Welcome to the fifty-first edition of the Borley Ghost Society Newsletter.

Many BR pages on the web suggest that strange things didn't start happening until after Rectory was built. This one web site, however, indicates Rev Bull was warned by locals that site was haunted.
Scott Cunningham
Many BR pages on the web suggest that strange things didn't start happening until after Rectory was built. This one, however, indicates Rev Bull was warned by locals that site was haunted. I suspect this page is based on Banks' statement? "Even the original tenants of the house, the Rev. Henry Bull family had encountered the spirits. He had become pastor of Borley Church in 1862 and despite local warnings, had built the rectory on a site believed by locals to be haunted." I have come to the conclusion that he was indeed told by locals that the area was haunted. I base my conclusion primarily on Mrs. Cecil Baines statement that neither Rev's Henry or Harry would have researched the history of the area to begin with. Given the Rev's suggested indifference to local history, the BR dining room fireplace should never have been built with monk figurines. This shows that Rev Henry was minimally exposted to local lore before the Rectory was built although I suppose the figurines could have been installed after it was built. The bottom line is that I can hardly imaginate that Rev Henry was the _source_ of Borley legends. And I think the legends were invented by the locals in an attempt to explain unusual happenings in the area. Finally, BR "inherited" a cellar that included a cold spot, a well that didn't like to be covered, and buried skull fragments. So architectural features connected with poltergeist activity were definitely present before the Rectory was built. Indeed, I cannot believe the cold spot, noted by Price to be sinking ground, didn't appear until after the Rectory was built.
Scott Cunningham
[Here is the key sentence you picked up from Troy Taylor's site - "He had become pastor of Borley Church in 1862 and despite local warnings, had built the rectory on a site believed by locals to be haunted." Troy told me his source for that statement was Hauntings, the 1989 book from Time-Life. In turn, Time-Life cites Poltergeist Over England by Harry Price. No where in that volume do the locals "warn" Henry Bull. It is your opinion from reading the Baines notes that hauntings were discussed, but to have Henry build "despite local warnings" is not found in any of the original records by Harry Price nor Rev. Henning. Peter Underwood wrote in The Ghosts of Borley, "Both the site and the buildings were the center of many legends of haunts and ghostly happenings. . . .certainly [Henry] and his wife knew about the legend of the ghostly nun." (pp. 19, 21) But there is no sentence in that book either of Henry being "warned." Discussions and warnings are two different things. In the end, it may be a matter of semantics, and might not even matter. Our discussion started with my observation that THIS web site needs to be the most accurate available. Speculation may abound, but my site will endeavor to be as accurate as possible. You have provided me with the impetus to research the subject, and to make several changes on my web site, for which I am grateful. Thank you!]
With respect to Henry Bull actually being warned about building in a haunted area, no, there is no evidence that he was warned. Indeed, such wording probably just tends to "sell" the story of Borley Rectory a bit better. But with respect to contemplating the nature of the haunting, presuming the area was haunted before the Rectory was built saves us from thinking we need to research the composition of the Rectory's bricks, for example. Indeed, the Rectory's bricks are the last "stone" I would turn over in attempting to determine the nature of ghosts.
Scott Cunningham

Woog, Adam. Poltergeists. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1995. Part of "Great Mysteries: Opposing Viewpoints," series. pp. 24, 42-48, 64. Very good photo from southeast gate, and after the fire. Also one of Price at a different location. ("One of the more common violent actions attributed to poltergeists is fire setting. On occasion this has resulted in entire houses burning down, as was the famous case of Borley Rectory in England." How common is fire setting? Uses present tense in some case, as if rectory was still standing. "England's Borley Rectory is perhaps the most famous site of poltergeist activity in the world. It was researched with all the tools investigators had at thier disposal, yet remains a mystery." Wording gives the wrong impression Price "moved in with a team," when various members actually only visited from time to time. Mentions the 1956 article by Dingwall/Goldney/Hall without mentioning rebuttal by Hastings in 1969.) **

