifes and in art and politics. For many grey is unappealing, uninteresting and unexciting. There is, after all, no grey in the rainbow, yet readers of ‘The Haymakers Survey’ know the wonder in the colour grey.  In the words of the 1960s popular music group, The Monkees…

Today there is no day or night
Today there is no dark or light,
Today there is no black or white
Only shades of gray.

Posted in Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost?, Q.2 Are you an art lover? | No Comments »

12/02/2008 by admin.

Hamsters have become the must-have pet in China, since the Year of the rat began. Pet shop owners say stocks are running low - and prices high - as children clamour for a furry friend.  According to the Chinese media, prices have tripled to about 30 yuan ($4.20, £2.10) per hamster across the country.  In the Year of the Rat, this tiny creature has become the most acceptable rodent, a type of animal that is not everyone’s first-choice pet.  “Rats and mice have a bad image, but hamsters are gentle.  Take a look…

We know all about the magic of hamsters.  So do Xinhua news who say, “You can hold them in your hand and play with them.”  We suggest they buy a plastic ball for them to run around in, just like Dixie!  It’s strange how each of the animals in our adventure are in the headlines just now. 

Take the extremely rare young white stag which has appeared in the Highlands of Scotland! The John Muir Trust, a conservation body, has confirmed the sightings in a secret location of the West Coast.  Sine time immemorial, a white stag has been regarded as a mystical messenger from the afterlife; a creature that chills the blood of kings and commoners alike.  Mrs Lockhart from the trust had the good fortune to witness the stag, describing the animal as ‘ a magnificent ghost-like creature when set aginst the red stags.’  Now, didn’t Lucy claim that a white stag came to Yggdrasil not long after it was planted!

View the animal via this clip… http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_7230000/newsid_7238700/7238787.stm?bw=bb&mp=wm&news=1&bbcws=1

A Dutch optics engineer named Ralf Ottow claims to have invented the world’s brightest torch, equivalent to 52 million candles with a remarkable reach of 9 miles.  The Maxablaster can light a ship miles out at sea and make clouds glow in the night sky.  The special bulb creates an ultra hot plasma between two closely spaced electrodes inside a gas-filled central chamber. The inventor says, “It’s not a torch to walk your dog with as it’ll probably cook him!” Good job that Ben had a more basic model when he went in search of Malachi that equinox.

Posted in Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q37 Do you know how to have fun?, Q23 Do you believe all the laws of physics?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | No Comments »

29/10/2007 by admin.

Readers of ‘The Haymakers Survey’ will be aware of the link between the Oasis song, ‘Wonderwall’ and the medieval carvings at Royston cave.  They’ll also know how much of a Beatles fan Ben Whittenbury is. Well his favourite Beatle was John Lennon.  So, isn’t it strange that Liam Gallagher the ‘Wonderwall’ singer claims to have seen an apparition of his idol. He said, “I was… having a sleep. I remember getting up and feeling really weird. I turned around and there I was lying on the bed, and I sort of fell back into my body. There was a presence there, it was him, Lennon!” He added, “Some might say I imagined it!”  This prompted Ben to take a fresh look at John Lennon’s haunting video for ‘Imagine’. 

After everything we’ve experienced the sillouhetted figures in the opening scenes of, ‘Imagine’ seem quite incredible.   You have to read our book to understand all of this, but the past has caught up with the future! Amazing!

Posted in Q79 Have you ever looked into the shadows?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q40 Can you play a musical instrument?, Q39 Do you believe in magic?, Q16 Have you ever had a psychic experience?, Q33 Do you believe in life after death?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | Comments Off

26/10/2007 by admin.

A friend of Julia’s went by chance into an antiquitarian bookshop and, against all odds, discovered a 100 year old book about the ’Home and Haunts of Charles Lamb!”  It was on the shelf immediately behind the receptionist. The contents include a description of Charles’ time at Blakesware. 

In America, an Amazon pet parrot named Peanut saved a father 33 and son 9 from a house fire by imatating a smoke alarm.  The blaze happened at 3:00am.  The father said, ”He was screaming his head off. If he wasn’t there we wouldnt be here today.” We see this is an alarm call from nature to humanity for us to act to save our warming world. 

Curious that these two things happened to coincide with a UN Global Environment Outlook report - GEO4 stressing the survival of mankind depends on the world’s response to tackling climate change, preserving fresh water supplies and saving endangered species.  Human activity has reached an unsustainable level, outstripping available resources.

Posted in Q58 Do things happen for a reason?, Q76 Are you going to take action now to save our world?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q54 Do you enjoy a bit of a mystery?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted?, Q17 Can you speak another language?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | Comments Off

12/10/2007 by admin.

Al Gore, the celebrated environmentalist and ‘Earth Champion’ was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.  This richly deserved award helps keep the issues around climate change and global warming on the political and public agenda.  It came as no surprise to us that the skies above Hertfordshire have been a dreary shade of grey all day.  Take a look at our novel sample and the truth about the ‘Lady in Grey’ begins to emerge.  It’s ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, but can we help her to find the precious thing she has lost before it’s too late!

Posted in Q15 Do you sometimes fear the worst?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost?, Q.7 Have you dreamed of being a champion?, Q.1 Does your life have a purpose? | Comments Off

04/10/2007 by admin.

In a scene resembling the Lady in Grey appearance before Ben Whittingbury, a ghostly apparition has been caught on camera along a footpath in Outwood, West Yorkshire.  Mr Gunn, a member of the Outwood Community Video Club, said there’s something perculiar about the footage. The apparition appears frozen in the footage, but fades away as two people jog towards it. Mr Gunn has had the camera for quite a while and has never experienced any problems with lighting or sun glare.  It’s begged the question amongst fellow members of the video club, “Do you believe in ghosts?’  Here’s the link…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_7020000/newsid_7028900/7028958.stm?bw=bb&mp=wm&news=1&bbcws=1

Posted in Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q54 Do you enjoy a bit of a mystery?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q10 Have you ever seen a ghost? | No Comments »