I am not sure if you are aware of the following:
Stewart P Evans
Headley, Gwyn; Meulenkamp, Wim. Follies. London: Jonathan Cape, 1986. pp. 342-343. ("Essex has a number of folly-towers of a more traditional sort. All are eclipsed by Bull's Tower in PENTLOW, a rather attractive, unostentatious Victorian brick tower in a rectory garden. When we called we tugged on the old bell-pull and far away in the depths of the house a rusty bell finally tolled. No one answered. When we stepped back we saw that every window of the house had a white cat sitting in it looking out at us. Nervously we made our way across the ramshackle lawn to the tower. It is 70 feet high, banded with diapered cross-and-diamond bricking, with the date, 1859, prominently set above the door. Above that is a narrow window, and then further up the initials 'AC'i', also picked out in dark blue brick. We cannot find out what this could stand for. A plaque records, 'This tower was erected by the Rev. Edward Bull, M.A., in memory of his parents on a spot they loved so well.' It is also the most frightening building we have ever been halfway up. Only long after we had got away from it, tyres squealing, overcome by inexplicable terror, did we sit down and try to rationalise the fear. A little research made it worse. We discovered that the Rev. Mr Bull left Pentlow to become rector at another village four miles away and built himself a new rectory there in 1865; his Borley Rectory, which burnt down mysteriously in 1941 [sic], took only a few years to establish itself as the most haunted house in England. Old photographs of Borley show it to be similar in style to the rectory at Pentlow. Nothing in Essex equals Pentlow for atmosphere - we haven't been back since 1974 - and no other tower in the country compares with it as a folly." Edward did not go to Borley - Henry did. The year was 1863, and the fire was 1939.)

Pickersgill, Ronald S. "Essex Commentary - Most haunted house." The Essex Countryside. Vol. 5 No. 20, Summer 1957, page 151. ("IT does not seem twenty years since the late Harry Price advertised in 'The Times' (May 25, 1937) for people to spend a certain time in Borley Rectory in order that he might gain further information concerning what has often been called "the most haunted house in England." Reading recently 'The Haunting of Borley Rectory', by a trio of authors concerned with the Society of Psychical Research, I see that they doubt much that Harry Price said about the place. I wonder if any readers of THE ESSEX COUNTRYSIDE ever spent some time in Borley Rectory before it was burnt down. 'Peterborough,' in the Daily Telegraph, recently had something to say about Borley. He mentioned that Mr. Philip Paul, the vice-chairman of the Ghost Club, had told the Psychic and Literary Luncheon Club that 'neither Price's inaccuracies nor the attempts to demolish his claims shook the strong evidence for ghostly phenomena.' Disappointingly, though, Mr. Paul had to admit that though he had been to Borley on July 28 for the last seven years he had failed to see the famous woman in black who has appeared to so many others on that day. Harry Price believed the woman in black to be the ghost of a nun murdered 300 years ago. After extensive digging Mr. Paul did in fact unearth parts of a female skull - unfortunately 200 years too young. Nevertheless, strange manifestations still persist. There is also the problem of the signpost still indicating a path now vanished. If the sign is accurate, that would be the right direction for Borley's other grand phenomenon, the phantom coach driven by two headless coachmen, which drives up to the rectory's coach-house and then dissolves. 'Peterborough' says 'Borley Rectory, Suffolk.' I presume this is yet another case where a place has 'a foster county' for its postal activities.")

Pickersgill, Ronald S. "Borley Rectory - a note." The Essex Countryside. Vol. 6 No. 23, December/January 1957/58, page 99. (Follow-up to previous article. Quotes letter from Peter Underwood calling Dingwall/Goldney/Hall effort, "totally inacurrate in some repsects." Calls for further eye-witness accounts for upcoming book to be titled The Truth About Borley Rectory, which was released as The Ghosts of Borley.) ** image

Robinson, Nora I.A. "Essex Ghosts." The Essex Countryside. Vol. 6 No. 24, February/March 1958, page 133. (Two brief paragraphs included with discussions of Anne Boleyn and giants. ". . .[various phenomnea] point to psychical powers at work over many years.") ** complete article

Cave, Janet. Foreman, Laura. Hicks, Jim. Hauntings. Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books, 1989, 1991. Reprint, Barnes &Noble, 1997. One book in the "Mysteries of the Unknown" series. "England's Most Haunted House," pp. 65-69. Picture of Marianne and Lionel, with children Adelaide and Francois. Photo of envelope with wall writing excerpt, "Marianne," then her reply, "What do you want?" and the answer, "Rest." No credit given for origin of this photo. ("The Reverend Henry Dawson Ellis Bull, who became pastor of Borley Church in 1862, was untroubled by the ghost stories told about his parish and did not hesitate to build his new house on the very site most likely to be haunted by the village's restless spirits. Local legend had it that Borley Rectory was constructed atop the ruined foundations of two much-older structues, the manor house of the noble Waldegrave family and an ancient monastery." Original records do not indicate Bull built on a known haunted site. Prior building was defined by Harry Price, not "local legend." Comprehensive bibliography.) Updated to reflect discrepancy.

Here is the page with the pics on it. . . .[from] a childrens annual about ghosts, I think it was called Ghost Special No.2 I bought it second hand when I was around 13 yrs old and unfortunatley only kept the pages that interested me, I have several more pages from the book but they are not concernign Borley and give no indication of the age of the book etc. Remember of course that I live in the UK and that the book probaly was only published in the UK. . . . The book by the way was the whole reason I became interested in the Borley hauntings and the reason I visited Borley for the first time in the late 80`s. I only wish I could help more and I will endevour to try and find out myself the title of the book but as I have never seen another copy of it anywhere I don't hold out much hope.
Robbie Bailey
"The spookiest house in England." Ghost Special No.2(?) No publication data. Probably children's annual. Four pages. Four color photos of cottage, broken bricks, foundation, and pig sty. Etching of rectory and nun. (Basic calendar of main events. Told in first person. Mostly accurate.) ** photocopy
[Can any associate identify this magazine?]

I am an Australian student who wishes to write an essay on the haunting and related history of Borley Rectory and other places in Great Britain that have been haunted in a similar manner to the Borley Rectory. If you know of any other places in Great Britain or know where I may find resources relating to my topic on the Internet I would greatly appreciate the help.
Rhonwyn Vaudrey
[For the Borley portion of your paper, please consult my Report Guide. When you are finished, please consider sending a copy for inclusion in my Bibliography. My studies are devoted exclusively to Borley, but there are MANY allegedly haunted sites in Britain. Use a good search engine like google.com and you will find scores of web pages.]

Thought you might like to hear some EVP that was recorded at Borley Church recently, I came across this site in a forum. Please follow the links on the "Investigations" page. I am myself will be re-visiting Borley in the next couple of week's with a view to conducting my own EVP experiment. And of course we will be mindful of the locals during our visit. I will of course let you know if any results are obtained.
Best regards
Gary Cooke

I saw your site. Quite Impressed.
John Borley
Woodbridge, VA, USA

I am an English Philology Student who come from Spain and I am just trying to read your book on line "The Ghosts that will not Die" but I must ask you for something. What is the real meaning of the word "apports" you mentioned on it?.
Thank you very much.
José María Gallardo Blanco
[This web page has a good definition.]

Thanks so much for the BGS Newsletter No. 50, a really good read, as always. . . . I was surprised that Andrew Green should suggest ANY comments in James Turner's My Life With Borley be taken seriously. This was a fictional satire and not a single word was to be taken as factual as Turner himself told me. Green's own written account is deeply flawed as the publisher Peter Wolfe acknowledge to me in a letter.
According to my old late friend Sidney Glanville, who produced a comprehensive list of Harry Price's books, pamphlets and articles, he only wrote one article for the "American Weekly," published 11 December 1938 and titled, "The Mystery of Borley Rectory." Could this possibly be the article referred to by Heidi Strandt? [Please refer to] my article on Harry Price and his books published in "Book Collector" dated October 2001.
Elizabeth Jane Howard was Sir Peter Scott's first wife, and Robert Aickman, who had long been a friend of Scott, became infatuated with her. It was a complicated situation but everyone remianed good freinds. I knew all three. Aickman, "that marvelous and most exceptional man," as Peter Scott once put it, was an unusual combination in that he was seriously interested in the scientific investigation of ghosts and haunted houses - and he wrote masetrly fictional "strange tales" as he use to call them, for which he became justly famous. My wife and I entertained him at our homw, and he entertained us at his London flat.
I attended a special showing of "Spotlight on Spooks," the 1951 Rayant short film that included shots of the rectory site and views of Borley inhabitants including James Turner.
I do not wish to name names at this moment of time, but it is incorrect to say that no one who visited Borley Rectory is still alive. Such people are still to be found in the Borley area and elsewhere.
Actually the London club I mentioned as Joad being a member was the Savage Club!
Best always,
Peter Underwood

Sorry to trouble you but I could not get access to Newsletter No 50 as there appeared to be a problem.
With every good wish.
Richard Lee-Van den Daele
[Access was down for a time due to security problems.]

[Your mother] was a brave woman in that place, I forever am remembering her saying something about there were somethings that couldn't be explained and it puzzled them. In another book I read one of the Bull sisters commenting on her own sister who told someone that the whole thing was nonsense, to which she answered, 'she used to shriek and shriek whenever something happened'. It takes a great deal of courage to live in a haunted house. Even Price who tried to sleep in the blue room was about to run away in the dead of night (there's that word again)...She had to be a courageous type who spent time there optimistically, the reminiscensces of the garden 'the rhododendrons made a blue showing...' which is how I chose to paint her. Someone who could stand on the porch with the haunting at her back, and still admire the beauty of the place, someone who could live side by side with a frightening mystery and hold her own. That shows fortitude. I think the house may have reacted to her because inside she had more than most, a lot of reserve, a lot of chutzpah, and beautiful as well.
Barbara Clements

i have a question for you about the sightings. it says in my research that in the five years that your mom lived there, she was able to explain away a lot of the strange events. my question to you is, do you know what those events are and how she was able to explain how they happened? also do you know what are the other events that she could not explain? if you could help me with this i would be greatly appreciated.
Sarah Sawyer
[Where did you find this sentence? It has been "borrowed" from my books, and bandied about in several places. Where did you see it? The original sentence I wrote is, "Years later, Marianne discussed how many of those events could be explained naturally, but she could not explain all of them, including several writings on the walls." I based that conclusion on many things, including the Iris Owen interview. You will find much more as you explore the hundreds of pages on my web site. The easiest way to look around is to use the Master Site Index. When your report is done, I would love to see it, and post it in my Bibliography.]

i hate to be perdantic but i have spotted an error in the second chapter of the ghosts that will not die ,the borley legend 1066-1930. you list borley being listed in doomsday book in 1066. william the first did not commision the book until1085, the first draft was not compleated until 1086.i dont know when borley was first mentioned but 1066 is a bit to early. all the best eddie brazil
[Correction made, thanks for the tip!]

I've been re-reading some M R James (Ghost stories of an antiquary, etc.) on holiday. Do you know, one of the stories - "Count Magnus" - has its final scene/denuoment in the next parish to Borley (Belchamps St Paul) and involves a coach and horse (a jig) being pursued by a phantom! The phantom kills the 'hero' in a lodging house in Belchamps. This was published in 1903. Could this be one of the sources of the legend?. I'm now trawling the ghost-stories before 1910 for one about a nun!
Andrew Clarke

I am from Fort Knox, Kentucky, USA. I have read your site from top to bottom and loved every minute of it, took me several days but I read every last word. I am very interested in the paranormal, ghost and the likes. I do plan to look more on the net for more information on the Borley Rectory and the occupants. Anyway my whole reason for writing is this...in the Locked Book contents at the very bottom the site has a whole list of planchette readings, which I found remarkable. To me the reading gave great detail of where the body of the nun (should there really be a nun) should be and how to put the spirits to rest ( light, mass, pray). So I was wondering if the suspose grave was ever investigated or did the prayer ever take place. I am very interested in this so if you could find the time to answer my questions I would be most delighted.
Thank you so much for your time,
Heather Gray
[Thank you for your interest. My web site was the first on the subject, and I hope it will remian the most exhaustive study available. I have just added some photos of the discovery and subsequent burial of the bones found in the cellar. In addition to whatever prayers were said during this burial, Iris Owen reports, "It is also noteworthy that the poltergeist phenomena finally ceased after Marianne says she pleaded that the house be "cleaned." She wanted a religious service. Edwin arranged for a mass to be said, and Lionel officiated at a religious service."]

I discovered this site quite by chance this evening whilst browsing through ghost pictures on the internet. It brought back memories of my time though brief it was investigating Borley. I have to be honest and say that several of the pictures taken with captions stating that they could be that of the famous or indeed Infamous Harry Price are rubbish. The pictures taken of what seem to be a figure between a tree and the hedge of the church yard could be that of a man in a dirty rain coat wearing a dark hat or a women with her hair tied in a bunch. Basically they could be anything that the observer wants them to be if stared at long enough.
I have to agree with Mr. David Bamber regarding the image of Harry Prices face on the gravestone close to the fence. Indeed wishful thinking sir. In-fact all of the pictures shown on the site show nothing. Indeed I also must confess that the countless hours at day and night spent there with others, all the pictures that were taken show nothing but a beautiful church and nicely kept grounds.
However tape recordings seem to be another matter. I know of a recording which was broadcast on the BBC way back in the seventies which produced sounds from within the church of great interest. I also have or had I should say a recording of some interesting beats from within the church.
Also I believe that the history of Mr. Harry Price should be looked at quite closely if not so already. His autobiography is interesting reading to say the least.
Probably the most talked about picture in your page groupings is the one with the flying brick. From the mouth of the photographer, 'only a few feet away was a workman hurling bricks.'
I wish you luck in your investigations of Borley. The families that lived there hold part of the answer. If you can study them you will get a good picture of events. These and Harry Price himself play a large part in this enigma.
One thing I will concede to you is that Borley has guests from times gone by, made famous by a fame seeker. Whether there are as many as claimed to be is another question.
Good luck, Good health and Good hunting to you all.
G. Moult
[Thank you for sharing. Several people agree with you about the photographs, especially Stephen D. Smith and Gary Cooke. I have copies of that church recording available. Thank you for your kind words.]

I am writing an article for the Daily Telegraph about the buying and selling of haunted houses. Would you be interested in talking to me, in return for a credit for the website? I am talking to various British estate agents, and some occupants of reputedly haunted houses. I thought it essential to get Borley Rectory in there somewhere, because the house is so famous. I would like to ask you about what happened to the house after the Foyster incumbancy. There was an attempt to lease the house, I believe. By whom? The Church of England, presumably. Then the investigator Harry Price returned for a while? Was the house then sold? If so by whom and who to? Who would want to buy it given its reputation? I am also not quite sure what you mean when you describe yourself as having been adopted by Marianne Foyster as a war baby? Perhaps you could also supply a couple more details about yourself, such as your profession and roughly where you live in America. I would be very happy to mention your works on the history of Borley, and where readers of the Telegraph, which has a circulation of about a million, might find them. Incidentally, weren't the the Foysters themselves nervous about moving into the property?
Yours sincerely,
Andrew Martin
[Thank you for the opportunity. Again, I emphasize that any alleged haunting at Borley Rectory was consumed in the flames of 1939. Three private homes have been built on the site in recent years with no ill effects. These new residents have made no further complaints of any type whatsoever. The villagers are extremely perturbed by the constant attention of vandals, louts, and other inconsiderate visitors seeking "something" where nothing exists. I outline their consternation in my Appeal to Visitors. IF the site of Borley Rectory was ever haunted, those visitations have long since ended, and therefore this particular location probably does not fit inside the pervue of your article. The original builder of the rectory, Henry Dawson Ellis Bull, donated it for church use. As Guy Smith and Lionel Foyster were to serve as rectors, neither was required to purchase the building. Running water, electricity, and central heat were never installed at the Rectory, much to the annoyance of those considering living there. Prior to my mother and her husband moving in during October of 1930, up to 12 other clergy members had turned down the post - NOT because of any alleged haunting, but due to the condition of the building. Lionel and Marianne Foyster had no reservations about moving in, other than the lack of amenities. When they left, it WAS NOT because of the alleged haunting, but only because of Lionel's ill health. The place stood empty after the Foysters more because of its condition than because of its reputation. As Ivan Banks states on page 102 of The Enigma of Borley Rectory, "Although the Smiths and the Foysters had spent some money tidying up the old Rectory, by the time the Hennings came, it was already reverting to a state of progressive dilapidation. Harry Price could not satisfactorily maintain it (during his 1937/38 lease)." The uneventful lease of Harry Price is fully documented by Sidney Glanville in the pages of his "Locked Book," which is reproduced in full on my web site. The Ecclesiastical Commission at 1 Millbank, Westminster ordered the inventory of 1938, so it may be assumed it was that body that sold the property to Captain William Hart Gregson late that year. There is confusion even among members of his own family as to the reason for his purchase, but the insurance adjusters were convinced it was all about fraud after the fire of February 27-28, 1939. As for myself, I was conceived while the war was winding down, and given up by my birth mother to Marianne Foyster, then living in Ipswich, during November of 1945. We moved to the United States in 1946, where I eventually became involved in radio, television, and writing. I began my study of Borley in 1994, and established the web site a couple of years later. I established the Borley Ghost Society in 1998. The mission statement of the Society declares my neutrality toward the issue of the haunting, and emphasizes clearly, "It is not the purpose of the Society to cause undue hardship, embarrassment, or discomfort to the present residents of Borley. Their rights and serenities will not be disrupted by any member of the Society. Such residents will be treated with the same dignity in which Associates of the Society would wish to be treated."]

Re: Andrew Martin - It belonged to the 'living', which was assigned by the patrons. The capital that the Bulls put into the house would have been, in effect, donated to the church. Remember Marianne's account of Whitehouse (churchwarden) lecturing your mother on what she could and could not do to the decorations of the house. Captain Gregson was the first ever to have bought the house...and the last.
Andrew Clarke

Very Glad to see so much respect shown to the people of Borley and the precincts of the church. I was glad to be able to visit briefly earlier this year, after 20 years of fascination with the site, but I only felt it was respectful to take a quick photo and then depart quietly.
DKrr1@aol.com

As always a fascinating newsletter. . . . I was searching the entire Internet for a map of Borley area, just like the one you put up.
Barbara Clements

I knew "Joe" Davies, a.k.a. "Father Aquinas" when he was a priest in London's east end in the 1970s, but - much to my eternal regret - I never visited him during his time at Borley. . . .From what I remember of him, the figure reported by Beverly Burton in Newsletter #50 sounds very familiar to me. It sounds just like Joe!
With best wishes,
Stephen D. Smith